SpinLab - The HHL Accelerator

A small “told you so” moment in Poland. 🇵🇱

Germany doesn’t have to look far for exciting technology companies. Some of them are growing right next door.

Together with the de:hub Initiative, we organized a delegation trip to Poland, bringing hubs from across Germany to a region we’ve been following closely for years.

Our first stop was . From , you can now hop on a direct train 🚆. We’ve been coming to Poland for years, meeting founders and watching companies grow beyond their home market. This week, we’re taking that relationship one step further.

Alongside the delegation, we’re also running our CEE Bootcamp with Invest Region Leipzig, supporting startups from the region as they prepare to enter the DACH market. The first few days have already taken us to the Polish-German Innovation Forum 2026, meetings at the German Embassy in 🇩🇪🇵🇱 and yes, there has to be a bit of sightseeing too. 🏙️

More from Poland soon. 👀

📸 Jakob Dohrmann

We are not a standard accelerator program. X
SpinLab has been supporting startups for more than a decade and has repeatedly been recognized as one of Europe’s leading startup hubs.
For us, acceleration is not about filling a program with generic workshops. Our network includes founders and experts who have built successful businesses themselves and understand first-hand the challenges that come with building and scaling a startup. And because every startup faces different challenges, there is no one-size-fits-all program at SpinLab.
We focus on what each team actually needs: access to relevant industry partners and potential customers opportunities for pilot projects, tailored coaching and introductions to investors.

Want to become part of this ecosystem? Applications for our program are open until October 8, 2026.

Looking for customers, investors, pilots or market access? Applications are now open for the SpinLab acceleration program.

As one of the leading startup hubs, we are working with startups at different stages and supports them based on the business challenges they actually need to solve. Not through a one-size-fits-all accelerator curriculum.

That can mean:

➡️ getting access to potential customers and industry partners
➡️ entering new markets
➡️ preparing for the next funding round
➡️ working with experienced founders and industry experts who have built and scaled businesses themselves

We are looking for startups in , , and to join our next batch. 📅 Applications are open until October 8, 2026. The program starts in the beginning of next year. No equity. No costs.

Find all information about the program via the link in our bio.

One week can make a real difference. 💪

The grande finale of the summer school for diverse startups was not about presenting polished pitch decks. It showed how much the teams had developed within just a few days: clearer positioning and a better understanding of what investors, partners and potential customers expect.

Congratulations to valueverde, who convinced the jury and received the 🏆 Digital Award of Stadt Leipzig, including 2000€ in prize money. The team also won tickets to the Web Summit, sponsored by Germany Trade & Invest.

Another highlight was welcoming Jaren Schippert from identity.vc as speaker. identity.vc 🦄 Backing LGBTQ+ Entrepreneurs is a European venture capital fund that invests in early-stage startups with LGBTQ+ representation at founder or C-level. Jaren shared insights on how investors can actively contribute to a more diverse and inclusive startup ecosystem.

🤝 We are grateful to all our and members, as well as to our : Stadt Leipzig, Technologiegründerfonds Sachsen, EDIH Saxony, S-Beteiligungen and Ostwerk. We appreciate collaborating with people and organisations that do not treat diversity as a buzzword, but actively create opportunities and open networks.

The Summer School once again demonstrated what can happen when founders become part of a supportive ecosystem and are given a trusted environment.

📸 © Elisa Vetter / HHL

++MAIA has secured over €4 million in funding! +++

As we welcome Batch #6 of the Summer School for Diverse Startups, this milestone shows what long-term support within a strong startup ecosystem can achieve. MAIA began its journey with our Summer School for Diverse Startups, continued at HHL DIGITAL SPACE , and later joined the SpinLab acceleration program.

Now, the -based startup is entering its next growth phase with a 💸new financing round led by our partner Technologiegründerfonds Sachsen. The SBG – Sächsische Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH is also joining as a new investor.

MAIA helps technical companies make complex and fragmented knowledge accessible. Its AI software connects information from manuals, technical drawings, reports, standards, and internal systems to provide employees with reliable, transparent, and traceable answers within seconds. The new funding will enable the startup to expand its development, sales, and marketing teams and accelerate its growth across the DACH region.

