About Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator
Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator, an accelerator and incubator program founded in 2013, is based in Berlin, Germany. With a presence in 12 countries, it has supported around 105 startups in sectors like Enterprise Applications, Consumer. As of May 2026, Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator has 1 unicorn under its belt and has witnessed 12 portfolio exits. Most notable companies in
its portfolio include N26, nyris and Roomi. The program is backed by a team of 5 people who primarily support Seed startups based in Germany. Its latest investment was a Undisclosed Series A round in FinanzRitter on Jun 11, 2025 along with Skybrain GmbH.
Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator's List of Top Investments
Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator has a portfolio of 105 companies, one of which is a Unicorn. Their most notable investments are in Careship and room.me.Their portfolio spans across Germany, Israel, United States and 9 more locations. They have invested in Enterprise Applications, Consumer, Retail and 26 other sectors, across stages such as Seed, Angel and 1 more. Here is the list of top investments by Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator:1. N26
Provider of mobile banking services, including savings, investment, and crypto. It offers various account options with different features and associated costs. These services include tools for managing finances, such as joint accounts, digital wallets, and options for adding funds. The company facilitates stock and ETF trading, along with the buying and selling of crypto assets.
Key facts about N26
- Founded Year: 2013
- Location: Berlin (Germany)
- Annual Revenue: €100M - €500M as on Dec 31, 2021
- Valuation: $*****
- Stage: Series E
- Total Funding till date: $1.72B
- Employee Count: 1,855 as on Apr 30, 2026
- Investors: Eiffel Investment Group, GIC and 46 Others
- Latest Funding Round: Series E, Oct 18, 2021, $*****
- Highlight: Editors' Pick
2. nyris
Developer of visual search technology for product and spare part identification. The technology facilitates identification using images, codes, or CAD files. It offers tools for integration into websites and applications. The platform provides capabilities to manage and monitor search solutions.
Key facts about nyris
_1582547588698.png?format=webp&height=120&width=120){kind=logo}
3. Roomi
Roomi offers a mobile based platform to find and connect with compatible roommates. Roomi curate the rooms from people who want to rent out their shared space. They allow users to search for the right room and roommate based on lifestyle preferences. Users can apply for the rooms, connect with potential roommates via in-app messaging, and pay rent all within one app.
Key facts about Roomi
- Founded Year: 2013
- Location: New York City (United States)
- Annual Revenue: $0 - $1M as on Apr 30, 2018
- Stage: Series A
- Total Funding till date: $19.6M
- Employee Count: 34 as on Apr 30, 2026
- Investors: Bayrock, Rosecliff Ventures and 22 Others
- Latest Funding Round: Series A, Nov 13, 2017, $*****
- Highlight: Editors' Pick
4. Tylko
Tylko is an online platform for customised furniture. Its range of products includes bookshelves, sideboards, benches, tables, etc. It connects users with furniture designers through the platform. The users can also visualize their furniture before buying. As of Mar. 2017, its mobile application is available only on iOS platform.
Key facts about Tylko
- Founded Year: 2014
- Location: Warsaw (Poland)
- Stage: Series C
- Total Funding till date: $33.3M
- Employee Count: 205 as on Apr 30, 2026
- Investors: Evli Growth Partners, Pitango and 30 Others
- Latest Funding Round: Venture Debt, Dec 12, 2023, $*****
- Highlight: Editors' Pick
_1581934898506.png?format=webp&height=120&width=120){kind=logo}
5. Zizoo
Online boat rental platform & community that connects boat renters with charters & boat owners worldwide. Customers can request to rent a boat through the platform. Customers can also write reviews about the rented boat & the service offered.
