Startup Genome and the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Industry, Climate Action and Energy of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia have launched the NRW Startup Report 2024, providing a comprehensive analysis of the startup landscape in North Rhine-Westphalia. The report examines data from over 16,000 startups within NRW and ten entrepreneurial ecosystems, focusing on critical areas such as funding, exits, valuations, startup creation, female entrepreneurship, and investor type identification. The NRW Startup Reports are annual studies on the development and mood in the North Rhine-Westphalian startup scene, which were initiated for the first time in 2023 by the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Industry, Climate Action and Energy of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia.

Key findings from the NRW Startup Report 2024 include:

• With 534 startups in 2023, NRW experienced a slight decline in new startup creation (-8%) compared to the previous year and returns to pre-2021 levels, similar to almost all other federal states. With nearly 2,400 startups created between 2020 and 2023, NRW continues to make one of the highest contributions to startup activity in Germany.

• Nearly 18% of NRW startups founded in 2023 have female leaders, showing a slight increase from the previous year (17% in 2022).

• The total value of NRW's startup ecosystem increased by approximately $2 billion to $11.5 billion from the second half of 2021 to 2023, with DeepL and LeanIX contributing significantly to the value increase.

• The investment landscape in NRW remains robust, even though total venture capital investment in NRW declined by 36% compared to 2022, in line with the global trend of a 40% decline in global venture capital investments.The leading sectors in VC financing in NRW are AI and Cleantech.

Minister of Economic Affairs and Climate Action Mona Neubaur: “The results of the NRW Startup Report impressively show that North Rhine-Westphalia has developed into one of the leading startup locations in Germany in recent years. This positive development is a great signal. After all, the dynamism and innovative strength of our startups are of crucial importance for the economic future of North Rhine-Westphalia. Last week I was able to deepen our cooperation with American startup centers in the Silicon Valley. What we have in common with California is an ideal environment for young companies, which offers the best conditions for networking with established industry, a strong SME sector and excellent research. That is why we will continue to work on providing committed founders with the best possible support in realizing their forward-looking business ideas.”

"The NRW Startup Report underscores North Rhine-Westphalia’s resilience and significant role in Germany's startup landscape, even amid global challenges. Despite a slight drop in new startups, the region remains a key player in Germany's startup scene and continues to produce some of the country's most valuable startups. The report highlights critical areas like female entrepreneurship and the need for equitable funding. We're proud to partner with the Ministry to provide this data-driven analysis to support the growth and sustainability of NRW’s vibrant startup ecosystem," shares Stephan Kuester, Managing Partner at Startup Genome.

Read the full report: https://www.wirtschaft.nrw/nrw-startup-reports