A southwestX venture format, run with academic & corporate partners

Deep Tech Bootcamps

An intensive, multi-day format that empowers researchers and MBA talent to transform cutting-edge scientific research into impactful, fundable ventures – from market exploration and IP to business modelling, financing and the investor pitch.
0
Editions across Europe
0
Host cities: Paris, Munich, Saarbrücken
0 +
Academic & corporate partners involved
The aim & the promise
From cutting-edge research to a pitch-ready venture.
The Deep Tech Bootcamp empowers researchers and business talent to transform scientific research into impactful ventures - addressing the challenges that stand between a lab result and a company: identifying high-potential markets, building a powerful business model, protecting IP, structuring financing, and pitching to stakeholders. Each edition is run in partnership with a research institution and hosted in a different European city, with the same proven structure underneath.

The promise

Turn a research project into a venture hypothesis that stands up to market, IP and investor scrutiny – in a matter of weeks, not years.

Who's invited

Interdisciplinary teams: PhD researchers and scientists from partner research institutions, paired with MBA, Executive MBA and Master's talent.

The curriculum

Expert-led modules on market exploration, founder identity, business models, intellectual property, financing and stakeholder pitching.

The rhythm

A mix of online kickoff, an intensive on-site bootcamp, and online closing sessions – teams build and iterate their business model with direct feedback from seasoned entrepreneurs throughout.

Faculty

Led by Europe's top entrepreneurship scholars – including Prof. Dietmar Harhoff (Max Planck Institute for Innovation and Competition) and Prof. Marc Gruber (EPFL) – rotating with each host institution.

The editions

Each edition runs with a different academic and innovation partner, in a different city – the format stays constant, the network keeps growing.
Previous edition · Dec 2025

Collège des Ingénieurs × Max Planck Institute × ENS Paris

The first Deep Tech Bootcamp ran as a 6-module program over two months, empowering MBA Fellows from Collège des Ingénieurs, PhD researchers from the Max Planck Institute, and Master's students from École Normale Supérieure (Paris) to transform cutting-edge scientific research into impactful ventures – from market exploration and IP to financing and stakeholder pitching.

01

online

Oct 29, 2025

Course introduction

Kickoff & Team setup

02

CDI Paris

Dec 17, 2025

Deep tech foundations

Foundations of deep tech entrepreneurship and project presentations.

03

Max Planck Institute

Dec 18, 2025

Founder identity & market opportunities

Discovering founder identity and exploring market opportunities.

04

Max Planck Institute

Dec 19, 2025

Value propositions, business models, IP & financing

Building and iterating business models with direct feedback from seasoned instructors.

05

CDI Paris

Dec 20, 2025

Customer interviews & venture pitching

Testing assumptions with real customers and preparing the pitch.

06

online

Feb 2, 2026

Final presentations & closing

Final presentations and course closing.

12%
of CDI alumni with a PhD
have founded a tech startup

59%
of those launched within 5 years of the program

Participant

"That was more than just further training it was a necessary firework. I can warmly recommend this format to anyone willing to found a company, and especially to scientists."

Dr. Jan Bruder

Co-Founder @ PEARL

Featured deep tech projects

Four founder projects, straight from Max Planck research

Scalable brain organoids for research

MPI for Molecular Biomedicine

Nanodiamonds for quantum & biosensing

MPI for Polymer Research

Autonomous AI lab for materials discovery

MPI for Dynamics and Self-Organization

Smarter AMR data & early detection

MPI for Multidisciplinary Sciences

What's next

Two new editions, two new cities.

The format keeps its structure — interdisciplinary teams, expert-led modules, a hands-on bootcamp, an investor-facing close — while the host institution and city change with every cohort.

München

October 2026

by Collège des Ingénieurs

Deep Tech Bootcamp - MPI Edition #2

The second Max Planck Institute edition, run by Collège des Ingénieurs, brings the format to Munich for another cohort of researchers and business talent turning MPI-sourced technologies into venture-ready teams.

Saarbrücken

Oct 23–25, 2026

by southwestX

Deep Tech Bootcamp - DFKI Edition

Run by southwestX in partnership with DFKI, this edition brings the Deep Tech Bootcamp to Saarbrücken for a three-day, on-site format pairing selected scientists with MBA and Executive MBA talent.

Academic & innovation network

Backed by a growing network of leading institutions.

Every edition is co-run with a research institution and its ecosystem of tech-transfer offices and business schools.

Paris
Max Planck Institute Edition #1 · Collège des Ingénieurs
Munich
Max Planck Institute Edition #2 · Collège des Ingénieurs
Saarbrücken
DFKI Edition · southwestX
Further info

What you need to know.

To empower researchers to transform cutting-edge scientific research into impactful, fundable ventures — covering market exploration, business models, intellectual property, financing and investor pitching.

PhD researchers and scientists from partner institutions, paired with MBA, Executive MBA and Master's talent who bring business and operating experience.

Deep Tech Bootcamp is a format, not a single fixed event. Each edition is co-run with a different research institution — sourcing its own technologies, faculty and participants — while keeping the same proven structure.

No. The format is designed around founder-level matching, entrepreneurial fit and project exploration — no solicitation, no recruitment booths, no noise.

Yes. Tech-transfer offices, universities, alumni communities, VC networks and startup factories can submit technologies and propose to host an upcoming edition.

Each edition is run in partnership with a research and business school institution - such as Collège des Ingénieurs, the Max Planck Institute, DFKI or southwestX - which rotates from cohort to cohort, along with the faculty who teach each edition.

Contact

You want to bring Deep Tech Bootcamp to your Institution?

southwestX partners with research institutions and business schools to run new editions. Get in touch to discuss hosting one, submitting technologies, or joining an upcoming cohort. Please get in touch with Program lead Jean-François Naud, Venture Formats & Catalyst Lead
×
Get in touch

We'd love to hear from you