As part of a two-day programme hosted by TUM School of Management, QTEM students had the opportunity to experience first-hand how academic excellence, entrepreneurship and industry collaboration come together in one of Germany’s fastest-growing innovation ecosystems.
The programme began with a visit to TUM Campus Heilbronn, where students from TUM Munich joined local TUM Heilbronn students for a full day exploring the city and its dynamic AI and entrepreneurship landscape.
The day started at experimenta, Germany’s largest science centre, where interactive exhibits highlighted the importance of curiosity and experimentation as the foundations of innovation. Students then visited Gravity, the startup and co-innovation hub developed by Campus Founders, which supports entrepreneurs by connecting founders, researchers, investors and companies in a collaborative environment.
The final stop was IPAI – Innovation Park Artificial Intelligence, an ambitious initiative designed to strengthen Europe’s AI ecosystem by bringing together businesses, startups, researchers, public institutions and talent in a shared innovation space. The visit offered students valuable insight into Heilbronn’s long-term vision of becoming a leading European hub for artificial intelligence and applied innovation.
On the second day, students put their analytical and teamwork skills to the test during a hackathon organised in collaboration with TUM and QTEM Corporate Partner essentry. Working in multidisciplinary teams, they tackled a real business challenge based on company data, with the objective of developing a predictive model capable of outperforming an existing benchmark.
Throughout the competition, teams combined technical expertise with business judgement, identifying the most relevant variables, testing different approaches and refining their models under time pressure. The collaborative atmosphere encouraged creativity, critical thinking and rapid iteration, closely reflecting the way data-driven challenges are addressed in professional environments.
Beyond the technical sessions, the two-day event also provided plenty of opportunities for QTEM students, alumni and partners to connect through networking breaks, shared meals and evening drinks. These informal moments strengthened the QTEM community and fostered valuable personal and professional connections.