Congratulations MAIA! We are proud to have accompanied part of your journey.

Batch #6!

This program supports founders from underrepresented backgrounds in strengthening their business models, visibility, networks, and access to the startup ecosystem.

This year’s edition is supported by EDIH Saxony, Stadt Leipzig, Ostwerk, TGFS Technologiegründerfonds Sachsen, S-Beteiligungen, and Germany Trade & Invest.

Welcome to the community:

🟣Skillence helps companies make better hiring and development decisions by combining technical and soft-skill assessments in one AI-powered platform.

🟣Idee:val supports personal growth through a platform that connects goal setting, journaling, coaching, reflection, and community.

🟣Pharen replaces disconnected business tools with one secure AI-powered workspace for communication, workflows, data, and internal applications.

🟣ReSelf Cosmetics develops dissolvable shampoo bubbles for hotels, reducing plastic waste and operational costs while improving the guest experience.

🟣eunoia Quest combines serious games, psychology, and AI to make mental health screening more accessible and generate deeper behavioural insights.

🟣Graini turns brewer’s spent grain into high-fibre vegan crisps, creating a circular product together with local breweries.

🟣FOUNTN develops smart public water dispensers that finance their operation through digital advertising and smart-city integrations.

🟣 valueverde digitises investments in energy cooperatives and municipal utilities, giving investors access to real shares and voting rights.

Meet the teams at the grand finale of the Summer School for Diverse Startups on 23rd July at Leipzig’s New Town Hall.

🔗 Registration link in our bio.

The startup world doesn’t need another boys’ club.

It needs new perspectives, different experiences, and people who have too rarely been visible on stages, in pitch decks, and in investment rounds.

That is why the Summer School for Diverse Startups exists.

In its 6th edition, founders will spend one week working on their ideas, business models, and pitches. 📅 On 23 July 2026, you can join us live as the teams take the stage for the grand finale at Leipzig’s New Town Hall.

Come by, support the founders, and connect with people from Leipzig’s startup ecosystem over drinks and finger food.

🔗 Free registration with the link in the bio.

From Dubai to Berlin: GITEX has arrived in Europe.

After experiencing GITEX GLOBAL in Dubai, SpinLab and ExciteLab joined GITEX AI EUROPE in Berlin this week.

GITEX has long been a meeting point for global technology ecosystems. With its European edition in Berlin, the conference brings together policymakers, technology leaders, investors, corporates and entrepreneurs to discuss Europe’s role in the global AI economy.

The motto: Choose Europe. 🇪🇺

Across the conference, the focus was on the foundations Europe needs to compete in AI: compute capacity, energy infrastructure, digital sovereignty, industrial strength, investment and faster implementation.

Thank you to everyone who stopped by our booth. We were excited to see such strong interest in ExciteLab and SpinLab and really appreciated everyone who took the time to wait, ask questions and connect with us.

🏃‍♀️🏃‍♂️ SpinLab on the run!

We swapped laptops for running shoes and joined the schnelleStelle.de Firmenlauf . 4.9 km, lots of familiar faces from Leipzig’s business community and plenty of team spirit. Whether it was about setting a personal best, enjoying a relaxed run, or simply making it to the finish line: our team delivered. 💪

Same time next year? We’d say: challenge accepted.

What started with a viral LinkedIn blogpost by investor Andreas Klinger quickly turned into a Europe-wide debate and into a broader movement backed by founders, investors, and startup organizations across the continent. 🌍

describes the idea of an optional, standardized company framework that could reduce legal complexity, simplify investment processes, and give startups a clearer path to international growth.

🎤At this year’s SpinLab Investors Day, Clark Parsons, CEO of the European Startup Network and Advisor at United Founders, took up this debate in his keynote “EU Inc – Goals and Status Quo.” He outlined why Europe’s fragmented legal and investment landscape remains a major barrier and why a shared framework could help give European founders a fairer shot.

In our latest blog article, we recap the origins of the EU Inc movement, key points from Parsons’ keynote, and the road ahead for Europe’s startup ecosystem.

📸 📷 Eric Kemnitz