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Explore the frontiers of German research

Explore the many facets of German research: from diverse strategic fields shaping the country’s future to projects taking shape today and discoveries being made right now. Be inspired to work and conduct research in Germany.

Three perspectives on German research, from the bigger picture to the latest developments. Germany’s research landscape is vast, so we bring it into focus at three levels. Each one takes a closer look: begin with the wider view of where the country is investing, move on to the people and projects driving that work, then stay up to date with the latest developments.

Research topics in focus

Germany is one of the few countries where research ambition is written into national policy. Several fields – from artificial intelligence and energy to aerospace and biotechnology – are prioritised under the federal High-Tech Agenda, with dedicated funding, world-class infrastructure and a growing international research community already in place.

GOOD TO KNOW

The High-Tech Agenda Germany focuses, among others, on six key technologies that are central to the country’s future. Research of Artificial Intelligence (AI), Quantum Technologies, Microelectronics, Biotechnology, Fusion and Climate-neutral Energy Generation, and Technologies for Climate-neutral Mobility is driven forward by detailed roadmaps and defined milestones.

Some of the most exciting research is happening across disciplines. Alongside Germany's strategic priorities, we feature cross-cutting themes that bring together researchers, institutions and ideas in new ways. Each topic page introduces the field, the key players and the funding routes available to you as an international researcher.

Explore all research topics

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First-hand experience: exploring groundbreaking research

Strategy on paper is one thing – research happening right now is another. 

Each month, we go behind the scenes with leading German universities and research institutes to report on discoveries in progress, collaborations forming across disciplines, and the open doors for international researchers.

These features are written in close partnership with our featured partners: the institutions themselves. You get first-hand accounts of what the work actually looks like, who is doing it and what it would mean to join them. This is your chance to get a close look at Germany's research culture before you even arrive.

Read the latest features
Researcher working at Synlight, the world's largest research facility for the generation of artificial sunlight, operated by the DLR Institute of Solar Research in Jülich.

DAAD/Jan Zappner

Research news

See all research news

Science does not wait. This section brings together fresh findings, announcements and breakthroughs from universities and institutes across Germany – updated continuously to keep you in the loop. Use it to stay close to a discipline you are already working in, to spot emerging areas before they become crowded or simply to feel the pace of science in a country that invests more in R&D than almost anywhere else on earth.

Kognitive Ethologie/CRP Simenti

When meat doesn’t matter: Female Guinea baboons do not prefer males who are better at acquiring or sharing meat

A new study by the German Primate Center reveals that female Guinea baboons are less dependent on their primary males for access to meat than anticipated
Aug 10, 2026, 4:04:24 PM

Fraunhofer SCAI

Packassistant Now Plans Truck Loading and Calculates Packing and Logistics Costs
Fraunhofer SCAI has added planning for pallet and truck loading, as well as cost calculation, to its PackAssistant packaging software. The new version extends packaging planning to include additional stages of the transport chain. Companies can now compare multiple solutions in terms of their packing and logistics costs.
Aug 10, 2026, 3:10:58 PM

New Study: How Carbon Accounting Rules Shape Incentives for Hydrogen Production
A new study by University of Mannheim researchers Gunther Glenk, Philip Holler, and Stefan Reichelstein examines how the assessment of carbon emissions affects the incentives for the production of electrolytic hydrogen. Its key finding: even stringent accounting rules generally provide sufficient investment incentives. However, they do not necessarily guarantee low-carbon hydrogen.
Aug 10, 2026, 2:11:59 PM

New study sheds light on a de facto state in eastern Congo
A Congolese-German research team involving the University of Bayreuth has examined how the AFC/M23 rebel movement governs the eastern Congolese city of Goma. The researchers show how, since taking control of the city in January 2025, the movement has gradually established administrative, security, taxation, and public-service structures—effectively creating a “de facto state.” The study provides important insights for humanitarian organizations, international institutions, and policymakers.
Aug 10, 2026, 11:19:24 AM

Samad Ashrafi/JKI

Forage crop gets growth boost from newly discovered beneficial bacterial species
From research project to specialised product for sainfoin cultivation: a bacterium isolated at the Julius Kühn Institute (JKI) is turned into a commercial inoculum by a German seed company.
Aug 7, 2026, 9:09:40 PM

Clara Nietz

Reading ecosystems like a book: AI method reveals hidden patterns in microbial communities in the river Warnow
Microbial communities are highly sensitive to environmental changes, yet their enormous diversity makes it difficult to identify ecological patterns. A research team from the Leibniz Institute for Baltic Sea Research Warnemünde (IOW) has now shown that an AI method originally developed for text analysis can be successfully applied to the analysis of complex environmental samples. The method identified five seasonally successive microbial sub-communities in the Warnow estuary while preserving ecological and functional information just as well as conventional methods – in some cases they even performed better. The study has now been published in the journal “Environmental Microbiome”.
Aug 7, 2026, 4:58:03 PM

Kognitive Ethologie/CRP Simenti

When meat doesn’t matter: Female Guinea baboons do not prefer males who are better at acquiring or sharing meat

A new study by the German Primate Center reveals that female Guinea baboons are less dependent on their primary males for access to meat than anticipated
Aug 10, 2026, 4:04:24 PM

Fraunhofer SCAI

Packassistant Now Plans Truck Loading and Calculates Packing and Logistics Costs
Fraunhofer SCAI has added planning for pallet and truck loading, as well as cost calculation, to its PackAssistant packaging software. The new version extends packaging planning to include additional stages of the transport chain. Companies can now compare multiple solutions in terms of their packing and logistics costs.
Aug 10, 2026, 3:10:58 PM

New Study: How Carbon Accounting Rules Shape Incentives for Hydrogen Production
A new study by University of Mannheim researchers Gunther Glenk, Philip Holler, and Stefan Reichelstein examines how the assessment of carbon emissions affects the incentives for the production of electrolytic hydrogen. Its key finding: even stringent accounting rules generally provide sufficient investment incentives. However, they do not necessarily guarantee low-carbon hydrogen.
Aug 10, 2026, 2:11:59 PM

New study sheds light on a de facto state in eastern Congo
A Congolese-German research team involving the University of Bayreuth has examined how the AFC/M23 rebel movement governs the eastern Congolese city of Goma. The researchers show how, since taking control of the city in January 2025, the movement has gradually established administrative, security, taxation, and public-service structures—effectively creating a “de facto state.” The study provides important insights for humanitarian organizations, international institutions, and policymakers.
Aug 10, 2026, 11:19:24 AM

Samad Ashrafi/JKI

Forage crop gets growth boost from newly discovered beneficial bacterial species
From research project to specialised product for sainfoin cultivation: a bacterium isolated at the Julius Kühn Institute (JKI) is turned into a commercial inoculum by a German seed company.
Aug 7, 2026, 9:09:40 PM

Clara Nietz

Reading ecosystems like a book: AI method reveals hidden patterns in microbial communities in the river Warnow
Microbial communities are highly sensitive to environmental changes, yet their enormous diversity makes it difficult to identify ecological patterns. A research team from the Leibniz Institute for Baltic Sea Research Warnemünde (IOW) has now shown that an AI method originally developed for text analysis can be successfully applied to the analysis of complex environmental samples. The method identified five seasonally successive microbial sub-communities in the Warnow estuary while preserving ecological and functional information just as well as conventional methods – in some cases they even performed better. The study has now been published in the journal “Environmental Microbiome”.
Aug 7, 2026, 4:58:03 PM
See all research news
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