Key facts about Zizoo
- Founded Year: 2014
- Location: Vienna (Austria)
- Stage: Acquired
- Total Funding till date: $17.2M
- Employee Count: 26 as on Apr 30, 2026
- Investors: Axel Springer Digital Ventures, Coparion and 13 Others
- Latest Funding Round: Series B, Jul 26, 2022, $*****
- Highlight: Acquired
Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator's Year-on-Year Investment Trends
Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator has invested in 105 companies over the last 13 years, with an average of 1 new investment annually in the last 10 years. In 2025, it made 1 investment. Its most recent first time investment was in FinanzRitter and most recent follow-on round was in nyris.Year | No. of Investments | ||
|---|---|---|---|
1st Round | Follow-on | Total | |
2026 (YTD) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2025 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
2024 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2023 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2022 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2021 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2020 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
2019 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2018 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
2017 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator's Investments by Stage
Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator has made 64 investments in Seed stage with an average round size of $107K, 3 investments in Angel stage with an average round size of $28K and 3 investments in Series A stage with an average round size of $4.68M.Stage of entry | No. of Investments |
|---|---|
Seed | 64 |
Angel | 3 |
Series A | 3 |
Note: We have considered here, only first round of investments
Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator's Investments by Sector
Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator has a diverse portfolio, with companies operating in the Consumer, Enterprise Applications, Retail, FinTech and Gig Economy. Notably, it has invested in 88 Tech companies, 61 Consumer (B2C) companies, 50 Enterprise (B2B) companies and at least 41 companies focusing on Software.Sector | No. of Investments |
|---|---|
Consumer | 34 |
Enterprise Applications | 31 |
Retail | 11 |
FinTech | 7 |
Gig Economy | 6 |
Others | 59 |
Note: We have considered here, only first round of investments
Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator's Investments by Geography
Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator has made most investments in Germany (48), followed by Israel where it has made 6 investments.Country | No. of Investments |
|---|---|
Germany | 48 |
Israel | 6 |
Austria | 3 |
United States | 3 |
Poland | 2 |
Others | 8 |
Note: We have considered here, only first round of investments
Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator's recent investments
Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator has not made any investment in 2026 so far.Here are the most recent investments by Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator:
Filter this listDate | Company | Location | Round Details | Round Amount | Co-Investors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Jun 11, 2025 | Germany | Series A | 4236 | ||
Nov 04, 2020 | Germany | Seed | 3321 | [+5] | |
Oct 30, 2020 | Germany | Series A | 2593 | [+4] | |
Feb 17, 2020 | Germany | Seed | 8412 | [+1] | |
Apr 05, 2018 | Germany | Series B | 3684 | [+3] |
Unicorns in Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator's Portfolio
Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator has 1 unicorn in its portfolio - N26. The most recent unicorn in their portfolio is N26 which became a unicorn in 2019, 5 years after Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator first invested in it.Here is a list of unicorns in Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator's portfolio:
Tracxn Score | Company | Short Description | Founded year | Sector | Location | Company Stage | First Investment/ Acquisition Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
83 | Provider of mobile banking services, including savings, investment, and crypto | 2013 | Berlin | Series E | mansmsu |
IPOs and Publicly Listed companies in Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator's Portfolio
2 of Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator's portfolio companies have become public.Here are Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator's portfolio companies that went public:
Company | IPO Date | First Invested on | First Round of Investment | Round Size |
|---|---|---|---|---|
- | Jan 2016 | Seed | 6856 | |
- | Oct 2014 | Seed | 9188 |
Acquired companies in Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator's Portfolio
10 companies from Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator's portfolio have been acquired. The most recent acquisition was Aaron.ai in May 2024 by Doctolib for $*****.Here are Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator's portfolio companies that got acquired most recently:
Company | Acquisition Date | First Invested on | First Round of Investment | Round Size |
|---|---|---|---|---|
May 22, 2024 | - | - | 6388 | |
Mar 07, 2024 | Sep 2014 | Seed | 6227 | |
Dec 18, 2023 | May 2014 | Seed | 5983 | |
Apr 13, 2022 | Oct 30, 2020 | Series A | 1666 | |
Sep 27, 2019 | - | - | 5052 |
_1581934898506.png?devicePixelRatio=2&height=20&width=20){kind=logo}
Team profile of Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator
Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator has a team of 5 members including 1 Partner and 2 Principals located in United States, Germany and 1 more location. Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator's team does not sit on the board of any company as of now.Here is a list of all team members in Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator:
Name | Designation | Location | Board Memberships | Contact Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Partner | United States | - | ||
Principal | Berlin | - | - | |
Principal | Zurich | - | - |
Co-investors of Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator
Over the past 13 years, 91 investors have co-invested in Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator's portfolio companies. This includes funds and angels.
- Invested before Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator: HTGF, Odysseus Investments and 5 others have invested in rounds before Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator. There is 1 company where HTGF has invested before Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator and 1 company where Odysseus Investments has invested before Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator.
- Top Co-investors of Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator: 19 investors entered a company along with Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator. These include investors like eCAPITAL (1 company).
- Invested after Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator: A total of 65 investors have invested in Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator's portfolio after their investments. Top Investors include Horizons Ventures (2 companies) and Axel Springer (2 companies).
Recent News related to Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator
•
•
Careship, the German marketplace for in-home care, scores further €6M fundingTechCrunch+•Apr 05, 2018•Careship, Creandum, Spark Capital, Atlantic Labs and 2 others
•
Philippines aims to breath life into start-up ecosystemBusiness Standard•Aug 30, 2016•Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator
•
•
•
Program8 Is Here — Axel Springer Plug and Play AcceleratorAxel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator•Jan 15, 2016•Zalvus, Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator, Joinesty, ReDI School
•
The hottest European travel startups in 2015 | EU-StartupsEU-Startups•Jul 22, 2015•Zizoo, Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator
•
•
•
50 Berlin Startups You Should Get To KnowFounders Grid•Apr 28, 2015•Zizoo, Axel Springer Plug and Play Accelerator
