Bavaria overtakes Berlin: 2.1 billion euros for start-ups in 2025!

Bavaria overtakes Berlin: 2.1 billion euros for start-ups in 2025!

Bavaria is setting new standards for start-ups

In the dynamic world of start-ups, Bavaria led the race with an impressive 2.1 billion euros in venture capital in the first half of 2025, overtaking Berlin for the first time, which was able to raise 1.5 billion euros. This is shown by an analysis by the business consultancy EY, which shows a clear trend towards the booming sectors of armaments, artificial intelligence and energy technologies in Bavaria. Bavarian start-ups are scoring big here, which has helped them almost quadruple their financing amounts compared to the previous year. The rise of Bavaria as a leading start-up region does not seem to be just a trend, but could prove to be a constant development Tagesschau reports.

What's happening in Berlin? Despite more financing rounds - 132 compared to Bavaria's 76 - it is not enough to keep up with the financial successes. The focus on venture capital shows that investors are increasingly investing in innovative and promising technologies. Budapest, along with North Rhine-Westphalia and Baden-Württemberg, has seen declines in investment, while the total venture capital balance for German start-ups rose by a third to a total of 4.6 billion euros in the first half of 2025.

Bavaria's strong networks

Bavaria benefits from the region's high economic power, which promotes close cooperation between start-ups and established industries such as automotive engineering and medical technology. This means that many start-ups in future industries are able to raise large amounts of venture capital. The largest financing rounds are particularly noteworthy: the AI ​​company Helsing alone secured 600 million euros, followed by the battery storage provider Green Flexibility, which brought in 400 million euros. Companies like Quantum Systems and Scalable Capital are also among the big winners.

While Baden-Württemberg has a strong start-up profile, this is not necessarily reflected in investments. A decline in the last 12 months indicates that there is a need for action here too. Despite the disruptions caused by the Corona crisis, the numbers give cause for hope. The start-up sector is slowly recovering and achieved its third best result since 2015 in the first half of 2025 South Germans.

A look back at the developments

In this context, it is important to keep in mind the high number of new businesses. In 2025, around 1,500 new companies were founded in Germany, although statistically around 50% of the start-ups will no longer be active within five years. With a trend like this, it is crucial to have a good hand in choosing the right niches and technologies. Heidelberg and Munich are the bearers of hope, as they are at the forefront of new businesses per 100,000 inhabitants.

For now, Berlin remains unchallenged when it comes to the number of financing rounds and continues to be a leader in online trading. But Bavaria's rise and the concentration there on innovative technologies impressively show that the race for the future has already begun. It remains exciting to see how further developments on the German start-up market will develop. Like that Star Magazine reports, the figures show that the industry is well on its way to mastering the challenges of recent years.