When the state itself ‘buys’: GovIntel wins the Smart Country Startup Award 2025
The Berlin-based start-up GovIntel analyses public data using AI-supported sales intelligence, winning it the Smart Country Startup Award 2025.
Leon Rückert, founder of the start-up GovIntel, has won the Smart Country Startup Award 2025. Image: Messe Berlin
This year's Smart Country Startup Award stays in Berlin: Startup GovIntel impressed the expert jury most with its pitch at the Smart Country Convention 2025, beating the four other finalists.
Early insights into public procurement
GovIntel uses artificial intelligence to evaluate contract award notices, budget data, meeting documents and parliamentary debates.
Based on these analyses, the system can provide information about planned procurements – often six to twelve months before a tender is published.
This offers advantages for both companies and public administrations:
- Companies can position their solutions at an early stage.
- Administrations gain an overview of existing innovations before the tender framework is defined.
GovIntel thus contributes to increasing transparency and efficiency in public procurement and bringing innovations into everyday administrative work in a more targeted manner.
Prize and prospects
The Smart Country Startup Award is presented annually by Get Started, the startup initiative of the digital association Bitkom, to young companies with innovative solutions for the public sector. This year's cooperation partners are Deloitte and the state initiative Projekt Zukunft (Project Future) of the Berlin Senate Department for Economics, Energy and Public Enterprises.
Daniel Breitinger, Head of Startups & Scaleups at Bitkom, emphasised the importance of the award: ‘Innovative start-ups are the driving force behind fresh ideas and digital solutions in our cities and public administration. At the Smart Country Startup Award, we see how creative ideas and technological approaches find their way onto the big stage and receive the attention they deserve. The Smart Country Convention connects the start-up scene directly with decision-makers from local authorities and government agencies. This is how real digital transformation happens.’
As the winner, GovIntel receives a stage slot at the Smart Country Convention 2026 worth €10,000 and a one-year free start-up membership in Bitkom.