About us

Find out more about the team behind LAUNCH.

Transforming academic potential to launch tomorrow’s leading startups.

Our Mission

Working under this mission statement, LAUNCH Rhein-Main is a student-run startup incubator dedicated to fostering entrepreneurial spirit in the Rhein-Main region. Our program provides students and doctoral candidates with an interdisciplinary platform to refine their business ideas and transform them into successful startups. Through collaboration with our experienced partners, we offer participants invaluable knowledge and guidance on their journey toward founding their own companies.

The Programs

The 10-week Winter Batch, held annually from November to January, offers participants hands-on workshops, mentoring and networking possibilities and concludes in a Demo Day where they pitch their ventures to our dedicated investors. Additionally, from April to October, LAUNCH organizes individual events with a focus on problem identification and ideation, preparing teams for the upcoming Winter Batch.

01/2024

The idea for LAUNCH arises

An initial team of three members of the Entrepreneurs Club Mainz begins to work on a concept for a startup center for JGU in Mainz.

04/2024

The target region expands

The ECM turns to its equivalent initiatives in the Rhine-Main region to expand the target region of the startup incubator, which is now called LAUNCH.

05/2024

Our team is growing

The initial team of LAUNCH is expanded and grows to a number of seven, all of which are former board members of student startup initiatives.

06/2024

The first partners support LAUNCH

A first group of partners support LAUNCH in its first steps to become Rhein-Mains leading early stage student incubator.

07/2024

LAUNCH is integrated in the Futury - The Future Factory

LAUNCH stands out for its vision and goal and therefore becomes an official part of the Futury - The Future Factory, Rhein-Mains official startup factory.

08/2024

An Advisory Board shares the vision

The team grows further to a number of 15 members in six departments. An Advisory Board is set up that shares the vision and consults the team in strategic questions.

09/2024

LAUNCH becomes a registered association

LAUNCH becomes a registered association with its headquarters located at the Futury - The Future Factory Building in the heart of Frankfurt am Main.

11/2024

The first batch starts...

14 startups compete in the first batch of the long-awaited startup incubator!

01/2025

... and culminates in our demo day

The startups pitch in front of an audience of 150 representatives from the most important regional companies and institutions.

Our Team

The faces behind the LAUNCH Rhein-Main e. V.

Managing Board

Operations

Finance & Legal

Yannis Ward
MD Finance & Legal
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Paul Gerhard
Head of Infrastructure
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Finn Stening
Team Member Finance & Legal
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Jan Just
Team Member Finance & Legal
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Partnerships

Jan Steinhaus
MD Partnerships
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Yann Fischer
Chief of Ecosystem Relations
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Jannik Liessner
Head of Corporate Relations
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Raphael Lechenauer
Team Member Partnerships
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Ashley Chioma Ikeokwu
Team Member Partnerships
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Communications

Sébastien Michel
MD Communications
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Moritz Schweitzer
Head of University Marketing
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Hannah Marie Knittel
Team Member Communications
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Emil Seibold
Team Member Communications
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Celine Stroh
Team Member Communications
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Yassine Tabouti
Team Member Communications
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People & Culture

Darian Keßler
MD People & Culture
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Daniel Navon
Head of Corporate Governance
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Jana Rolland
Team Member People & Culture
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Joana Baptista Jochum
Team Member People & Culture
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Daniel Roloff
Team Member People & Culture
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Product

Product Development

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MD Product Development
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Jeewon Shin
Head of International Relations
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Pascal Bootz
Team Member Product Development
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Nikos Orth
Team Member Product Development
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Hassan El Uadguiri
Team Member Product Development
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Incubator

Jannis Goldberg
MD Incubator
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Michael Lücke
Head of Operations
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Helen Cacija
Team Member Incubator
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Magdalena Bährisch
Team Member Incubator
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LAUNCH x BioTech

Judy King Yi CHO
MD LAUNCH x BioTech
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Senem Altun
Team Member LAUNCH x BioTech
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Majd Hadji
Team Member LAUNCH x BioTech
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Sultan Ates
Team Member LAUNCH x BioTech
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Summit

Larissa Schröder
Co-MD Summit
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Raphael Buchwald
Co-MD Summit
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Managing Board

Operations

Finance & Legal

Yannis Ward
MD Finance & Legal
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Paul Gerhard
Head of Infrastructure
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Finn Stening
Team Member Finance & Legal
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Jan Just
Team Member Finance & Legal
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Partnerships

Niklas Hinrichs
Vice-President & MD Partnerships
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Sébastien Michel
Head of Startup Relations
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Jannik Liessner
Head of Corporate Relations
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Maximilian Daugéras
Head of Investor Relations
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Raphael Lechenauer
Team Member Partnerships
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Communications

Dustin Anselm
MD Communications
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Leonie Laucks
Head of Digital Marketing
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Moritz Schweitzer
Head of University Marketing
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Preeth Chilvery
Team Member Communications
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People & Culture

Jacob Dannhäuser
MD People & Culture
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Daniel Roloff
Team Member People & Culture
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Product

Product Development

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MD Product Development
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Pascal Bootz
Team Member Product Development
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Jeewon Shin
Team Member Product Development
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Nikos Orth
Team Member Product Development
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Incubator

Heidar Neynawa
MD Incubator
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Helen Cacija
Head of Talent Acquisition
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Jannis Goldberg
Head of Operations
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Michael Lücke
Team Member Incubator
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Magdalena Bährisch
Team Member Incubator
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Jana Rolland
Team Member Incubator
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Board of Trustees

The experts who provide us with strategic support.
Dr. Rolf Werner
Board Member

About Dr. Rolf Werner

Rolf has an impressive career in leading companies in the IT and telecommunications sectors and is currently Head of Europe at Nokia. With his extensive experience and leadership, he leads the company's European operations.

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Philipp Hannemann
Board Member

About Philipp Hannemann

In 2021, Philipp founded the startup Quantagonia, which simplifies complex planning problems with AI and high-performance computing, setting technological standards across industries. During his business studies, he built Ligalytics, the global market leader for professional sports league planning, which is used by UEFA and DFB, among others.

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Dr. Marco Adelt
Board Member

About Dr. Marco Adelt

With Clark, Marco founded Frankfurt's first unicorn and thus laid the foundation for a change in the startup culture of the Rhine-Main region. After leaving the operational business, he is now involved in (startup) politics and as an angel investor.

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Larissa Skarke
Board Member

About Larissa Skarke

Following her studies in Hamburg & London and several years of experience at McKinsey and KKR, Larissa now has a key role at the World Fund. She is responsible for investments in ClimateTech startups and thus plays a key role in promoting sustainable technologies.

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Sebastien Charles
Board Member

About Sebastien Charles

After his studies in France and Belgium and several stops in the corporate sector, Sebastien has already launched several successful startups and made a successful exit. He currently works as Climate Tech Portfolio Lead at the ZEISS Group.

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Alexander Zwilling
Board Member

About Alexander Zwilling

Alex studied law at the University of Cologne and initially worked in product structuring for a FinTech before contributing his expertise and network as a ClimateTech investor at World Fund to support up-and-coming founders. He has since returned to his roots and heads the Commercials division at NaroIQ.

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