Mostly Awesome

In this episode, we sit down with Magnus Grünewald, the 23-year-old founder and CEO of Lyceum, who recently raised a massive €10.3M pre-seed round to challenge US hyperscalers. Rather than just a story about a young founder raising capital, this conversation offers a revealing look into what it takes to build "impossible" deep tech from Europe.Magnus shares how his tenure as Chief of Staff at Enpal served as a crucial lesson in losing the fear of "heavy assets." He candidly admits that starting out required a healthy dose of "delusion" to dare compete with established Tech Giants. He argues that while software is often about rapid iteration, building industrial infrastructure demands a fundamental mindset shift from tweaking buttons to moving mountains.We explore Lyceum’s core thesis of transitioning from "renting computers" to "consuming compute." Magnus breaks down his "power socket" philosophy, where AI engineers manage server uptime no more than a smartphone user manages the electrical grid. He also outlines why digital sovereignty is far more than a regulatory checkbox, becoming a critical competitive necessity for industries like BioTech.Finally, Magnus opens up about his leadership style of "extreme delegation" and how he unites PhDs and industry veterans behind a shared mission by hiring for a unique blend of "high urgency" and "conscientiousness." He concludes with a sharp perspective on the AI market, arguing that we should ignore the funding bubble and focus entirely on enterprise adoption.

In this episode, André Petry, co-founder and CEO of Tacto, joins us for a wide-ranging conversation about ambition, agency, and what it means to build from Europe. We trace André’s journey from a 400-person village to CDTM, Berkeley, and eventually to founding one of Germany’s rising industrial software companies. Along the way, he shares how discovering a community of optimistic, self-directed peers at CDTM reshaped his sense of what’s possible and why that shift in mindset ultimately led him to entrepreneurship. André reflects on his early experiments building websites, online marketing projects as unlikely training grounds for developing self-reliance and problem-solving. He explains why agency, rather than pedigree, is often the defining factor in whether people actually change things, and how this belief guides Tacto’s culture today. We dive deep into Europe’s industrial backbone and why André believes the continent’s greatest opportunity lies in doubling down on manufacturing, robotics, and industrial AI. He challenges the narrative that ambitious founders must leave for the U.S., arguing instead that the strongest companies are built where domain expertise, customers, and talent are closest. He also opens up about the responsibility he feels toward the system that supported him, how ambition can be cultivated through narrative, and why optimism must shape Europe’s strategy.

In this episode, Julia Gottfriedsen, Head of Data Science & AI at OroraTech, shares how space and artificial intelligence come together to address one of the most pressing challenges of our time. We follow Julia’s journey and explore how technology, leadership, and vision can shape the future. She reflects on how seeing Earth from orbit, with its atmosphere and absence of borders, influences her perspective on responsibility, innovation, and collaboration. Julia also discusses how OroraTech is building the world’s first thermal-infrared satellite constellation to detect and monitor wildfires in real time, providing critical insights for climate resilience and communities across the globe. She explains how running AI models directly on satellites enhances data quality and why vertical integration is essential for success in space technology. Beyond innovation, Julia emphasizes the importance of leadership, diversity, and inclusion, sharing how she builds high-performing teams in a fast-scaling deep-tech environment, why vulnerability and trust are central to her approach, and how she works to create more opportunities for women in tech and space.

In this special guest episode, Judith Dada (General Partner at La Famiglia) and Hanno Renner (Co-founder & CEO of Personio) join us to reflect on their time at CDTM and how it shaped their journeys over the past decade.They talk about what made CDTM so formative, how it created a culture of ambition and trust, and why it continues to be a launchpad for some of Europe’s most impactful founders and investors. Judith shares how CDTM influenced her approach to backing early-stage companies, while Hanno reflects on how the program supported the earliest days of building Personio.This episode is a celebration of community, curiosity, and what happens when driven people are given the space to think big - together.

