Europe Has Everything – Only Execution Is Missing: What Celonis Founder Bastian Nominacher Calls For
Why do the largest tech companies continue to emerge primarily in the US or China? ForBastian Nominacher,co-founder and co-CEO of Munich software companyCelonis– whose software helps companies worldwide. . .
Why do the largest tech companies continue to emerge primarily in the US or China? ForBastian Nominacher,co-founder and co-CEO of Munich software companyCelonis– whose software helps companies worldwide analyze and optimize business processes, and which today ranks among Europe’s most valuable private software companies – the problem is not a lack of ideas or talent. Quite the contrary, as he explained during the panel “Future Made in Europe – Innovation Strength from Munich” at theMunich Startup Festival 2026. “The enormous talent, the industrial base, this know-how, and the many potential anchor customers – we have so many approaches to relevant problem-solving. If we combine this with our cutting-edge research, we can build companies that can compete on the global market. ”The Celonis co-founder believes Munich is already on the right track in this regard. The startup ecosystem is continuously evolving. The key now, he says, is to scale this success – not just for Munich, but for all of Germany. Magdalena Oehl,founder of Talent Rocket and longtime voice of the German Startup Association, also sees Europe’s greatest strength in research. Many technologies are just waiting to make the leap from laboratories into successful companies. “We have an incredible amount of technology that is really just waiting to be brought to market – in other words, to be turned into successful companies. That is precisely what we are still doing far too little of. ”Katja Ruhnke,Managing Partner at CK Venturesand Chairwoman of Business Angels Deutschland e. V. , agrees. In her view, Europe lacks neither excellent universities nor capital or successful companies. “We’re sitting on an absolute treasure trove, on so much potential. But we’re not really managing to transform it the way other countries do. ”Why Munich Offers the Best ConditionsNominacher explains why Munich of all places has become one of Europe’s leading startup hubs through the interplay of various factors: top-tier universities, international corporations, and an increasingly experienced founder ecosystem. He finds one number particularly impressive. “Stanford produces around 1,500 world-class computer science graduates a year, TU München 7,000. You can make of that number what you will – but it simply shows the potential we have. ”In addition to the universities, he points to the high density of industrial companies and global market leaders in the region. “We have many global market leaders in a wide variety of sectors. Particularly in the B2B sector, this offers enormous opportunities because startups can work directly with large corporations. ”Irene Klemm,co-founder of Edurino,also highlights the Munich ecosystem. After founding Edurino during the pandemic, the startup moved into its first office at Werk1. “I definitely felt that this spirit of optimism in Munich was very palpable. The network is very close-knit, and you can usually find someone who can open the door you need at that moment. ”For Ruhnke, Munich’s success is also no coincidence. He believes the key factors are the Free State’s long-term strategy, strong institutions like UnternehmerTUM and Bayern Kapital, and a professional investor network. Successful scaleups create tomorrow’s foundersA functioning startup ecosystem thrives not only on new startups, but also on successful scaleups. They produce experienced talent who later go on to found their own companies. That is precisely what Nominacher is observing at Celonis:“By now, more than 20 startups have emerged from Celonis. Of course, I’m always sad when someone leaves the company. But if someone starts a company or goes to a customer, then that’s a positive development. ”With every successful company, knowledge within the entire ecosystem grows. “15 years ago, when we started, it was completely unclear how to build an international software company. Today, there are established standards and templates that founders can use directly. ”The State as First Customer Instead of Biggest ObstacleIn addition to expanding the startup ecosystem, Nominacher sees one lever in particular that Europe has hardly used so far: the state as the first customer of innovative companies. “The state as an anchor customer is potential that we need to make much greater use of. In the US, the first customer for many tech companies was the American government. This was used very strategically to develop and advance technologies. ”Especially in areas such as space or future technologies, Germany could act much more boldly. “The money is being spent anyway. It is our tax money. Then it should also be used to build innovative companies and give them the opportunity to develop their solutions. ”In his view, there are two crucial levers:“You can talk a lot about bureaucracy. But if you have a good idea, you will still get it implemented. What matters is having customers and capital. ”Bureaucracy Costs Europe SpeedKatja Ruhnke sets a completely different focus. For her, bureaucracy is one of Europe’s biggest competitive disadvantages. “Time is our final boss. Asia and America are significantly faster in many things. ”She illustrates how slowly processes still run today using an example from her own experience. “We founded a company in April and still don’t have a tax number. The commercial register entry and opening a bank account took twelve weeks. That is simply too long. ”She has high hopes for the planned EU Inc. , which is intended to simplify company formations across Europe. “We urgently need a common European standard for startups. Otherwise, we will continue to lose speed. ”Magdalena Oehl is also calling for better framework conditions. Although more startups were founded in the first half of 2026 than ever before, Germany must cut bureaucracy and speed up company incorporations for this trend to continue. “We still spend too much time on administrative issues instead of further developing ideas and acquiring initial customers. ”More capital for the early phaseIn addition to faster company formations, Ruhnke is primarily calling for stronger incentives for business angels. “74 percent of initial investors in startups are business angels. ”Early-stage investments are particularly high-risk and at the same time immensely important for the development of new companies. “Being a business angel doesn’t mean transferring money and checking back after six months. You work closely with the founders. ”She cited the UK as a role model, where tax incentives have significantly increased investment volume in young startups. Europe’s future begins earlier than expectedWhile politics and funding are often at the center of the debate, Irene Klemm shifted the focus to another aspect: education. “Competition actually starts in early childhood education. ”With Edurino, she therefore starts with children as young as two and a half or three years old. “Problem-solving skills, resilience, creativity, and social skills are the abilities that prepare children for everything that comes in the future. ”At the same time, the education system also needs to change. “The best teachers today assign tasks that integrate AI and critically question it. It is precisely these skills that will be crucial in the future. ”Europe’s opportunities are greater than often assumedDespitediffering perspectives, the panel, moderated by Kyrill Ring, agreed on one point: Europe does not lack ideas, talent, or research. Rather, it is about translating existing strengths more consistently into successful companies. For Bastian Nominacher, the path forward is clear. “We have great ideas, we have the right customers. Now we finally need to get them onto the road. ”Munich in particular could play a pioneering role in this. With its universities, successful scaleups, investors, and international corporations, the hub already meets many of the prerequisites needed to produce the next generation of European tech leaders.