Innovation is reshaping every aspect of our lives—from healthcare and education to mobility, communication, and security. While these advances hold enormous promise, they also introduce new challenges, including rising cyber threats, ethical dilemmas, and growing societal vulnerabilities.
The CER Innovation Prize was created to recognize and support entrepreneurs who are not only building breakthrough technologies but doing so with a commitment to improving the world. Guided by the Jewish value of Tikkun Olam—repairing the world—we aim to uplift ventures that fuse innovation with responsibility, vision with values.
As a voice of moral leadership in Europe, we believe it is essential to actively engage with the forces shaping tomorrow’s world. From artificial intelligence to climate resilience, from online safety to equitable access, the CER Innovation Prize highlights founders who are addressing the biggest questions of our time with courage and conscience.
To date, over €400,000 has been awarded to startups working at the intersection of ethics and impact. Our goal is to empower a new generation of innovators—those who prioritize people over profit and purpose over prestige.
The CER Innovation Prize Board is composed of highly respected, well-connected leaders from the tech and startup ecosystems, known for their success, insight, and commitment to innovation.
Read more
Prof. Dr. Urs Gasser
Rector of the HfP, Dean of the TUM
Prof. Dr. Urs Gasser
Rector of the HfP, Dean of the TUM
Prof. Dr. Urs Gasser is Professor of Public Policy, Governance and Innovative Technology and serves as Rector of the Hochschule für Politik (HfP) and Dean of the TUM School of Social Sciences and Technology. His research focuses on the societal and regulatory implications of new technologies such as cloud computing, artificial intelligence, and quantum technology.
Before joining TUM, he was Executive Director of the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University from 2009 to 2021 and Professor of Practice at Harvard Law School since 2013. Previously he held a SNF Professorship at the University of St. Gallen while also serving as Director of the Research Center for Information Law. With a Landon H. Gammon Fellowship, Prof. Gasser graduated with an LL.M. from Harvard Law School.
In addition to his responsibilities at TUM, Prof. Gasser serves as an advisor, among others, to the OECD, and UNICEF. Furthermore he is currently a member of the Colombian President’s Commission of Experts on AI. He was also a Visiting Professor, among others, at KEIO University Japan, and Singapore Management University.
Read more
Dr. Cornelius Boersch
CEO & Founder of Mountain Partners
Dr. Cornelius Boersch
CEO & Founder of Mountain Partners
Dr. Cornelius Boersch is the CEO and Founder of Mountain Partners. Since 1991, Conny has been an entrepreneur, e.g. as founder and CEO of ACG. He was responsible for the IPO in 1999 (NEMAX50) and its growth strategy. In 2000 he was elected entrepreneur of the year.
Conny is the “European Business Angel of the Year 2009” and currently one of the most active and well-recognized Business Angels in Europe, whose investments are co-financed by the European Investment Fund.
Read more
Leonid Solovyev
COO at Global Advisors LLC
Leonid Solovyev
COO at Global Advisors LLC
Goldschmidt is President of CER, The Conference of European Rabbis, and Chief Rabbi of Moscow. Elected CER’s President in July 2011, the fourth President of CER in 54 years, he is the first to hold the post outside Western Europe.
Goldschmidt is the spiritual leader of the Moscow Choral Synagogue, the head of the Rabbinical court of the (CIS) Commonwealth of Independent States and is an officer of the Russian Jewish Congress (RJC). Goldschmidt represents the Russian Jewish community politically as well.
Read more
Pinchas Goldschmidt
President of CER
Pinchas Goldschmidt
President of CER
Goldschmidt is President of CER, The Conference of European Rabbis, and Chief Rabbi of Moscow. Elected CER’s President in July 2011, the fourth President of CER in 54 years, he is the first to hold the post outside Western Europe.
Goldschmidt is the spiritual leader of the Moscow Choral Synagogue, the head of the Rabbinical court of the (CIS) Commonwealth of Independent States and is an officer of the Russian Jewish Congress (RJC). Goldschmidt represents the Russian Jewish community politically as well.
Read more
Ilja Gorelik
COO Mitto AG
Ilja Gorelik
COO Mitto AG
Ilja Gorelik runs several successful businesses and actively angel invests in few European promising startups. With vast knowledge in Telecommunications and technical product development he contributed to the success of several disruptive Telecom and Social startups recognized within the most fast growing in the industry.