Erik Muttersbach, co-founder of Forto and now Zauber AI, joins us to talk about what it takes to build globally competitive tech companies from Europe. A CDTM Spring 2013 alumnus, Erik reflects on his journey from being the first employee at DailyDeal, to launching and scaling Forto into one of Europe’s leading digital freight forwarders, and now starting over with Zauber AI.We dive into why most startups scale too early, how product-market fit is often misunderstood, and why AI agents are finally making it possible to automate the chaotic workflows behind global logistics. Erik shares what he’s doing differently this time around — from hiring and fundraising to focusing relentlessly on building something indispensable.He also opens up about life after Forto, the decision to return to zero-to-one, and how becoming a parent reshaped his relationship to time, focus, and ambition. If you're building in logistics, AI, or Europe, or just want an honest look at the highs and lows of company-building, this episode is for you.

Verena Pausder joins us to talk about what Germany needs to truly scale innovation. We dive into how the next generation of founders is redefining work, what’s broken in the startup ecosystem, and how AI can bridge the gap in digital education.She shares lessons from leading the German Startup Association, building companies, and investing in women’s football. This episode is about mindset shifts, modern leadership, and why we need to stop underestimating young builders.🎧 Topics include:The risk-aversion problem in German entrepreneurshipHow AI can transform classrooms and tutoringWhy Verena is optimistic about the new generation#Startups #AI #Germany #Education #Leadership #VerenaPausder #Podcast #CDTM

In this episode, we sit down with Gustaf Alströmer, YC Partner and former Head of Growth at Airbnb, to explore how AI is rewriting the playbook for early-stage startups. From why output matters more than effort, to what truly defines exceptional founders today, Gustaf shares lessons from working with hundreds of companies. We also dive into the European startup ecosystem, building ambition at scale, and why immigrant founders consistently outperform. If you’re building in the AI era - or just want to understand what’s changed in startup land over the last two decades.

Insights from Marc Klingen CEO and co-founder of Langfuse, the open-source LLM observability platform.In this episode, we dive Marc shares his journey of moving back to Europe post-YC and establishing a high-agency, high-trust team culture. We delve into the complexities of building an open-source community, the hurdles in exciting developers about your product, and strategies for monetization. Marc also shares observations on the current state of AI applications, highlighting common use cases like customer support, market research, and software development.00:36 - The "WHY" of decisions02:27 - The Langfuse Story04:18 - Pivoting05:09 - The "YC" effect08:14 - Building high trust and high talent team10:02 - Team Motivation11:01 - Reasons not to start a company12:21 - Building a Company in Europe14:01 - Speed and Progress in AI15:50 - Why open source?19:49 - Creating a developer community22:51 - Patterns in AI teams26:58 - What do teams get wrong?28:43 - Moats in AI applications30:56 - Missing in Stack34:08 - Afraid of and optimistic about....35:01 - Running from and running towards

In conversation with Clemens Meyer, Technical Director @ Google DeepMind.This time we first dive into Clemens’ journey from startups to joining DeepMind and making an impact in interdisciplinary teams. Then how to balance exploitation and exploration in research, with a focus on measurable progress tracking and finally Google’s early role in the AI race, and reflections on the exponential nature of AI progress. Clemens also shares behind-the-scenes insights into AlphaFold’s success—how it began and how ongoing team efforts helped shape its impact. 00:30 Clemens's responsibilities @ DeepMind01:53 The shift from startups to managing research teams07:17 Teams @DeepMind09:55 How to make sure that teams are making progress11:28 Exploration vs Exploitation 12:48 Communication is key14:11 The DeepMind team structure15:29 The AlphaFold story24:55 The Gemini story27:07 Google joining the transformer race29:11 What to look for in people when making a team?30:29 The AI hype and what people are missing32:31 Advice to create impact35:05 Final thoughts on what should be changed or encouraged @ CDTM

