Hey, dear reader!
Handpicked Berlin just dropped their Salary Trends Report — the largest tech salary survey in Germany, with 4,600+ responses.
We all know that money talk isn't gern gesehen in Germany. People don't really chat casually about what they earn, and job postings almost never show a number. So I'm glad we have a report with real figures.
A few that stood out to me:
The median full-time tech salary in Berlin is now €80,000, up from €76,500 last year.
Berlin software engineers earn roughly 28% above the European median.
Startups pay essentially the same base as established companies — €80k vs €79k at the median. The old "startups pay less" story doesn't really hold up.
Your degree barely moves the needle. Bachelor's and Master's are essentially identical at the median, with PhDs getting only a modest bump. Role, company, and years of experience matter far more than what's on your wall.
Speaking of transparency, things are going to change in Germany. The new EU Pay Transparency Directive will require companies to share pay ranges with candidates and report pay gaps internally. It’s nice to see that some companies on our job board already show pay ranges on their postings.
Go read the full report — there's a lot more in there than I covered. I'm curious what you think: where do we stand in Hamburg?
Save the Date 🗓
The events I'm most excited about in the weeks ahead.
Monday, May 18
found Co-working Day (English) — Spend the day working alongside Hamburg's founders, operators, and techies at betahaus Schanze — no membership, no application, just drop in.
Tuesday, May 19
Team or Collision Course (English) — Get an honest look at co-founder dynamics and learn communication techniques to surface conflicts before they sink the team.
Thursday, May 28
Resilience Forum: Defense, Dual-Use & Critical Infrastructure (English) — Dive deeper into Europe's defense and dual-use tech ecosystem following last issue's Defense Tech Meetup momentum.
Weekly Picks📍
All the events on my radar for this week.
This Issue’s Gem 💎
Tue & Wed, May 5-6
OMR Festival (English/German) — Experience Europe's biggest digital festival with 800+ speakers, 1,000+ exhibitors, masterclasses, and side events across two days at Hamburg Messe.
OMR Side Events 🪩
Monday, May 4
Social Impact Republic x OMR26 (German) — Explore how impact startups make social impact measurable, scalable, and investable with founders, investors, and corporate innovation teams at Körber Start-Hub.
Tuesday, May 5
OMR Content & Tech Breakfast (German) — Kick off the festival over breakfast with a keynote from former Netflix CMO Joe Pawlas on autonomous advertising and AI agents in media.
UNVERZAGT Digital Business Breakfast (German) — Unpack current legal questions around AI in media, IT, copyright, and e-commerce over coffee and croissants.
Female Founder Brunch (German) — Get concrete growth and scaling strategies from female founders, a PwC interview on the German startup scene, and a curated growth panel.
Bolognese Protocol CXO Dinner (English) — Wind down OMR day one with an elegant dinner designed as the stylish counter-programming to the main festival at DEEPTECH Campus.
quiteCONNECTED #2 (German) — Loosen up networking before the conference with structured mechanics, complimentary wine, and an intentionally cool crowd.
B2B Digital Leaders Networking (German) — End OMR day one with drinks, finger food, and a 20-minute recap of an OMR Masterclass on B2B customer acquisition.
Wednesday, May 6
Builders Breakfast (English) — Connect with founders, operators, and investors across the European tech ecosystem over coffee and croissants, hosted by Endeit Capital, Impossible Founders, and Cathay Innovation.
Offline Morning Rave (German) — Recharge on OMR day two with unlimited coffee, tech house beats, and a live DJ from 8 to 10 AM in Schanze.
INSIDER ONE Key Partner Breakfast (English/German) — Explore AI agents, MCP, and the future of tech partnerships over breakfast at petite TORTUE.
AI Everywhere 🤖
Sunday, May 10
Agentic Coding Studio (English) — Build AI agents alongside other developers with short demos, pair programming, and open studio time to ship your next agent-based project.
Startup 101 🔨
Tuesday, May 5
Founder's Legal Toolbox (English) — Get practical legal checklists from a lawyer and live Q&A on founding, taxes, and common legal pitfalls.
Friday, May 8
build fridays (English) — Ship products alongside other builders, demo your progress, and get feedback from fellow founders.
Get Inspired ✨
Wednesday, May 6
Startup Pitch & Networking (English) — Watch founders pitch their ventures to investors and cooperation partners, then network with Hamburg's innovation community.
Biospace Opening at DESY Innovation Factory (English) — Celebrate the launch of Hamburg's new life science innovation hub with keynotes, startup pitches, and lab tours across two days.
Thursday, May 7
12min.me | START (English) — Take four early-stage startups through Disney-inspired Dreamer, Realist, and Critic rooms in 12-minute sparring sessions — waitlist only.
THRST Session #12: Combining Business and Culture (English) — Explore how cultural identity drives innovation and shapes diverse, future-proof business models through keynotes and case studies.
Saturday, May 9
Hamburg Stripe Community Launch (English) — Connect with founders, developers, and operators building with Stripe at the launch of Hamburg's first local Stripe community.
Founders Running Club (English) — Energize your weekend with a judgment-free 5K run alongside founders, investors, and tech people — coffee and networking after.
Open Calls 📣
Grants, programs, and opportunities waiting for your application.
Startup Battlefield 2026 — For early-stage founders ready to pitch in front of the world. TechCrunch's flagship competition selects 200 startups globally, with finalists presenting at Disrupt and the overall winner taking home $100,000 equity-free. Alumni include Dropbox, Discord, and Cloudflare. Deadline: May 27.
SPRIND Next Frontier AI Challenge — For European AI teams going after the next S-curve — novel architectures, multi-agent systems, embodied AI. Germany's federal innovation agency is deploying €125M across three stages: up to €3M (Stage 1), €8M (Stage 2), and €15.5M (Stage 3). Headquarters must be in the EU, EFTA, Israel, or UK. Deadline: June 1.
NGI Fediversity Fund — For developers and small teams building federated, open-source internet services — Fediverse platforms, private cloud, secure communication, self-hosting tools. Grants of €5,000–€50,000, zero equity, funded by the European Commission. €450K total available. Deadline: June 1.
Job Picks 💼
3 open roles worth a look this week.
(Senior) Platform Engineer - Agentic Systems at 1KOMMA5° — Renewable energy systems for homeowners (€150M+ total)
Staff Engineer – AI Product Focus at plancraft — AI operating system for tradespeople (Series B, €38M)
Sales Manager (DACH) at Impossible Cloud — GDPR-compliant S3 cloud storage (€17M total)
Hiring? Submit your job here. Want to feature it in the newsletter? Reply to this email.
That’s a wrap!
Check out the tune of the week from the found playlist
🏄♂
Share found Hamburg with your friends
See you next week,
Kyrylo from found Hamburg