Forum UnternehmerTUMSave the dateApril 3, 2025 Munich

Amanda Birkenholz is a venture capital investor passionate about tech startups solving important problems, particularly in Climate and DeepTech. Her portfolio includes companies like Planqc, DeepDrive, and STABL. Prior to VC, she co-founded the award-winning B2B IoT startup VISN and led the PropTech venture Raumgold. She also has experience as a Venture Architect Director, creating B2B startups and mentoring others. With a multicultural background and global experience, Amanda holds an Industrial Engineering degree from RWTH Aachen. Her upcoming book, "CHAMP – Jagd auf den Trojaner" (September 2023), aims to make STEM more accessible to children.

Dr. Johanna Bronisch is responsible for topics at the intersection of e-mobility and energy. She heads corporate co-innovation projects, bringing together experts from the mobility, energy and tech sector to jointly built novel solutions and prototypes within a six month program. Her projects focus on electrifying the transport sector, integrating it into a more and more decentral grid and tracing and mitigating CO2-emissions associated e-mobility. Johanna is a trained psychologist and has a PhD in Neuroscience.

Zarah Bruhn is a German social entrepreneur, founder, and CEO of socialbee. Since April 2022, she has been the Commissioner for Social Innovation at the Federal Ministry of Education and Research. 
Socialbee, founded in 2016, helps companies employ and train refugees. Zarah's accolades include the Bavarian State Medal for Social Merit and recognition as Social Entrepreneur of the Year by Handelsblatt. She holds degrees from the University of Mannheim an TU Munich and is an Ashoka Fellow. 

Jean-Michel Dalle is a Professor at Sorbonne University and serves as the Managing Director of Agoranov, a leading science-based incubator in Paris. Agoranov, cofounded by several leading universities and research centers, has supported the launch of over 600 innovative, primarily deeptech startups, including 5 unicorns, that have collectively raised over 6 billion euros in private funding. Prof. Dalle is also the Chairman of the Supervisory Committee for Pôles Universitaires d’Innovation, a recent framework initiative that supports French universities in the scaling of their innovation and entrepreneurship capabilities, and a member of France 2030 Supervisory Board. M. Dalle graduated from École Polytechnique, ENSAE and EHESS, and holds a PhD in economics from École Polytechnique. He is a co-initiator of Rise Europe and serves as member of its program committee.

Herbert Diess has been Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Infineon Technologies since 2023. In his previous positions as CEO of Volkswagen AG and Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Škoda Auto, Seat, and Audi (2018-2022), he advocated for the further development of electromobility. One of his latest projects is the establishment of a solar factory in Germany.

Stefan Drüssler is passionate about driving innovation and scalable start-ups in Europe. He is responsible for the entrepreneurship education and start-up journeys at UnternehmerTUM. He supports the organization with about 400 employees to thrive for operational excellence, facilitate its international partnerships and organize its major events. Before joining UnternehmerTUM early in 2017, Stefan Drüssler worked as strategy consultant for the Boston Consulting Group.

Benjamin specializes in Robotics, Quantum Computing, Fusion, and Industrial Software, leading investments in companies such as Tacto, Proxima Fusion, Planqc, Fazua, and TWAICE.
Before joining UVC Partners in 2017, Benjamin was among the first employees at High-Tech Gründerfonds (HTGF), where he played a key role in building a portfolio of over 480 investments over eight years. He holds a degree in Industrial Engineering from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology.

Bastian Gierull aims to revolutionize the German energy market by providing green, fair, and affordable energy. He champions the energy transition through technological advancements like the Kraken platform, smart meter rollout, and heat pump installations. His leadership emphasizes modern management principles, fostering innovation and team empowerment. Gierull previously held leadership roles in product, marketing, and technology, founding successful startups. He holds a Master's degree in Media and Communication Studies.

After international assignments at TÜV Süddeutschland AG, Dr. Werner Götz joined EnBW Energie Baden-Württemberg AG in 2000. There, he held key executive roles, including as Managing Director of EnBW Energy Solutions GmbH and EnBW Erneuerbare Energien GmbH. Götz then served as the Technical Board Member of EnBW Erneuerbare und Konventionelle Erzeugung AG and later led the Generation Operations division of EnBW AG. At the beginning of 2015, Götz was appointed to the management board of TransnetBW GmbH. Since 2017, he has been its chairman.

Philipp Herkelmann is a driving force behind strengthening Europe's position as a global tech leader. He co-initiated EU Inc., the largest startup petition ever launched, calling for the creation of a pan-European entity to foster a thriving tech hub. Building on this momentum, he is currently developing "Futur II," an early-stage venture fund specifically designed to support ambitious founders and their groundbreaking ventures originating from research hubs across Europe. This fund aims to bridge the gap between cutting-edge research and market-ready innovation, fueling the next generation of European tech companies.

Jennifer Kaiser-Steiner leads innovative educational and strategic initiatives. With over two years of experience at UnternehmerTUM, including her role as Senior Expert for Strategic Projects, Jennifer specializes in fostering impactful learning environments. Her diverse background combines academic research, strategic project management, and educational leadership, contributing to a dynamic and forward-thinking approach to innovation and learning.

Olaf Koch is a founding partner of ZINTINUS a venture capital fund focussing on sustainable, healthy and impactful innovations in the Food sector. Before starting ZINTINUS he served as CEO of METRO AG a leading international wholesale group. He has a great passion for tech innovation, the food & hospitality industry and positive impact.

Sabine Nallinger is a board member of Stiftung KlimaWirtschaft (formerly Stiftung 2°), a climate policy initiative of CEOs, managing directors and family entrepreneurs. From 2008 to 2020, Sabine Nallinger was a member of the Munich City Council for Bündnis 90/Die Grünen, where she was primarily responsible for energy, urban development and transport policy issues. In 2014, she ran for the office of Lord Mayor of Munich. She is active on numerous committees, including as a member of the supervisory board of sustainable AG and a member of the advisory board of the Institute for Climate Protection, Energy and Mobility (IKEM) as well as a member of the advisory board of Fraport AG.

Miriam is a senior reporter at Sifted, The Financial Times-backed publication covering European startups and technology. Based in Berlin, she reports on the DACH startup and technology scene and writes Sifted's Startup Life newsletter. Miriam has previously written for publications such as Deutsche Welle, New Statesman, BBC Tech and Courier. She continues to write for independent art and design publications in Berlin and London.

As Co-CEO of DeepDrive, Felix Poernbacher is responsible for all entrepreneurial and strategic aspects. He brings valuable expertise from his previous roles as an M&A investment banker at Rothschild & Co in London and Frankfurt and as a start-up advisor and consultant at Deloitte and Simon-Kucher.

Marisa Schneider manages international partnerships at UnternehmerTUM. She connects the organisation with like-minded institutions and stakeholders from abroad and therewith fosters the international dialogue in the world of innovation. While Munich is continuously developing into one of Europe’s entrepreneurship hotspots, Marisa is helping tech start-ups worldwide to get access to the local innovation ecosystem. Currently, she is running Rise Europe, UnternehmerTUM's network of the 20 leading start-up ecosystem builders empowering European start-ups to become the next Tech Champions.

Dr. Leopold von Schlenk-Barnsdorf is a family business expert with FamilienUnternehmerTUM at UnternehmerTUM. His work focuses on the unique opportunities and challenges facing family businesses, particularly in innovation and transformation management, the role of SMEs in innovation ecosystems, and start-up-family business collaborations. As a 5th generation shareholder of SCHLENK SE, a leading international manufacturer of metal powders, pigments, and foils, he also brings practical experience to these topics.