The education project has begun with a three-month creative phase. The idea is to bring students, junior scientists and professors as well as internal and external experts from the HHL together with Porsche employees. The teams work together on business model innovations in four subject areas: Financial services of the future/FinTech business models, data-driven business models, the sportscar experience and digitalisation in production. In the upcoming week, the teams will present their business models. Porsche has put forward a 10,000 euro prize for the most promising innovations developed during the creative phase. In a subsequent implementation phase lasting up to six months, the team can then continue to develop its idea at “SpinLab – The HHL Accelerator” until it has a business model that is ready for implementation.
Alongside this, initiators of their own start-up and innovation projects have the opportunity to participate in a start-up competition. The winning team will be awarded a prize of 25,000 euro and given the chance to continue to develop its project in the SpinLab for up to six months with assistance of Porsche experts until it is ready for launch.
“Creativity requires freedom and space to develop. We ourselves understand the importance of innovations and are therefore pleased to support the project to give young people new opportunities to develop their ideas. Trying things out for yourself and gaining experience is an essential part of education”, says Lutz Meschke, Deputy Chairman of the Executive Board and Member of the Executive Board for Finance and IT at Porsche AG.
“SpinLab – The HHL Accelerator” supports innovative start-up projects with the implementation and growth of their proposals. In addition to intensive coaching, the entrepreneurial teams benefit from a top-class mentoring programme and numerous contacts with investors, established companies and other business founders. The teams are able to use a modern co-working office within the creative space of the Leipziger Baumwollspinnerei, a former cotton mill, and are given access to various partner technologies. The founders who are included in the six-month-programme can make use of all resources free of charge without giving up a share of their equity. They also receive an initial premium of 6000 euro in cooperation with the city of Leipzig.
Even once the programme has come to an end, the selected start-ups will receive assistance with the recruitment of personnel. They will be able to plan their expansion through an international exchange programme and will be given the opportunity to rent office space right next to the SpinLab.
“The cooperation with Porsche underlines the position of the HHL as one of the leading start-up universities in Germany. Our Co-Creation and InnovationLab as well as the established connection with ‘SpinLab – The HHL Accelerator’ is providing the Stuttgart-based sportscar manufacturer with a professional platform for the rapid, successful and innovative development of business concepts”, says the Dean of HHL Prof. Dr. Andreas Pinkwart.
