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hessian.AI · AI Startup Rising

Accelerator RISING — Application

From AI Startup to AI Scale-up: Accelerator RISING is hessian.AI's four-month program for advanced AI startups from Germany that build their own AI models — focused on sales scaling and internationalization, with the cohort trip to Slush in Helsinki as its centrepiece. Apply now!

You may complete this form in English or German.
Duration
4 months
Oct 2026 – Jan 2027
Cohort
5 AI startups
scale-up phase, based in Germany
Prize
10,000 €
per team — plus the cohort trip to Slush, Helsinki (18–19 Nov)
Deadline
13 Sep 2026
23:59 (CEST)

what the program offers

10,000 € prize money per team — free use (travel, equipment, …).
Cohort trip to Slush, Helsinki (18–19 Nov) — with a preparation workshop and structured follow-up.
Optional participation in further European top events (e.g. DLD Munich, TechChill Riga) — funded from the prize money.
Two exclusive workshops on sales and investment for AI scale-ups.
Coaches, mentors, investors and corporates from the hessian.AI network.
Community formats with the Ignition & LAISF teams, AI compute infrastructure in Darmstadt, and PR support.
Tip: we recommend applying startups also register for the Slush 100 competition — application deadline 7 September 2026, independent of this application (no Slush ticket needed to apply). We'll support accepted teams with travel and tickets wherever possible.

key dates

Info session / Q&A for applicants (online)provisional
date announced soon
Application deadline
13 Sep 2026, 23:59 (CEST)
Internal selection
14–16 Sep 2026
Invitation to the pitch session (or rejection)
by 16 Sep 2026
Pitch session before the jury (online, 10 teams)provisional— final date is confirmed with the invitation
17, 18 or 21 Sep 2026
Final decision — 5 teams
by 22 Sep 2026
Kick-off (online)
1 Oct 2026
Community event with Ignition & LAISF teams, Frankfurt
13 Oct 2026
Workshops Sales & Investment · Slush preparationprovisional
dates announced soon
Slush, Helsinki (cohort trip)— plan for the full “Slush Week” — side events start 17 Nov
18–19 Nov 2026
Check-out (online)
end of Jan 2027

what you'll provide

Startup & contact details — name, website, the basics.
Your team — 1 to 4 people with their roles.
Your pitch — 3 short written sections.
Two short declarations — eligibility & privacy.
Before you send: submitting is final — afterwards you can't edit, re-open, or view your application (there's no account to log back into). While you fill it in, your progress is saved as a draft in this browser, so take your time and review everything before you submit.
Questions about the program or your fit? Talk to the AISR team before applying — aisr@hessian.ai.
We restored your saved draft.

section 1

Startup & contact

section 2

Your team

Who's on the team? Name up to 4 people — founders and key team members.

Person 1

section 3

Your pitch

Three short written sections. Each has a character limit shown live as you type. You may write in English or German.

What does your startup do, for whom — and which AI models or algorithms do you develop yourselves? Where does the product stand today?

Your traction to date: customers, pilots, revenue, funding raised, team size — the key numbers that show the market wants this.

Why Accelerator RISING, and why now? Which international markets are you targeting — and what do you want to get out of the cohort trip to Slush in Helsinki?

section 4

Declarations

Stay connectedoptional

Independent of your application — your choices here have no influence on the selection. You can withdraw any of them at any time via aisr@hessian.ai.

After submitting, we'll e-mail you a confirmation link. Your application only counts once you click it.
Apply — Accelerator RISING · aigude