Working independently, turning a vision into reality and striking out on their own as their own boss – this is precisely the dream that pupils from 39 different schools in Lower Bavaria and parts of the Upper Palatinate and Upper Bavaria have been living out over the past few months as part of the Hans Lindner Foundation’s start-up competition ‘Ideen machen Schule’. On 11 June 2026, the best teams from the Regensburg / Kelheim / Neumarkt i. d. Oberpfalz region presented their business ideas at OTH Regensburg. These business ideas impressively demonstrated the young people’s great potential and creativity. A panel of experts comprising representatives from the business community and public authorities had the challenging task of evaluating the presentations by the six best student teams.
Developing their own business ideas
Right at the start of the school year, the budding young entrepreneurs had begun developing their business ideas and, since then, have experienced first-hand what it feels like to set up a start-up – without any financial risk whatsoever. With plenty of scope for personal interests, individual strengths and creative approaches, the participants were able to boldly break new ground and create real added value for the future through innovative solutions. Over the course of the competition period from October to early March, they fleshed out their fictional business venture, set out all their plans in writing in a business plan and drew up a coherent financial plan. They also engaged intensively with practical topics such as tax and insurance.
The project’s guiding principle is that everything should be as concrete and realistic as possible. In this context, interaction with entrepreneurs from the private sector plays a central role. This not only aids in the development of well-founded concepts but also enables the young people to forge valuable contacts for their future education or career entry. Working in teams, the participants practised entrepreneurial thinking and action and learnt to make responsible decisions. Their supervising teachers and their families were, of course, on hand to offer the pupils advice and support.
From smart water bottles to a parking space app
1,279 pupils – divided into 321 teams – embarked on a fictional start-up adventure during the 2025/2026 school year. The range of their business ideas could hardly have been more diverse: While one team focused on developing smart water bottles, another created an app to arrange private and commercial parking spaces. Still others concentrated on multi-day cycling tours or high-quality raised balcony beds. This impressive blend of pioneering spirit and social awareness had the judges absolutely thrilled right from the first round of judging.
For the Regensburg / Kelheim / Neumarkt i. d. Oberpfalz region, 185 young people, spread across a total of 45 teams, took part.
The presenting teams and their rankings in detail:
Junior category (Years 8–9):
1st place: Sahalina, Gregor-Mendel-Gymnasium, Amberg: A biodegradable and edible straw.
2nd place: Miniworker, Gabelsberger-Gymnasium Mainburg: An app for connecting young people with mini-job opportunities. Older people can post tasks on the app that young people can carry out in return for payment.
3rd place: Visionäre, Gabelsberger-Gymnasium Mainburg: A lunchbox that can heat food to the desired temperature by itself.
Senior category (from Year 10 onwards):
1st place: BackOffice, BSZ M. Runtinger Regensburg: Development of a smart, AI-controlled bin that automatically sorts waste correctly using image recognition.
2nd place: KSMK Group, Neumarkt State Vocational School: Further development of the existing charging infrastructure for e-scooters, e-bikes and electric cars.
3rd place: Büromäuse, Neumarkt State Vocational School: Production of jewellery made from real gold and 925 sterling silver in the school’s own workshop. Each piece of jewellery is fitted with a tracking chip.
A total of €1,060 in prize money was awarded to the regional winners.
But the competition isn’t over yet. On 1 July 2026, the grand final will take place at Mariakirchen Castle in the Rottal-Inn district. There, the top four regional winners from each division (junior and senior) will compete against one another for the chance to win prize money of €500.
In total, the Hans Lindner Foundation is providing a prize fund of €5,500 for the 20 best teams. “This is a good investment for the future,” says Brigitte Urlberger.
About the Hans Lindner Foundation:
For 26 years, the Hans Lindner Foundation has been based in Arnstorf in the district of Rottal-Inn. Today, it has a team of 23 dedicated staff members. Social commitment is a tradition at Lindner: the foundation supports people who take personal responsibility and, through ethical conduct, help to advance not only themselves but also their community and local area. Its projects have an impact on many levels: they support the personal development of committed individuals, stimulate the regional economy, create jobs and provide sustainable support to people in need through a ‘help for self-help’ approach.
Out of gratitude for the positive development of the group of companies, company founder Hans Lindner established two charitable foundations: the Hans Lindner Foundation (1991) and the Hans Lindner Institute for Business Start-ups (1999). Both foundations were merged on 1 January 2011 and have since operated under the umbrella of the “Hans Lindner Foundation”.
