Baden-Württemberg is home to 188 medical/red biotechnology companies that research, develop and/or manufacture here. In 2019, they generated a taxable turnover of 3.98 billion euros with 18,867 employees subject to social security contributions. Most biotechnology companies were located in the region Mannheim/Heidelberg (64), the region Freiburg/Offenburg/Lörrach (40) and the region Reutlingen/Tübingen (29). The two regions with the highest revenues were Donau-Iller (Biberach, Laupheim and Ulm) and Rhine-Neckar (Heidelberg, Mannheim). The attractiveness of the state is shown by the fact that, in addition to pharmaceutical companies, a large number of medical biotechnology companies enrich the overall offer in Baden-Württemberg. While the pharmaceutical industry provides implementation and production process know-how, among other things, the mostly smaller, agile biotech companies or start-ups drive innovation in the sector.

Over 83 medical biotechnology companies have been founded in Baden-Württemberg since 2010. Seven companies were founded in the period between 1/2020 and 7/2021. The Corona pandemic poses major challenges for startups. Company founders are struggling with liquidity bottlenecks and the absence of financing rounds. The Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Economic Affairs, Labour and Tourism has reacted to this situation and is now promoting early-stage financing by expanding the Start-up BW Pre-Seed programme and through the newly established Start-up BW Pro-Tect support programme.