• Germany’s most important university quality competition
• TUM seizes opportunities presented by a changing world
• Congratulations from federal politicians

TUM Campus Heilbronn is also part of this research network. In particular, the new cluster of excellence “TransforM – Transformative Technologies and Social Change” combines technological developments with issues of economics, management, and social transformation. These topics play a central role at Campus Heilbronn.

With the strategic focus of TUM Campus Heilbronn on responsibly addressing the opportunities and challenges of the digital age, TUM is consistently developing its profile as “The Entrepreneurial University.”

TUM Campus Heilbronn contributes to strengthening this excellence in teaching and knowledge transfer, which leads to innovative applications in exchange, particularly at the interface of management, digitalization with companies, and small and medium-sized enterprises.

Regional roots and global openness

TUM President Prof. Thomas F. Hofmann expressed his delight at this renewed major success in the federal and state Excellence Competition and extended his thanks to members of the TUM community: "The heartbeat of TUM is defined by the diverse talents of our university community – from curious students and ambitious staff to excellent professors, bold founders, and globally impactful alumni, fellows, partners, and friends. We are all united by the pursuit of excellence – not for excellence’s own sake, but with the goal of taking responsibility for the well-being of humanity. TUM is more than a University of Excellence – it is an attitude."

Prof. Dr. Ali Sunyaev, Vice President of TUM Campus Heilbronn, emphasized: "The renewed designation of TUM as a University of Excellence is further proof of what can be achieved when vision, scientific excellence, and long-term commitment come together. TUM Campus Heilbronn combines management, computer science, and innovation with the current challenges facing business and society, demonstrating how strong regional roots can be combined with global openness and how bridges can be built between research, entrepreneurship, talent, and society."

Federal Research Minister Dorothee Bär offered her congratulations: "The Universities of Excellence are lighthouses of cutting-edge research in Germany – the evaluation results confirm this. They are and remain flagships of our academic landscape and frequently serve as models for other universities. They have not only increased their international visibility through excellent basic research, but have also achieved significant progress in applied research and technology transfer. They contribute substantially to the innovative strength and competitiveness of our country and thus to the success of the Hightech Agenda Germany. I extend my heartfelt congratulations to the Technical University of Munich on this great achievement. It is a pioneer for other universities – with its outstanding transfer capabilities, a forward-looking personnel concept, and an international orientation across all activities of the university. This is, in short, an extraordinarily successful overall strategy. I am confident: TU Munich will continue to grow its worldwide reputation in the coming seven years as well."

TUM Agenda 2030+

Inspired by the achievements of the previous Excellence Strategy, the TUM AGENDA 2030+ takes up the rapidly evolving role of academic institutions in an increasingly uncertain, complex, and ambiguous world. TUM strengthens its impact as an adaptive, resilient, and globally competitive learning organization that transcends conventional boundaries, fosters a spirit of experimentation and entrepreneurship, and champions a society-oriented and integrated approach to education, research, and innovation in times of a "new normal." Through new forms of collaboration, TUM will exert an unprecedented impact on regional innovation ecosystems, societal development, and global challenges. To this end, the TUM AGENDA 2030+ focuses on four priority areas:

• We foster talent in all its diversity
• We shape responsible research and innovation
• We scale solutions for global societal challenges
• We strive for operational excellence

Seven Excellence Clusters form the foundation

As early as May 2025, TUM had laid the groundwork for renewed participation in the Excellence Competition: seven Excellence Clusters of TUM and its cooperation partners are being funded – three more than before.

Four existing clusters proved their merit through international peer review and will receive seven more years of funding with a forward-looking orientation toward energy conversion, quantum technologies, neurological diseases, and the origin of the universe. Joining them are three new Excellence Clusters that were able to convince international review panels with leading research approaches in the areas of nucleic acid research, biosystem design, and societal transformation through technologies.

Further information: Excellence Strategy at TUM