Urban Innovation Forum 26
The Urban Innovation Forum is one of Europe’s most relevant satellite events for urban innovation, energy systems and the future of cities.
For one day, more than 350 carefully selected participants come together at CIC Berlin — founders, investors, energy providers, utilities, corporates, public-sector leaders and international delegations who actively shape how cities evolve.
Across 30+ curated panels, keynotes and conversations, the Urban Innovation Forum focuses on how cities actually work — and why innovation in urban environments requires new alliances between technology, capital, institutions and operators.
The Urban Innovation Forum returns in 2026 for its fourth edition, bringing together 350+ senior decision-makers.
Agenda
Agenda — Urban Innovation Forum 2026
19 March 2026 · CIC Berlin
10:00 Welcome Ceremony
Opening remarks and framing of UIF 2026: why implementation matters now.
Katharina Beitz, Investor & Chair, Climate Tech Hub e.V.
Nicole Hiltl, Managing Director, Climate Tech Hub e.V.
Timon Rupp, Managing Director, CIC Germany
10:20 Inside Tesla's Gigafactory: The Giga Actuator Venture Clienting Program
(Keynote) How bold technology adoption, venture collaboration, and operational excellence come together to accelerate the future of industry.
Dr.-Ing. Matan Beery, Senior Business Development Manager, Tesla Gigafactory Berlin-Brandenburg
10:30 In Conversation with Saskia Bruysten
(Fireside Chat) The role of climate capital in scaling the transition — what makes business models investable and where the biggest opportunities lie.
Saskia Bruysten, Partner & Co-Founder International, Carbon Equity
Moderation: Katharina Beitz, Climate Tech Hub e.V.
11:00 "Power Under Pressure: How Resilient Is Our Energy Infrastructure — Really?"
(Panel) Berlin's 2026 outage as a stress test: how cities withstand hybrid threats — from sabotage and cyber risks to cascading infrastructure failures.
Dr. Andrea Nakoinz, Climate Adaptation Expert
Prof. Dr. Kathrin Goldammer, Managing Director, Reiner Lemoine Institut
Chris Werner, CEO, Berliner Stadtwerke
Dipl. Ing. Annegrit Seyerlein-Klug, Cybersecurity & AI Expert, KKI / TH Brandenburg
Moderation: Nicole Hiltl, Climate Tech Hub e.V.
12:00 Jelbi — Europe's Largest Mobility Platform for Public Transport and Sharing
(Keynote) BVG's corporate innovation journey: from pilot to rollout in a regulated environment.
Michael Bartnik, Head of Jelbi Hubs, Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe (BVG)
12:15 Innovation Between Ambition and Reality
(Keynote) What sustainable transformation looks like inside a global corporation — operational reality, regulatory fit, and economic necessity.
Annette Storr, Manager Engineering Services & Sustainability, UPS
12:30 Mobility Is a Human Right — Why Our Mobility Systems Are Not Gender-Neutral
(Keynote) The gender data gap in mobility design — and why transport systems must be built for everyone.
Meike Wenzl, Principal, metafinanz
12:00 – 14:00 Lunch
12:00 Who Pays for All of That?
(Fireside Chat) Where does the capital for urban innovation actually come from? From VC and impact investing to angel networks and early-stage communities.
Tom Josczok, Investor Relations Manager, FASE
Sarah Buge, COO, Companisto
Moderation: Katharina Beitz, Climate Tech Hub e.V.
12:00 Digitisation of Public Procurement Preparation
(Workshop · by SenWEB Startup Unit) How a new digital tool makes internal procurement prep significantly more efficient — a winning project of City Challenge Berlin 2025.
Norbert Herrmann, Head of Startup Affairs, Senate Department for Economic Affairs
Christoph Braendle, CEO, Augnum
Viktor Gerbert, CEO, Alchemisten AG
12:00 Fast Lanes & Red Tape: When Startups Meet Industry and Public Sector
(Workshop · by CIC Catalyst) How corporates and public-sector organizations can move beyond innovation scouting toward structured, results-driven collaboration.
