European Start-Up and Innovation Policy at the Centre of Discussion
Dates and NewsHead of Cabinet to EU Research Commissioner Visits ZEW
Dr. Andreas Schwarz, Head of Cabinet to the EU Commissioner for Start-ups, Research and Innovation, Ekaterina Zaharieva, visited ZEW Mannheim on 23 July 2026. The exchange during his visit centred on the challenges facing European research and innovation policy, as well as on ways to strengthen Europe’s technological competitiveness.
Professor Hanna Hottenrott, head of the ZEW Research Unit “Economics of Innovation and Industrial Dynamics”, and Dr. Marius Berger presented the latest research on entrepreneurial dynamics and the financing of innovative young companies. Together with Schwarz, they discussed the development of the European venture capital market, the effectiveness of public funding instruments and the role of public procurement for start-ups – including in the defence and security sectors.
Schwarz also gained insights into ZEW’s data infrastructure on business start-ups, growth processes and innovation activities. This data makes it possible to empirically examine structural developments and the impact of economic policy measures and to translate the findings into well-founded recommendations for policy advising
Professor Irene Bertschek, head of the ZEW Research Unit “Digital Economy” and Chair of the Commission of Experts for Research and Innovation, discussed the development of the European AI ecosystem with Schwarz. They spoke about the prerequisites for the successful transfer of scientific findings into practical application within technology companies and the planned European company form ‘EU Inc.’, and they addressed the issue of digital autonomy and the establishment of ‘AI Gigafactories’.
ZEW President Achim Wambach, PhD and ZEW Managing Director Claudia von Schuttenbach were also involved in the open and constructive exchange of ideas. The discussion built on the ZEW Lunch Debate on the European start-up and scale-up strategy held on 16 June 2026 in Brussels and highlighted further prospects for cooperation between ZEW and the European Commission.
