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Key Takeaways:
- Corporate incubators leverage corporate assets and external partnerships to fuel innovation.
- Structured incubation programs create a consistent pipeline of innovative ventures.
- Strategic alignment ensures executive buy-in and measurable impact.
- The incubation program model (internal, external, hybrid) shapes funding and scaling strategies.
- Top companies like BASF, P&G, and Barclays use corporate incubators to maintain market leadership.
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Corporate incubation is a proven strategy to fuel innovation, expand beyond your core business and encourage an entrepreneurial mindset, all while leveraging existing corporate assets.
Leading corporations across different industries have successfully used this approach to future-proof their business, find disruptive solutions to traditional problems, and gain a competitive edge. In essence, corporate venture builders enable companies to accelerate growth by creating a pipeline of corporate ventures to:
- Experiment with new business models
- Try out new technologies
- Develop new and improved offerings
- Create new revenue streams
To give you a better idea of how corporate incubators work in practice, we've compiled 10 inspiring examples from around the globe, each offering unique insights and strategies.
1. hub:raum by Deutsche Telekom
Headquarters: Germany
Industry: Telecom
Launched: 2012
Focus Areas: Insurtech, healthtech, mobility
Activities: Incubation, acceleration, investments, M&A
Managing Director: Axel Menneking
Hub:raum fuels innovation by partnering with early-stage startups through co-innovation programs, seed investments, and providing access to corporate assets and expertise. Operating from Berlin, Krakow, and Tel Aviv, hub:raum serves as Deutsche Telekom’s corporate venture builder and accelerator, fostering internal innovation and tapping into external innovations.
Why It Works:
- Acts as Deutsche Telekom's corporate venture builder and accelerator
- Provides startups with funding, 5G test lab infrastructure, mentorship, and corporate innovation partnerships
- Fosters internal innovation by integrating startup solutions into Deutsche Telekom's ecosystem
2. P&G Ventures by Procter & Gamble
Headquarters: USA
Industry: Consumer packaged goods (CPG)
Launched: 2015
Activities: Corporate incubation, acceleration
Director: Penytina Dimitropoulou
P&G Ventures is an in-house corporate incubator that partners with startups, entrepreneurs, and inventors to build brands and businesses in the consumer packaged goods space. Its structured "Discover, Create, Build" process supports ventures with branding, manufacturing, and distribution, significantly accelerating their market readiness.
Why It Works:
- Partners with startups and founders to develop innovative CPG products through corporate innovation partnerships
- Provides expert support in branding, manufacturing, and distribution, accelerating time to market
3. Chemovator by BASF
Headquarters: Germany
Industry: Chemicals, next-generation materials
Launched: 2015
Activities: Corporate incubation, acceleration
Managing Director: Markus Bold
Chemovator provides a protected space for entrepreneurs in and outside BASF to turn "bold ideas into thriving businesses" through their corporate innovation program. Focused on exploring unconventional growth opportunities in areas like sustainability, next-generation materials, chemistry, and more, Chemovator enables teams to test early-stage concepts by providing comprehensive coaching, mentoring, and resources to develop these ideas into market-ready solutions.
The result? Low-risk, investable ventures for BASF to internalise or turn into spin-off companies.
Why It Works:
- Provides a protected space for BASF to launch high-risk, high-reward projects
- Supports intrapreneurs with mentorship, R&D access, and corporate backing
4. Rise created by Barclays
Headquarters: UK
Industry: Financial services
Launched: 2015
Activities: Corporate incubation, acceleration, investments
Head of Innovation: Andrew Elphick
Rise brings together a global community of innovators to shape the future of finance through their corporate venture-building platform.
Rise creates global innovation hubs that attract top-tier startups in AI, blockchain, and digital banking. With offices in London, Mumbai and New York, it provides a space for innovative startups and scale-ups to connect and build cutting-edge FinTech solutions.
Backed by Barclays' extensive network of experts and investors, it fosters strategic partnerships and provides regulatory support, enabling innovative FinTech solutions to scale.
Why It Works:
- Multiple global hubs attracting top-tier startups in AI, blockchain, and digital banking
- Connects startups with access to funding, industry experts, and regulatory guidance
- Fosters corporate innovation partnerships between startups, Barclays and other major financial institutions
5. Wayra by Telefonica
Headquarters: Spain
Industry: Telecom
Launched: 2011
Activities: Corporate incubation, acceleration, investments
CEO: Irene Gomez
Wayra helps Telefónica connect with disruptive tech startups on a global scale through its enterprise innovation lab. They work with startups at every phase of development, focusing on entertainment, AI, IoT, eHealth, data and FinTech.
Telefónica Venture Builder (formerly Wayra Builder) ensures high-potential projects can scale as spin-offs or remain integrated, driving significant internal innovation.
Why It Works:
- Acts as a global corporate innovation network, supporting over 400 startups across 11 countries
- Provides strategic assets, helping startups integrate AI, IoT, and 5G solutions into Telefónica's ecosystem
- Ensures high-potential corporate ventures can scale independently or remain within Telefónica’s portfolio
6. AstraZeneca BioVentureHub by AstraZeneca
Headquarters: Sweden
Industry: Pharma and biotech
Launched: 2014
Activities: Corporate incubation, acceleration
Director: Pernilla Isberg
AstraZeneca BioVentureHub is a corporate innovation ecosystem that supports biotech and medtech startups in their growth, leveraging AstraZeneca's world-class knowledge, capabilities, and infrastructure. Participating startups and academic groups co-locate and interact with AstraZeneca experts (and with each other) to advance life science, healthcare and the well-being of patients.
