7 July 2023

On 4 July, hike (the Nordhausen University of Applied Sciences incubator) hosted the "Demo Day" pitch event. Here, young start-up teams presented their ideas to an audience. The well-attended event impressed the audience and the energy of the start-ups was palpable.

The event began with a warm welcome from project manager Prof. Dr. Lutz Göcke and organiser Christian Zoll. This was followed by a foreword by Leon Mohr, the founder of Yourny, a former participant in the hike start-up programme. Yourny has revolutionised and simplified travel with its app by offering intuitive coordination options for multiple travellers.

The young start-up teams then had the chance to present their ideas and innovations:

Open Path presented a range of services to support immigrants to Germany. The idea was developed by Sabina Vyzhlakova and Salam Haile. Open Path has set itself the goal of helping people who want to work or study in Germany and thus close the skills gap.

The team from HydroBasketconsisting of Sascha Bicke and Thomas Füldner, impressed with its hydroponic system, which can be viewed in the hikeLAB. The development of an innovative reusable plant basket makes hydroponic cultivation even more sustainable.

Readaya team consisting of Jakob Janssen, Valentin Hellwig and Julius Richter, presented the idea of developing a software and app at hikeLAB for the first time, which can be used to better plan and coordinate the school day for teachers and pupils.

The team from Swim-O-Meterconsisting of Erik Dallmann and Marcel Brichet, had the opportunity to pitch at hikeLAB for the second time. Their innovative swimming ergometer brings the feeling of swimming straight home without having to get wet. The prototype can currently be tried out in the hikeLAB.

Franz Rauprecht presented the guests with his Multilighta multifunctional light with a clever locking system. Athletes who practise several sports in particular benefit from this intuitive click system, which allows the light to be used for multiple purposes.

Afterwards, students, entrepreneurs, people interested in founding a company, network partners from Thuringia and the start-up teams came together for inspiring discussions over pizza and cold drinks.

The entire event was a great success and an important step for the hike team in promoting and publicising the start-up culture in the region.

The next hike event will take place on 12 July.

Founders and those interested in founding a company can already look forward to the next event on 12 July. Together with ThEX Thüringen, the hike team is organising a free start-up breakfast from 9 am to 12 pm in the hikeLAB (Nordhausen University of Applied Sciences campus). Here you will have the opportunity to ask questions about start-ups and funding opportunities and to get to know other people interested in setting up a business and founders. Interested parties are cordially invited and can register here:

https://www.thex.de/event/gruenderfruehstueck-in-nordhausen/