Innovation partnership with Factory Berlin

ERGO has had a presence in Berlin for many years – with our Digital Lab in which innovation projects are realised, and with various cooperative partnerships that have the aim of promoting promising start-ups. Now we have concentrated our activities in a single place: we are pleased to announce our new innovation partnership with Factory Berlin.

Factory Berlin is the first business club for start-ups to offer company founders, investors, freelancers and established companies a platform for mutual networking. Currently covering 16,000 square metres, the Factory brings together large technology companies with start-ups and young talent.

Far-reaching partnership

“The new partnership is far-reaching,” explains Georg Wiest, Head of Innovation at ERGO. “We have a strong new partner in Factory Berlin with which we plan to reposition our innovation management in Berlin – we have also jointly opened a sales office with ERGO Sales. We will take on board new ideas in this creative environment and increasingly tailor our activities to meet the future needs of our clients.”

Cooperation with Acceleratorn and the promotion of start-ups

Ulrich Kleipaß is responsible for innovation scouting at ERGO and, among other things, looks after cooperative partnerships with Acceleratorn and the promotion of start-ups. He has great hopes for the move to the Factory: “We are now going to combine our innovation work in a central location. Our Innovation Lab and innovation scouting can access the Factory's international start up and technology network. The cooperation with the Factory also enables us to tailor the search for promising start-ups more specifically to our needs.”

New home for the Digital Lab

Concentrating innovation in a single location opens up very promising perspectives for the Lab as well, which to date has been housed in Berlin’s Betahaus. According to Sebastian Pitzler, Head of the Lab: “The partnership with the Factory enables us to become part of a pulsating community of start-ups and other corporate labs. We also wish to use this combined expert knowledge for our own innovation projects. What is more, concentrating our scouting and lab activities enables us to respond to trends and trial new ideas with new project partners. New products can be designed together with Sales, which are then developed as prototypes and run as pilot projects jointly with the Factory Berlin community.”

The new partnership between ERGO and Factory Berlin will be officially celebrated on 27 July. Our CDO Mark Klein will present the company to the community and provide an overview of our innovation work. More information on the Factory can be found at www.factoryberlin.com.