Most startups in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland (the DACH region) over the past decade were founded by students, staff, or alumni of the Technical University of Munich (TUM), ETH Zurich, and the University of St. Gallen, according to a newly released study that tracked the entrepreneurial impact of academic institutions.
Three Austrian universities made the top 25, with TU Vienna ranking highest at 14th place.
Since 2023, the “Entrepreneurial Impact Study” aims to evaluate the economic contribution of universities through their “third mission”—economic and social impact beyond teaching and research. This year marks its first expansion beyond Germany to cover the entire DACH region.
Between 2014 and 2024, researchers from TUM, ETH Zurich, and the University of Innsbruck analyzed databases like StartupDetector (Germany), Austrian Startup Monitor, and Startupticker (Switzerland), identifying a total of 51,287 startups. They cross-referenced this with platforms such as LinkedIn, Dealroom, and Crunchbase to determine the founders’ academic affiliations.
Of all startups, 78% were based in Germany, 14% in Switzerland, and 8% in Austria. Startup activity peaked in 2021 with 6,196 new companies but has since declined to 4,043 in 2024.
Tech Universities at the Top
TUM led with 1,116 startup founders, followed by ETH Zurich (1,022) and the University of St. Gallen (845). TU Vienna had 338 and ranked 14th. Vienna University of Economics and Business (WU) came 20th (223), and the University of Vienna placed 23rd (214).
“There’s definitely room for improvement,” said Johann Füller, co-author of the study and Professor of Innovation & Entrepreneurship at the University of Innsbruck. He emphasized the need for a robust startup ecosystem with strong markets and investors—areas where Austria lags behind its neighbors.
Private Universities Excel in Output Per Student
When ranking by startup output per 1,000 students, the private German university WHU – Otto Beisheim School of Management leads, with 350 startups per 1,000 students. Eight other private German institutions also made the top 10. Austria’s MCI – Management Center Innsbruck ranked in the top 20. When normalized by staff size, no Austrian institution reached the top 20.
Health and Software Dominate Sectors
Health, enterprise software, and fintech are the leading startup sectors across the DACH region. In Austria, health and enterprise software each account for 17% of startups, followed by fintech (10%), energy and transport (8% each), food (7%), marketing (6%), media (5%), and both real estate and security (4%).
In the deeptech sector, ETH Zurich leads with 160 startups, TUM follows with 140, and EPFL Lausanne with 67. TU Vienna ranks 11th with 25 deeptech startups.
TU Vienna Leads Domestically
Focusing on startups founded solely in Austria, TU Vienna leads with 257, followed by the University of Vienna (119), WU Vienna (117), University of Graz (90), TU Graz (76), University of Innsbruck (67), FH Technikum Wien (53), FH Upper Austria (51), Medical University of Vienna (38), and University of Linz (36).
Funding Landscape: Austria Strong in Early Stage
Austria performs relatively well in early-stage funding—22% of startups received seed capital compared to only 16% in Germany. Switzerland tops the list at 36%. Füller noted Austria’s solid early-phase support but said it lacks strong follow-up funding and venture capital opportunities.
Switzerland’s advantage lies in a long-established innovation culture, backed by major startup support programs and close ties between universities and industry.
Call to Strengthen Entrepreneurial Education
Füller argued that Austrian universities need to integrate entrepreneurship more deeply, suggesting measures such as a clear startup strategy, entrepreneurship courses for all faculties, stronger incentives for academic founders, mentorship networks, and in-house startup funds.
