Music meets Tech: ‘ Hamburg Kreativ Gesellschaft ’ is supporting five start-ups through the Music WorX programme

Hamburg, 16 September 2026 – The Music WorX Incubator has launched in Hamburg. In partnership with the Ministry of Culture and Media, the Hamburg Film and Media Foundation ( Hamburg Kreativ Gesellschaft ) is supporting five innovative start-ups at the intersection of music and technology. In addition to financial support of up to 7,700 euros each, the teams will receive a three-month workshop programme as well as access to presentation opportunities and a network of experienced mentors.

The five selected start-ups bring together founders from various cities in Germany and Norway for three months in Hamburg. At the Music WorX incubator, they are developing solutions to various challenges facing the music industry: they support musicians in their career development and practising, help them collect outstanding royalties, boost the visibility and networking of FINTA*, and simplify booking processes for independent venues.

Close links with Hamburg’s music and creative industries provide participants with valuable contacts for the further development of their business models. At the same time, Music WorX strengthens Hamburg’s position as a hub for innovative business models at the intersection of music and technology.

Public Pitch on 11 November in Hamburg

A highlight of this year’s programme is the Music WorX Public Pitch on 11 November in Hamburg. There, the start-ups will present their business ideas to the public for the first time and compete for the audience prize of 1,000 euros.

The free pitch event offers exciting insights into current developments in the music industry and the opportunity to chat with founders and alumni from previous years.

An overview of the teams:

Musicsteps (Munich) – Benjamin Voß and David Kasipovic
Musicsteps is a career development platform for independent musicians. It brings together music, social media channels, press materials and business information in a professional artist profile, helping artists to assess their current situation and plan the next steps in their careers.

Veriti (Trondheim, Norway) – Bendik Furnes and Ayush Bhardwaj
Veriti helps musicians and songwriters collect the royalties they are entitled to but have not yet received. The platform checks music catalogues for songs that have not been registered or have been registered incorrectly, and handles their registration as well as the collection of outstanding royalties. The rights to the music remain entirely with the artists.

LOUDER.cloud (Hamburg) – Louisa Rockstedt and Marie Schweigert
LOUDER.cloud is a networking and discovery platform for FINTA* in the music industry. It connects artists, collectives, venues, labels and listeners, and raises the profile of existing scenes and key players. The aim is to break down barriers to entry, strengthen community structures and make FINTA* talent easier to find, book and listen to.

Holdwatch (Leipzig) – Jörg Kosinski
Holdwatch is developing software for booking independent live music venues. It helps bookers to centrally manage bookings, options, deadlines and enquiries to agencies, ensuring that dates do not get lost in emails or spreadsheets. As a streamlined addition to existing venue management systems, Holdwatch focuses specifically on the early booking phase.

Orchly (Wiesbaden) – Raghad Al Kassar and Khaled Ayoubi
Orchly transforms orchestral scores into interactive practice partners. Musicians can upload MusicXML files and rehearse with an AI-generated orchestra, isolate individual parts, slow down difficult passages and receive feedback on pitch and rhythm directly within the score.

The five start-ups were selected by a jury of experts from the music and creative industries. The jury includes, amongst others, Agnes Chung (Music Innovation Strategist), Lena Ingwersen (Managing Director at Music Cities Network, Keychange Innovator) and Julian Krohn (Director of Music & Audio at Scholz & Friends).

Helene Berling, project manager at Music WorX, emphasises the diversity of the selected teams: “This year’s teams demonstrate just how diverse innovation in the music industry can be. They tackle a wide range of areas – from artistic practice, through career development and fair remuneration, to booking and networking. What unites them is a close examination of specific challenges facing the industry and a commitment to developing new, practical solutions to address them.”

About Music WorX

The three-month programme offers founders with innovative music tech ideas comprehensive support on their journey towards a market-ready business model. A grant of up to 3,200 euros and a monthly living allowance of 1,500 euros per team provide a solid financial foundation. Workshops, training sessions and personalised mentoring help to build entrepreneurial expertise. In addition, access to a network of mentors opens up valuable contacts, whilst flexible co-working spaces provide the space needed to further develop business ideas. At the public Music WorXPitch, participants present their projects to an audience.

Music WorX is a project run by the Hamburg Centre for Creative Industries ( Hamburg Kreativ Gesellschaft ) and the Hamburg Ministry of Culture and Media, and was first held in 2011. Further information on the Music WorX Incubator and the jury can be found on the website of the Hamburg Centre for Creative Industries ( Hamburg Kreativ Gesellschaft).