“We Want Impact” – Why Innovation Is a Collective Effort

How can research move more effectively into real world application? With the launch of the RWTH Tech Impact Festival, RWTH Aachen University aims not only to discuss this challenge, but to actively address it. In an interview, Prof. Dr.-Ing. Michael Riesener explains why closing the innovation gap requires new formats, new incentives, and a stronger focus on translation.

Photo: Heike Lachmann for RWTH Aachen University

Germany ranks among the world’s strongest research nations, yet consistently underperforms when it comes to transforming scientific excellence into market ready solutions. According to Prof. Riesener, this challenge is neither new nor purely national. It is a structural European issue that becomes particularly visible in the mid stages of technology development, between laboratory proof and industrial application.

“There is a clear gap between basic research and deployment,” Riesener explains. “Early research phases are well funded, and later stages are often covered by industrial projects. But in between, at technology readiness levels four to six, suitable funding structures and responsibilities are often missing.”

As Professor of Deep Tech Innovation at RWTH Aachen University and Managing Director of RWTH Innovation GmbH, Riesener operates at the interface between research and application. In the interview, he argues for a stronger focus on translation, meaning iterative, joint development by academia and industry, rather than a linear handover of results. This requires new forms of collaboration, mixed teams, and different success metrics in science, where impact in application is valued alongside publications and citations.

The Tech Impact Festival was conceived as a response to precisely this challenge. Initiated by Riesener, the festival brings together researchers, companies, start-ups, investors, and policymakers to make the breadth of RWTH technologies visible and to create concrete points of connection for cooperation.

Rather than functioning as a classic conference, the festival emphasises interaction, matchmaking, and problem driven exchange. “We are not interested in showcasing technology for its own sake,” Riesener says. “The key question is always: where can this be applied, and who needs it.”

Taking place on 25 and 26 March 2026 at the C.A.R.L. auditorium in Aachen, the Tech Impact Festival covers fields such as AI, next generation computing, sustainable energy, biotechnology, and future mobility. Its ambition is clear: to move beyond discussion and trigger real projects, partnerships, and follow up activities.

“We want more than inspiration,” Riesener concludes. “If people leave Aachen saying that something has started, that collaborations were formed, that prototypes are being built, then the festival has achieved its goal.”

Read the full interview here: https://www.rwth-aachen.de/go/id/brfkga