“We are going to transform public procurement,” promises Robert Thiele, an official at the Federal Ministry for Digital Affairs and State Modernisation. In fact, what he is presenting at SCCON 2026 amounts to a minor revolution: Marketplace D – a nationwide platform for public procurement. Companies can register there with their profile, whilst procurement bodies can put their requirements out to tender. An AI system compares tenders and bids and suggests suitable matches.

Giving innovative companies a chance

Thiele believes that access to public contracts has been a problem for companies up to now: thousands of contracting authorities, a multitude of platforms, a wide variety of forms to fill in – all of this means that innovative SMEs, start-ups and other young companies in particular rarely stand a chance in tendering processes. The D marketplace is now aimed at two groups: “We want companies to have better access to government business,” says Thiele. “And we want to make procurement simpler.”

A showcase for suppliers

The marketplace is “not just another procurement platform”, but an open ecosystem in which existing applications can find their place. It starts with smaller contracts that public authorities can award without a formal tendering process. For companies and start-ups, the portal acts as a showcase in which they can present suitable products.

Guidance through the procurement process

Staff in the procurement departments, in turn, are guided through the process by an AI agent. The AI asks about the exact requirements and specific search criteria, such as regional offers. It searches the portfolios of registered companies, compares offers and makes recommendations. Framework agreements and other requirements are stored in the system. The AI also handles the documentation of the entire process.

Berlin as a pilot region – saying goodbye to Excel spreadsheets

The State of Berlin has supported the development as a pilot region – and is delighted with the relief this brings. Until now, staff in more than a hundred procurement departments had been juggling tens of thousands of Excel spreadsheets, says Tim Gähme, Chief Digital Officer (CDO) to the Governing Mayor of Berlin. Now, they can finally collect data in a standardised way at the touch of a button.

Manja Schreiner, Chief Executive of the Berlin Chamber of Industry and Commerce (IHK), is also relieved. Only just under 20 per cent of companies had previously participated in public procurement. “That’s bad for everyone.” The logic behind the awarding of contracts must be turned on its head. Instead of demanding endless lists of references from companies, public procurement needs just one thing: “We need the best idea.”