Vivian Duong, Head of Venture Clienting, CIC
13:00 "Climate Tech Is Boring — And That's a Risk"
(Panel) Is Climate Tech getting too earnest to win? How to build companies that are infrastructure-serious and story-worthy — while still decarbonizing at scale.
Tess Dury, Director of Impact & ESG, Extantia Capital
Valeria Do, Co-Founder, Elevate2Impact
Bernd Riedel, Executive Creative Director, Ellery Studio
Moderation: Lena Bödeker, Senior Partnership Manager, TUM Venture Labs
13:00 New York, London, Berlin: Three Cities, Three Climate Innovation Strategies
(Panel) Comparing how London, Berlin, and New York design and implement climate strategies across governance, regulation, and innovation ecosystems.
Simon Sylvester-Chaudhuri, Executive Director, CIV:LAB
Chris Walla, Senior Director BATWorks, CIC
Maximilian von der Ahé, CEO, betahaus
Moderation: Katharina Beitz, Climate Tech Hub e.V.
13:00 Real-World Labs Berlin: U-Space & IWIQ
(Workshop) From drone-based airspace integration to intelligent water infrastructure — sandbox projects that test innovation in real urban environments.
Maren Lesche, Managing Director, Startup Colors / U-Space Berlin
Yuki Bartels, Research Assistant, Kompetenzzentrum Wasser Berlin (KWB)
13:00 B#sharp: Pre-Seed Fund (IBB Ventures)
(Workshop) How Berlin's boldest DeepTech founders get backed — what to know before applying.
Stephan Schulze, Investment Director, IBB Ventures
13:00 Green-Cashing Instead of Greenwashing — Why Sustainability Must Pay
(Workshop) How sustainability can become a real business advantage — developing arguments that hold up in front of the CFO.
Jan Pechmann, Founder & Head of Consulting, BAM! Bock auf Morgen
Kerrin Löhe, CEO, BAM! Bock auf Morgen
14:00 Sovereign AI: Can Europe Build Competitive AI Systems Without Losing Control?
(Fireside Chat) As cities become software-defined, digital sovereignty becomes operational. How can Europe build and operate sovereign, energy-integrated digital infrastructure at scale?
Camilla Dalerci, Stv. Projektleiterin KI-Kompetenzcenter, Bundesdruckerei
Robin Juchems, COO, FUTURE030
Corinna Vetter, Head of Digital Policy, Heinrich Böll Foundation
Moderation: Dr. Dale Rickert, Managing Director, TECH by Handelsblatt
14:00 Aligning Municipalities, Utilities and Innovators to Scale the Energy Transition
(Panel) It's not the technology — it's the ecosystem. How cross-sector collaboration becomes the decisive lever for scaling.
Martin Bornholdt, Founder & CEO, Kelvin Green
Christian Pirzer, Managing Director, Endeva
Daniela Hertzer, Innovation Manager, LEAG Gigawatt
Toni Loitsch, Climate Protection Manager, Stadt Cottbus
Jette Banning, Referentin, Bündnis Bürgerenergie e.V.
Moderation: Nicole Hiltl, Climate Tech Hub e.V.
14:00 From Idea to Impact — Ecosystems for Early-Stage Deep Tech
(Workshop · by MotionLab.Berlin) What do founders really need before Series A? How ecosystems can actively accelerate early-stage hardtech development.
Rene Giese, Director, MotionLab.Berlin
14:00 Cities Designed for Belonging and Resilience — A Systems Lens with Doughnut Economics
(Workshop) How cities worldwide use the Doughnut as an urban innovation tool — and how Berlin can build holistic solutions for a resilient, just future.
Dr. Nicole Hartmann, Co-Founder, Donut Berlin e.V.
Laura Urbanek, Board Member, Donut Berlin e.V.
14:00 How to Be Mindful When the World Lost Its Mind
(Workshop) The strategic role of embodiment in the age of AI. Leave with a 90-second Body Check for clarity and decision quality.
Sophie Marquitan, Director, Energy Watch Group
14:00 – 16:00 AI-Powered Matchmaking
Walk into the Coco Café, scan a QR code, and let AI find your perfect conversation partners. No awkward small talk — just the right people at the right table.
