MATCHUP

​What is MATCHUP?

​MATCHUP is an internship hiring event that turns recruiting around: instead of students applying to companies, startups pitch to students. Founders present their company, their vision and their open internship roles to a selected group of students. Afterwards, students and founders get to know each other in relaxed conversations, and the students decide which startups they want to work for.

​Founders pitch. Talent chooses.

​How it works

• ​Students apply to take part, and thinc! selects the group that attends.

• ​On the evening, founders take the stage one after another and pitch their startup and their open roles.

• ​After the pitches, students and founders meet in a relaxed setting. These are no job interviews. They are open conversations where both sides find out whether they fit, and that's where most connections are made.

​Who it's for

• ​Students who want an internship at a startup

• ​Startups looking for interns who actually want to work at a startup

​The thinc! weekend

​MATCHUP opens the thinc! weekend in Munich. On November 7–8, the thinc! Hackathon follows, where student teams work on challenges set by partner companies.

​Last edition

• ​Berlin, February 10, 2026, at The Delta Campus, with Creandum and five.degrees

• ​100+ selected students

• ​10+ startups, including Lio, Peec AI and Aries Global

• ​Lio and Aries Global each hired 4+ interns

​About thinc!

​thinc! is one of Europe's largest student startup initiatives, based at the University of Mannheim and active for 25+ years. MATCHUP is thinc!'s format for connecting students with startups.

​Key Facts

​📅 November 6, 2026, doors open 5:15 PM, pitches start 6:00 PM
📍 Lio office, Munich
✅ Free, selection-based

​Places are limited. We'll let you know via Email whether you've been selected.