Southwest X receives million-dollar funding in Saarland, transforming the region into a hub for start-up ventures.
Southwest X Wins Nationwide Startup Factories Competition
The innovative project "Southwest X - The Bridge to Innovation," led by the University of Saarland, has been awarded up to 10 million euros in the EXIST Startup Factories competition by the German Federal Ministry. This recognition is in support of high-potential startup ecosystems, aimed at promoting innovation and strengthening startup collaboration across borders.
The award ceremony took place on July 10 in Berlin, with Economics Minister Jürgen Barke praising the consortium, stating that this is a significant milestone for their location. Science and Finance Minister Jakob von Weizsäcker commended the partnership between the Saarland and WHU in Rhineland-Palatinate.
The Southwest X project is an initiative aimed at enabling cross-border collaboration for startups and innovation ecosystems, particularly linking Germany and other regions to foster entrepreneurial synergy and technological advancement. It involves research institutions from Saarland and Rhineland-Palatinate, selected university partners from France and Luxembourg, the IHK Saarland, and numerous supporters from the economy. The consortium will receive around 22.5 million euros in funding over the next five years, with up to 10 million euros coming from federal funding and 12.5 million euros from private funds.
Ralf Zastrau, Director of Entrepreneurship at the University of Saarland and Project Leader Startup Factories, stated that "Southwest X" will create a unique platform for internationally networking scalable founding projects from science and research. The new Startup Factory aims to accelerate the transfer of excellent research to the economy across regions and support founding teams on their path to sustainable, innovative companies.
The success of the new Startup Factory is a central contribution to the implementation of the Saarland's innovation strategy. Minister President Anke Rehlinger stated that the Saarland is actively tackling structural change and building bridges from industry to new ideas. The goal is to increase the founding dynamics, transfer innovative business ideas into marketable products and services, and shape the economic transformation of the Saarland sustainably.
The Southwest X concept has been selected as one of the nine "Startup Factory" projects, competing against 14 other finalists from across Germany. Economics Minister Barke supported the Saar-Inkubator project with a 10 million euro grant from the Transformation Fund in 2024, contributing significantly to this success.
"Southwest X" is poised to become a model region for innovation-driven transformation, fostering international startup collaboration and innovation ecosystem integration within the EXIST program. For more details about the specifics of Southwest X’s programs, technologies, or participating entities, those might be available from the Federal Ministry’s EXIST program or related official announcements.
- The Southwest X project, a pioneering initiative focused on science, technology, and cross-border collaboration, has been chosen as one of the nine "Startup Factory" projects, aiming to strengthen innovation ecosystems and foster startup collaboration within the EXIST program.
- The victory of Southwest X in the nationwide Startup Factories competition signifies a significant advancement towards creating a unique platform, bolstered by science and technology, for internationally networking scalable founding projects.
