As the results of the German election roll in, the nation’s tech elites have called on the new government to lead Europe into a new era of self-sufficiency — rejecting US president Donald Trump’s ultimatums and boosting support for startups at home.
Incoming chancellor Friedrich Merz, whose party the Christian Democrats (CDU/CSU) won 28.5% of the vote on Sunday, made plain his intentions to refashion Germany’s security arrangements and end its dependence on Washington, remarking that Trump remains “largely indifferent” to Europe’s fate.
The CDU won with a slim majority, meaning it will likely have to form a coalition with the Social Democrats (SPD), the party of former chancellor Olaf Scholz. The far-right party AfD — which is “confirmed right-wing extremist” in some Eastern states — came second, doubling its vote to 21%, marking the biggest far-right gains in Germany since the second world war.
We are under threat not just from Putin, but from Trump as well.
“We need to form a coalition fast: Europe, the world and its turbulent geopolitics are not waiting. We are under threat not just from Putin, but from Trump as well,” says Danijel Višević, general partner at World Fund, a VC firm based in Berlin.
Tech leaders Sifted spoke to are hopeful that Merz could usher in a new era of stability for Germany, uniting the continent to stand up against Trump. “Our incoming Chancellor Merz knows the importance of a strong Germany as a key pillar of a unified Europe,” adds Višević.
Uniting Europe
Many in Germany’s tech community are eager for the country to play an active role in uniting Europe to create a stronger and more collaborative tech ecosystem that can rival the US and China.
Many are calling out for measures such as a Capital Markets Union to create more funding options for businesses at a lower cost and create more exit channels — something that both the CDU and SPD have said they support.
Some think more collaboration needs to happen among European leaders to get policies like this high on the agenda — and that Merz could be the man for the job.
“I really believe that Merz is a strong European and will work together with other EU countries and build up closer ties to the British government, for example,” says David Wortmann, cofounder and CEO at DWR eco, a sustainability consultancy firm. “I think if Germany comes together with other European governments, this could be the ideal situation to push forward change.”
European resilience is top of mind among climate leaders, with many calling for Germany to continue to invest in renewable energy sources and other climate tech to reduce its dependence on other nations that do not share its democratic values.
These hardware heavy technologies are where Europe — with its rich industrial heritage — can have an advantage over the US, says Wortmann. And that pushing forth the expansion of the hydrogen sector and climate friendly materials will help the bloc to address not only climate issues, but economic ones too.
It’s positive, says Visevic, that the SPD in Germany is getting a change of leadership to this end.
“The incoming SPD leader Lars Klingbeil is well-known as an advocate for climate technologies and investment into them,” he says. “In my view, he is likeable and popular and will renew the fortunes of the SPD, whilst also being a strong partner to Merz’s CDU.”
Creating an attractive European ecosystem is also necessary to ensure the region’s most promising tech founders stay to build their companies, rather than fleeing to the US or China.
Part of that involves stripping back bureaucracy that makes it difficult to operate a company, particularly in Germany.
Thomas von der Ohe, founder of remote-driving car startup Vay, says he moved from a well-paid job in Silicon Valley to his home turf of Germany to set up his company due to its “fantastic automotive heritage”. But the company ended up moving to Las Vegas in 2023 to set up its commercial service — something it hasn’t been able to do in Germany yet due to bureaucracy and “overregulation.”
“This isn’t just me though, I hear from founders across deep tech, software, fintech, and everything in between that they want to build cutting-edge technology in Germany, but our regulatory system doesn’t allow them to,” he says.
“I just hope the new government is ready to roll up its sleeves.”
Read the orginal article: https://sifted.eu/articles/german-election-unite-europe/
