As one of twenty professors, CASA Hub Coordinator Christof Paar (Founding Director of the Max Planck Institute for Security and Privacy) has been honored by UNIPRENEURS for his outstanding commitment to spin-offs and entrepreneurship at universities. Another award also goes to Bochum: Among the honorees is Prof. Dr. Clara Saraceno, a researcher in the field of photonics and ultrafast laser science at RUB.
The award ceremony took place on September 22, 2026, in Berlin, with Federal Minister for Research, Technology, and Space Dorothee Bär in attendance. She is a co-patron of UNIPRENEURS. UNIPRENEURS is the highest honor for the promotion of entrepreneurship in the higher education and research sectors in Germany; the award is presented every three years.
Award recipient Christof Paar is delighted: “It is a great honor for me to be selected for the Unipreneurs Award. I started my career as a technician and keeping real-world applications in mind has always been a great motivation for me while doing science. Technology developed by my group has led to five startups, including escrypt GmbH that was acquired by ETAS/Bosch and is now a global leader in automotive cybersecurity.”
Germany’s Innovative Strength and Future Viability
“The UNIPRENEURS initiative strengthens startup activity at German universities by bringing visibility to the professors who play a key role,” says Federal Minister Bär. “The award recipients contribute significantly to creating a startup culture at universities and are thus also important drivers of Germany’s innovative strength and future viability.”
Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy Katherina Reiche also praised the achievements of the professors: “UNIPRENEURS embodies the strong connection between academic excellence and entrepreneurial spirit at our universities. The honored professors make a significant contribution to Germany’s competitiveness as a hub for innovation.”
General note: In case of using gender-assigning attributes we include all those who consider themselves in this gender regardless of their own biological sex.