The Leipzig Summer School for Diverse Startups, an initiative by SpinLab and HHL Digital Space, returns for its fifth year. Once again, it will support early-stage startups led by underrepresented founders. The program offers participants a customized experience to help them develop and refine their business ideas.
At its core, the summer school is about breaking down barriers, making diverse voices heard and creating a more inclusive startup landscape.
This year’s edition is backed by a strong network of partners, including Dell Technologies, EDIH Saxony, City of Leipzig, CMS, TGFS, S-Beteiligungen, Germany Trade & Invest, Red Bull, and Chemnitz 2025 – European Capital of Culture.
Jetfi Systems is on a mission to simplify routine workflows in the healthcare sector through AI-driven automation. Their core product, Comosio, is an intelligent voice assistant designed specifically for physiotherapists in Germany. In many practices, therapists spend up to 30% of their time on documentation time that could be better spent with patients. Comosio addresses this by using speech-to-text technology to transcribe spoken notes during therapy sessions. It then leverages large language models to generate structured, GDPR-compliant documentation, while anonymizing sensitive data—all hosted securely on servers located in Germany.
SlideCoach is your AI-powered presentation coach designed to help students and young professionals feel truly prepared for any kind of presentation - whether in class, at a pitch or at a conference. The platform gives you direct feedback on your performance, shows you your progress and offers realistic audience simulations with personalised Q&A sessions. SlideCoach helps you build real presentation skills - with a clear focus on voice, pace, comprehensibility and targeting different audiences through intelligent persona modelling.
Velout is a travel tech startup that redefines solo travel with the help of cutting-edge AI and machine learning. The platform enables highly personalized travel plans, connects travelers with suitable companions and promotes sustainable, local experiences. The technology was developed during co-founder Bhupendra Singh's doctorate and further developed in collaboration with Stuttgart Media University. Velout is aimed at a global community and is committed to responsible tourism and personalized travel experiences.
OhMyV is a FemTech startup from Berlin that is active in the field of sexual health. The company develops products that focus on vulva health, protection against sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and environmental sustainability. Its flagship product, vögeln™, is a personal lubricant specially developed for sensitive users to help prevent bacterial infections. OhMyV is based on science, transparency, sustainability and inclusivity - both in product development and packaging design - with the aim of making sexual wellness health-conscious and pleasure-focused.
WhomLab is an HR tech startup based in Prague that has developed an AI-powered, gamified soft skills assessment platform. Through interactive assessments, the platform analyzes real-world behavioral data to capture skills such as problem-solving, decision-making, creativity and risk-taking. The aim is to help companies build high-performing and harmonious teams by better understanding and optimizing team dynamics. The solution is aimed at small and medium-sized enterprises as well as large companies that want to improve their personnel development and team composition.
Meaningful has developed an AI-supported platform for market research. The solution enables companies to create, conduct and analyze qualitative interviews automatically in order to quickly gain in-depth insights into customer needs. With tools such as “Conversations”, ‘Ingest’ and “Screener”, Meaningful offers a scalable and data-secure alternative to traditional consumer research methods. The aim is to make research more efficient, cost-effective and meaningful.
FiberFlow is a process technology that enables the mechanical separation of fibre blends from (post-consumer) textile waste. This is a decisive step towards realising large-scale recycling in the textile sector - because only what has previously been sorted can also be recycled. The process works in a similar way to a sewage treatment plant for textile waste. First, the textile waste is shredded and non-textile components such as buttons and zips are removed. The different fibre materials are then separated in several mechanical stages. At the end of the process, unmixed materials such as polyester, cotton, viscose, polyamide, elastane, polypropylene and polyacrylic are available.
HYBEAM redesigns collaboration in workshops and training sessions across distances. The application enables remote participants to appear as lifelike avatars - with facial expressions, gestures and voice - directly in the physical space of those present on site, creating a real sense of presence. The aim is to create a seamless, immersive hybrid environment in which all participants can work equally with digital content such as moderation cards, 3D models and interactive materials - regardless of location and in real time. The first prototype for Meta Quest 3 brings this to life through augmented reality, avatars and spatial sound. HYBEAM is aimed at companies and educational institutions that want to further develop hybrid formats, e.g. in mechanical engineering, battery technology or IT - ideal for onboarding, technical training and innovation workshops. The interdisciplinary start-up team is supported by the BMWK's EXIST start-up grant.
ZORO Energy offers an AI-driven energy optimization platform for non-residential buildings, specifically targeting facility managers, commercial property owners, universities and SMEs. Our solution connects with existing HVAC systems to reduce energy waste by up to 40% without the need for expensive retrofits. We provide real-time automation of energy flows, integrate solar and battery storage to reduce grid dependency, and enable the monetization of carbon credits. This helps our customers to reduce costs, comply with sustainability regulations such as GEG and EPBD and transform their buildings into climate-friendly facilities.
The final pitch event is the highlight of the Leipzig Summer School for Diverse Startups. Teams will present their early-stage ideas to a jury and audience, competing for the €2,000 Digital Award by the City of Leipzig. It’s a great chance to connect with the startup scene, plus, there’ll be drinks and finger food. Don’t miss out and grab one of the limited free on-site spots!