Berlin Brandenburg Innovation Award 2023: And the winner is...

Martin Paul from the Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing (BAM) won the Berlin-Brandenburg Innovation Award 2023 last November with his start-up company HyPhoX. The prestigious award recognises the young scientist's outstanding achievements in the development of a mobile sensor platform for the real-time detection of pathogens. The jury highlighted the "transformative power and potential of this breakthrough in sensor technology". With its patented photonic biosensor, HyPhoX is able to detect bacteria, viruses or proteins in liquids such as water, blood and urine within minutes.

"We are delighted to receive this award, as the mobile sensor platform is not only a technological innovation, but also an important step towards more effective healthcare," said Martin Paul, co-founder of HyPhoX and scientist in the field of protein analysis at BAM. "This award gives us further impetus to successfully bring our patented idea to the market".

HyPhoX's mobile sensor platform enables laboratory quality analysis in the field and promises to revolutionise pathogen detection. The Innovation Award jury said in its statement: "This innovation combines optical, electronic and biochemical components on a microchip with an impressive integration density. The double-sided functionalisation of the microchip is particularly noteworthy: While one side has biofluidic properties, the other is electronically oriented. The use of silicon-based semiconductor technology also makes low-cost mass production possible.

The Berlin-Brandenburg Innovation Prize is awarded annually by the Berlin Senate Department for Economics, Energy and Public Enterprises and the Brandenburg Ministry for Economics, Labour and Energy. Start-up HyPhoX is one of five prize winners who beat off competition from more than 200 applicants.

A network of business and science 

Business meets science in the Berlin Brandenburg Airport region. Here, companies find a first-class university and institute-based research base and an environment in which scientific institutions and technology-oriented companies work hand in hand. These are ideal conditions for turning innovative ideas into marketable products. 

For further information on the economic development of growth sectors in the region and on business and technology support for companies, investors and scientific institutions, please contact

Melanie Gartzke I melanie.gartzke(at)airport-region.de

Source: BAM (Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing) press release "Awarded: BAM scientist wins Berlin-Brandenburg Innovation Prize", 30 November 2023