Insights from Viet Le, an Early-Stage VC and Partner @ General Catalyst: Betting on Young, Naive Founders and Navigating the AI Hype In this episode, we dive into a conversation with Viet who shares his unique investment philosophy focused on young, naive first-time founders. The discussion covers controversial opinions on the current AI hype and the importance of building and selling efficiently in the early stages. Viet also provides personal background on transitioning from a founder to a VC and offers insights on making independent investment decisions. Various topics such as defensibility in AI software, opportunities in the application layer of AI, and the importance of a bias for action in building startups are explored, along with the potential for AI-native companies to disrupt traditional industries. 00:00 Diving Right In: No Introductions Needed 00:30 Controversial Opinions in AI and VC 01:48 Founder Preferences: Young vs. Experienced 02:56 The Importance of Building and Selling 03:22 From Founder to VC: A Personal Journey 04:33 Making Independent Decisions in a FOMO Market 04:59 Investing in Gen AI: Insights and Examples 07:10 Defensibility in AI Software 09:23 The Future of AI in Coding and Applications 15:52 Consumer AI: Opportunities and Challenges 16:51 Essential Skills for Founders 22:37 Startup Advice: Action Over Whiteboards 25:56 Rapid Fire Questions and Final Thoughts

In this episode, we are talking to Thomas Kirchner. Thomas is an entrepreneur and founder of ProGlove, a company that sells smart gloves used in countless German and international companies for speeding up the manufacturing process. The idea of ProGlove is simple, yet brilliant: every time you scan a barcode of a part when you assemble, for example, a car, you have to pick up a scanner from your pocket, scan the barcode of the item, and put back the scanner. This is frustrating and time-consuming. So what if you could just... wear the scanner? In this episode, we talk to Thomas about his life, his previous ventures, how he and his cofounders came up with the idea, how they scaled up the company from zero to millions in revenue, how they sold it for lots of money and how he's now giving back to other founders. Stay with us, because you're not gonna want to miss this episode! This is the CDTM Mostly Awesome Podcast.

Hamza Tahir is a software developer turned ML engineer. An indie hacker by heart, he loves ideating, implementing, and launching data-driven products. His previous projects include PicHance, Scrilys, BudgetML, and you-tldr. Based on his learnings from deploying ML in production for predictive maintenance use-cases in his previous startup, he co-created ZenML, an open-source MLOps framework for creating production grade ML pipelines on any infrastructure stack. In this podcast, we dive into Hamza's initial projects, how he got into entrepreneurship, as well as his struggles with balancing his entrepreneurial career and personal responsibilities. We also talk about his outlook on the AI space, limits to current model architectures, existential risks, and much more. We hope you enjoy the episode!

We just released a brand new episode of our podcast featuring an in-depth conversation with the co-founder and chief product officer of Tanso, Gyri Reiersen, a groundbreaking company revolutionizing carbon accounting and emission reduction processes. Join us as we delve into the world of sustainability and technology, exploring how Tanso automates processes in carbon accounting while building the analytical basis for effective emission reduction. Discover their innovative solutions that are helping organizations make a tangible impact on climate change. Tune in to this enlightening episode to learn more about Tanso's mission, their success stories, and the future of carbon accounting and emission reduction. Whether you're an entrepreneur, a climate enthusiast, or simply curious about the intersection of technology and sustainability, this conversation is a must-listen! Don't miss out on this incredible opportunity to gain insights from a visionary leader in the field. Listen now on Spotify, Apple Podcast or wherever you listen to us and let us know your thoughts in the comments below. Together, let's create a greener, more sustainable future!

Welcome to the new season of the Mostly Awesome podcast! Our first episode will drop on May 10, but before that we wanted to give you all a sneak preview of what season 5 is all about. Over this season, we will be chatting with different changemakers and innovators – we can’t wait for you to hear! We’re also stoked to have Ruby Zhang, Claudia Dalmau, and Ali Raza as our fearless hosts.

When you think about trees, what comes to mind? In most of our heads, they are probably the prime example of “something good for the environment”. Even though it is by far not the only way to capture carbon, there is an increasing trend to quantify and enhance the environmental benefit of sustainable forestry. We are happy to have Gesa Biermann as our guest today. Gesa is a Co-Founder of Pina, a startup that quantifies and rewards sustainable forestry.  Before founding Pina she was a Center Assistant at CDTM, did her Ph.D. in the area of sustainable food consumption, and co-founded the Munich Branch of 180 Degrees Consulting. Over the course of the episode, we will dive deeper into Gesa's journey in the field of sustainability and social impact. We will hear how the CDTM shaped her and also how both the idea and founding team for Pina were impacted by the Center. Finally, we will deep dive into Gesa's view on the future of sustainability and the voluntary carbon market. As always, we end the episode by getting insights into Gesa's personal toolbox.

