Innovation through cooperation: How SMEs and start-ups cooperate in the automotive industry

The automotive industry is already one of the most innovative sectors of the economy in Germany, but it is facing major challenges due to the necessary electrification of the drive system and fierce international competition. Cooperation with innovative young companies holds great potential for overcoming these challenges. So far, there has been no scientific investigation of whether and how companies in the automotive sector cooperate with start-ups. This IW report therefore presents the results of a survey conducted among 78 companies from the automotive sector on the existence of cooperations as well as their goals and obstacles and potential. The results show that, at 60 percent, a large proportion of the companies surveyed in the sector are already collaborating with start-ups. The greatest potential for collaboration is actually seen in the area of innovation. The companies see the greatest potential in the area of research and development, but the proportion of companies that initiate product and process innovations via start-up cooperation is still expandable at 51 percent. Among other things, a lack of resources and the absence of a suitable cooperation partner stand in the way of cooperation.