Why It Works:
- Gives biotech startups access to R&D facilities through corporate innovation partnerships
- Fosters collaboration between startups, researchers, and AstraZeneca scientists
- Bridges the gap between discovery and commercialisation with regulatory support
7. Kamet by AXA
Headquarters: France
Industry: Insurtech, healthtech
Launched: 2016
Activities: Corporate venture building, acceleration, investments
CEO: Christophe Bourdon
Kamet operates as AXA’s dedicated venture studio, incubating and building startups from scratch. It provides capital, deep industry expertise, regulatory support, and AXA’s global network to rapidly scale innovative solutions addressing significant challenges in insurance and healthcare.
Why It Works:
- Identifies high-impact opportunities and launches fully-fledged startups to meet them.
- Ensures ventures can scale rapidly and integrate with AXA’s ecosystem.
- Takes a hands-on approach to venture building, facilitating innovations that give AXA a competitive edge.
8. Perseo by Iberdrola
Headquarters: Spain
Industry: Renewable energy, sustainability
Launched: 2008
Activities: Corporate incubation, acceleration, investments
Head: Oscar Cantalejo
Perseo operates as Iberdrola's corporate venture building program, focused on investing in and partnering with startups developing breakthrough technologies in renewable energy and smart grids. It provides funding, mentorship, and access to real-world testing environments to accelerate the transition to a sustainable energy future.
Why It Works:
- Connects Iberdrola with cutting-edge energy startups, driving innovation and growth
- Funds and pilots new technologies, testing new technologies that can optimise Iberdrola’s global energy infrastructure
- Strengthens Iberdrola’s sustainability strategy, furthering its clean energy transition
9. The Garage by Microsoft
Headquarters: USA
Active in: AI, software
Launched: 2014
Activities: Incubation
General Manager: Jeff Ramos
The Garage empowers Microsoft employees to develop, test, and launch innovative software and AI solutions through hackathons and innovation challenges. Successful innovations frequently integrate into Microsoft’s core offerings, enhancing the company’s overall innovation capacity.
Why It Works:
- Encourages hands-on experimentation and rapid prototyping
- Enables employees to test ideas in real-world scenarios
- Accelerates new product development across Microsoft’s ecosystem
10. EDF Pulse Incubation by EDF
Headquarters: France
Active in: Renewable Energy, Smart Grids
Launched: 2017
Activities: Incubation
Director: Régis Combaluzier
EDF Pulse Incubation is EDF’s corporate incubator, designed to develop, support, and scale innovative energy solutions that align with the company’s vision for carbon neutrality and sustainable energy systems. The incubator program provides resources, funding, and expert mentorship to internal teams and selected startups, helping them turn concepts into market-ready solutions.
Why It Works:
- Empowers EDF employees to develop new ventures, turning ideas into scalable energy solutions.
- Focuses on breakthrough technologies, including smart grids, decentralised energy, and electric mobility.
- Accelerates innovation by providing funding, infrastructure, and direct access to EDF’s industry expertise and global network.
FAQs about Corporate Incubators
Q: What is the main purpose of a corporate incubator?
A:Corporate incubators aim to foster innovation, accelerate venture development, and diversify revenue streams beyond a company's core activities. For more details, check out this article: 7 Benefits of Corporate Incubation as an Innovation Strategy.
Q: Why do companies launch corporate incubators?
Companies launch corporate incubators to reduce innovation risks, experiment safely, leverage internal resources, attract entrepreneurial talent, and diversify revenues. They enable businesses to:
- Experiment with new business models while minimising risk.
- Develop and validate emerging technologies before full-scale investment.
- Create new revenue streams beyond the core business.
- Enhance internal innovation culture and attract entrepreneurial talent.
Unlike independent business incubators, corporate incubators are specifically created and funded by existing companies to foster innovation that aligns with their strategic interests.
Q: What is the difference between a corporate incubator and accelerator?
A: Corporate incubators focus on developing ideas from scratch over 12-24 months, typically working with internal employees or external founders to build corporate ventures. Corporate accelerators work with existing external startups over 3-6 months to rapidly scale their businesses through corporate innovation partnerships.
Q: How long does it take to see results from corporate incubation?
A: Most corporate venture building programs show initial results within 18-24 months, with significant revenue impact typically emerging after 3-5 years.
Corporate incubation as part of your innovation strategy
As you can see, corporate incubators come in all shapes and sizes, and the strategy can be adapted to meet a wide variety of needs. While some companies use them mainly to accelerate their digital transformations, others focus on expanding beyond core offerings or improving existing products and services.
For more inspiring corporate incubator examples, check out our new report: 60 Corporate Incubator examples shaping our future. It’s packed with valuable insights that explain how some of today’s leading corporations are using incubation to boost growth and dominate their industries.
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Building a customised incubation strategy enables you to leverage existing assets and take advantage of growth opportunities fast, all while expanding internal capabilities and fostering a culture of entrepreneurship. Get started today.
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