Today we welcome Johannes Hussak in our podcast, one of the co-founders of Kertos, a platform that automates data privacy operations. Always fascinated by technology, Johannes did his bachelor and master at Technical University of Munich in Energy and Process Technology and went to an abroad semester at Indian Institute of Technology in Mumbai. It was during his studies when one of his friends drew Johannes attention to Manage and More - an entrepreneurship scholarship by UnternehmerTUM in Munich. At Manage and more Johannes discovered his passion to build products and teams around them. Together with Kilian Schmidt on the legal side and Alexander Prams on the tech side, he found a perfect team match for Kertos. Over the course of the episode, we speak to Johannes about his experience of founding a company in the middle of the pandemic, the story of how the Kertos founding team came to be, Johannes's take on the future of the compliance industry, and his personal advise on maintaining work-life balance. As always, at the end of episode, you will hear Johannes's prompt answers and recommendations to our toolbox.

This week we are excited to welcome Eva Spannagl, head of Strategy & Business Development at Moss, founder of Femstory, business angel, and personal inspiration to both of us. Eva studied at ESCP Business school and the Universidad Carlos tercero de Madrid. She held a variety of internships during her studies and ultimately joined McKinsey full time when she graduated from her masters. During that time, Eva founded Femstory, a nonprofit focused on connecting women to professional mentors. For the past 2 years, Femstory has empowered a variety of women to make impactful career moves. I'm personally happy to be part of the last Femstory batch and am already getting a lot of insights from my mentor and the network. After spending 3 years with McKinsey Eva joined Moss, a fintech startup focused on smart corporate credit cards, digital invoice management, and automated accounting. Over the course of the episode, we speak to Eva about her early career trajectory, her experience at Moss, her experience with founding Femstory and angel investing, and finally, we ask her about work-life balance & managing multiple projects without burnout. Needless to say, Eva is a pro – the following episode is full of game-changing career and time management tips. As always, to finish out the podcast, we are also thrilled to add Eva's personal toolbox to our resources for the innovators of tomorrow.

How do you found a VC firm, really? Today we will talk to Claudius Jablonka, a former CDTM Centerling and Center assistant who co-founded 10x Founders. Claudius co-founded and led the Munich office of Plug and Play Ventures, one of the most active early-stage investors in the world. In 2020, he and 6 other partners co-founded 10x founders, now a €160m early-stage fund which is backed also by CDTM alumni. Over the course of the episode, we speak to Claudius about his academic and professional background, the experience of founding 10x, Claudius' take on diversity in VC, and some tips on maintaining work-life balance.

Some people say the entrepreneurial spirit is something you are born with. This is something that could be true for our guest in today’s episode, Vanessa Westphal. As a very young child she already started selling stones in front of her house to top up pocket money. And she kept the entrepreneurial spirit ever since. Having spent more than 10 years building a corporate career at Siemens, last year Vanessa founded Choosy, which offers AI-optimized nutrition plans that suit both your taste and your health. Choosy aims not only to improve our individual nutrition habits, but also to make planetary health available to everyone. Over the course of the episode we will dive deeper into Vanessas journey. We will learn what she took from her experience of being an innovation driver within corporate Siemens and what made her switch to entrepreneurship again. Furthermore, we learn about her founding experience with Choosy and what her expert view on the importance of health and nutrition is.

The startup ecosystem has seen many software startups over the last years, but how about a software startup that aims to ease the development of new electronic hardware products? Our guest in todays episode, Sebastian Schaal, is diving into exactly this area. He is the co-founder of Luminovo, a company that speeds up the process of electronic hardware development, leveraging software and machine learning. Over the course of the episode you will learn about the Luminovo's transition into a pure SaaS business, Sebastian's take on the current supply chain crisis, being a founder and the future of AI in Europe.