Germany's largest incubator & accelerator for impact startups

Impact Factory is Germany's largest impact founder fellowship. We give social entrepreneurs the space, network and know-how to innovate and grow faster.

Apply to Impact Factory now!

Apply to our Incubator as an early-stage startup, or join the new Impact Factory Accelerator program as a scaleup – learn more on our program pages.

Just starting out?

You have an idea with impact or your product is about to enter the market? In the Incubator, we give you intensive support in turning your vision into reality and building a market-ready company from your impact idea. On this page, you'll learn more about the incubation program.

Growing?

In the Accelerator, we help founding teams that already have a finished product and first traction in the market to scale, with a strong network of experts, access to key customers and investors, and individual coaching in the areas that matter most to you, such as marketing, sales, finance and investor readiness.

We turn impact startups into the companies of tomorrow.

Impact Factory is a unique founder fellowship that gives social entrepreneurs from all over Germany a collaborative space and a strong network to build scalable innovations that tackle complex social and environmental challenges – successfully and on a financially sustainable footing.
If you want to found a company built on a social business model, or scale your existing impact startup faster, this is your home.

We make impact startups market-ready and investor-ready and connect them with the experts, corporate partners and investors in our large network ecosystem – moving socially innovative ideas forward together.

15

Batches

401

Startups

800

+

Community members

100

%

Free for startups

Strong partners,
strong founders

Impact Factory is backed by strong funding and program partners who make our programs, the Impact Factory Incubator and the Impact Factory Accelerator NRW, possible.

Our support program for social & green startups

Impact Factory isn't just another startup program – we offer you a mix of training, a vibrant community of like-minded innovators and a huge ecosystem of supporters.

Idea-makers and visionaries of tomorrow

The founders in our community.

HellGrün Energie
Community Member
Köln

HellGrün Energie

HellGrün macht die Energiewende in Gebäuden einfach, smart & nachhaltig. Wir bieten Finanzierungslösungen an für grüne Energie: PV-Anlagen, Stromspeicher, Wallbox & Wärmepumpen.

Honett
Community Member
Bochum

Honett

IT-Sicherheits-Dienstleister der Gemeinwohlökonomie. Wir unterstützen insbesondere Mitglieder der GWÖ bei der Entwicklung von Resilienz, damit sie langfristig ihren Wertebeitrag für die Gesellschaft leisten können.

SAPOR
Community Member
Essen

SAPOR

SAPOR entwickelt und produziert zirkuläre Trockenseifenspender mit fester Seife, macht die Welt hygienischer, vermeidet Plastikmüll und senkt den CO2-Fußabdruck.

Tailored support for your startup

Are you still collecting ideas or looking for a workbench for your first prototype? Or are you already on the market and looking for ways to scale sustainably?
Our program stages are tailored to your startup's current stage of development and its individual challenges!

Incubator (IFI)

Is your startup idea at an early stage? We give you intensive support in turning your vision into reality, from idea validation all the way to market entry! In this program stage, we work closely together for six months so you gain all the key founder skills and contacts.

Accelerator (IFA)

Is your product already on the market, beyond the first test sales? Then we want to help you grow sustainably and connect you with the right people and organizations. We work intensively on your scaling in 5 fields of action and strengthen your market position.

Community program

We believe our impact founders and their startup journeys are too diverse to consider their support complete after six months. That's why our program aims to make all content available to all members again and again: mastering new challenges, refreshing knowledge or meeting the next important contact.
To become a permanent member of the Impact Factory, we offer two entry program stages that support you in different ways and with different intensity depending on your maturity: Early, from idea validation to market entry, and Scale, for everyone who is already active with their product and wants to grow.

Building the future together

Together with our network partners, we drive forward future-proof projects, startups and initiatives. Through joint activities and event formats, we spread the idea of creating impact in an economically viable way.

How to join Impact Factory

If you want to become part of our unique community, you can apply to our program twice a year. Find out here what you should bring with you.

Program stages

Every startup develops differently and faces its own challenges. To support as many founding teams as possible, we offer two different program stages – the Incubator for the early stage and the Accelerator for the scaling stage.

How it works

Twice a year, you can apply to us during a four- to six-week window. Just answer a few questions about yourselves and your startup in our application form. After that, we'll talk things through together to see whether and how we're a good fit.

Selection criteria

For all their diversity, our startups agree on one thing: their contribution to modern entrepreneurship has to have impact! Beyond a project's impact, we look above all at your motivation, your team, the business model, market opportunities and financial viability.

Meet us at these events

Future Tech Fest 2026
Event over

Future Tech Fest 2026

10.9.26
Düsseldorf, Areal Böhler
Read more
Learn more
Anthropia Festival 2026
Event over

Anthropia Festival 2026

16.7.26
Duisburg-Ruhrort | Haniel Campus
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Learn more
Impact Finance Day 2026
Event over

Impact Finance Day 2026

30.6.26
GLS Bank Bochum | Christstraße 9
Read more
Learn more

Write to us

Our team will get back to you as soon as possible.

Call us

If it's urgent, feel free to give us a call.

Visit us

You'll find us at Villa Anthropia on the Haniel Campus in Duisburg-Ruhrort.