Marvin Göldner, Head of Startup Incubator Berlin
Christian Klang, Researcher, Startup Incubator Berlin
15:00 "The Heat Transition: Cities on the Frontline of Change"
(Panel) Europe's most urgent transformation challenge — how governance, investment, and infrastructure must align to turn municipal heat plans into scalable projects.
Prof. Dr. Volker Quaschning, Professor for Renewable Energy Systems, HTW Berlin
Philine Wedell, Managing Director, IKEM
Simon Harske, Managing Director, Enpal Heat
Susanne Huneke, Head of Strategy, BEW Berliner Energie und Wärme
Moderation: Lena Bödeker, TUM Venture Labs
15:00 Urban Airspace: Are Drones Finally Ready to Enter Real Cities?
(Panel) Safe, scalable drone deployment — from airspace integration and traffic management to regulation and real-world use cases.
Tim Fischer, CEO, Labfly
Oliver Lichtenstein, CEO & Co-Founder, Beagle Systems
Andrea Puiatti, CEO, Skycharge
Moderation: Maren Lesche, Managing Director, U-Space Berlin
15:00 Sektor Pi — How to Unlock Public Funding for Innovation
(Workshop) A practical introduction to Germany's public funding landscape — plus a fast-paced funding clinic with direct feedback on eligibility.
Victoria Hoffmann, Co-Founder & CEO, SectorPi
Dr. Marko Häckel, Co-Founder, SectorPi
15:00 Navigating Urban Careers: Finding Your Path in a Changing Field
(Workshop · by All Things Urban) Job market trends, career advice, and emerging skill gaps for urban professionals at any career stage.
Anastasia Sukhoroslova, CEO & Founder, All Things Urban
15:00 Empty Spaces, Temporary Solutions? Rethinking Urban Vacancy
(Workshop) How empty urban space can become an asset — from Berlin's Zwischennutzung tradition to international models of adaptive development.
Alexander Sascha Wolf, Chair of the Board, Foundation AusserGewöhnlich Berlin
16:00 "Is Berlin Bad at Scaling — And Why That Might Be Its Strength"
(Panel) Why Berlin's fragmented, regulation-heavy ecosystem may be better at building resilient, long-term systems than fast-scaling unicorns.
Dr. Severin Fischer, State Secretary for Energy, Senate Department for Economic Affairs
Christoph Krüger, Managing Director, JUNI
Emanuel Heisenberg, CEO & Founder, ecoworks
Moderation: Doreen Rietentiet, CEO, Elevate2Impact
17:00 Startup Slam
Hand-picked startups present 3–5 minute pitches to a live audience and expert jury. Each pitch followed by Q&A, concluding with audience & jury voting.
Moderation: Constantin "Tino" Schmutzler, CEO, Startups for Tomorrow
Jury:
Andjela Cvetanovic, Head of Investment Management, capacura
Natalie Milde, Investor & Head of Impact, Future Energy Ventures
Dr. Isabelle Canu, Partner, GET Fund
Stephan Schulze, Investment Director, IBB Ventures
Tobias Wittich, Chairman, Business Angel Club Berlin-Brandenburg (BACB)
Marvin Göldner, Head of Startup Incubator Berlin (HWR) & Board Member, Climate Tech Hub
Sarah Luna Mongin, Co-Head of Product Builder Program, HPI Engine
Anne-Sophie Krechting, Associate, Atlantic
18:00 Closing Ceremony
Reflecting on the key insights from UIF 2026 — looking ahead and celebrating the partnerships that made the day possible.
Katharina Beitz, Investor & Chair, Climate Tech Hub e.V.
Nicole Hiltl, Managing Director, Climate Tech Hub e.V.
17:00 – 22:00 VENTURE CAFÈ: Rebalancing the Climate Equation
Thursday Gathering #47 — where urban systems, sustainability, and social responsibility converge. Founders, researchers, policymakers, and curious minds connect to exchange ideas and spark collaboration.
Speaker