Thomas Bachem

Bachem grew up in Cologne and taught himself computer programming at the age of 12 years. As a teenager, he ran an online portal for software development and developed websites for corporate customers.{{cite news|first=Sophie|last=Burfeind|title=Nicht nur was für Nerds|periodical=Süddeutsche Zeitung|issue=152|date=July 5, 2017|language=German|url=http://www.sueddeutsche.de/wirtschaft/digitalisierung-nicht-nur-was-fuer-nerds-1.3572729}}{{cite news|first=Ann-Kathrin|last=Nezik|title=Nerds von morgen|language=German|periodical=Der Spiegel|issue=13/2017|date=March 24, 2017|at=p. 71|url=https://magazin.spiegel.de/SP/2017/13/150231559/index.html}}

Parallel to his studies at Cologne Business School, he developed the video-sharing website sevenload in 2005, which acquired more than €25 million in venture capital while he was still a student and was sold to Hubert Burda Media in 2010.{{cite web|url=https://techcrunch.com/2008/10/02/european-startups-prepared-for-the-worst/|title=European startups prepared for the worst|publisher=TechCrunch|date=October 2, 2008|access-date=December 31, 2017}}{{cite web|url=https://www.rapidtvnews.com/201012159398/burda-takes-over-sevenload-video-portal.html|title=Burda takes over Sevenload video portal|publisher=Rapid TV News|date=December 15, 2010|access-date=December 31, 2017}} Immediately thereafter he founded United Prototype, which developed the social game Fliplife and was acquired in 2012 by German-Turkish gaming company Kaisergames.{{cite web|url=https://techcrunch.com/2011/02/07/fliplife-gets-7-figure-investment-for-its-browser-based-virtual-world/|title=Fliplife gets 7-figure investment for its browser-based virtual world|publisher=TechCrunch|date=February 7, 2011|access-date=December 31, 2017}}{{cite web|url=http://theheureka.com/biggest-german-exits-and-takeovers-of-2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170311172210/http://theheureka.com/biggest-german-exits-and-takeovers-of-2012|url-status=usurped|archive-date=March 11, 2017|title=The biggest German exits and takeovers of 2012|publisher=Heureka|date=January 4, 2013|access-date=December 31, 2017}} In his spare time, Bachem developed Lebenslauf.com (engl. Resume.com), an online CV editor which he sold to publicly traded XING AG in 2014.{{cite web|url=https://aimgroup.com/2014/05/27/xing-buys-cv-creator/|title=Xing buys CV creator|publisher=AIM Group|date=May 27, 2014|access-date=December 31, 2017}}{{cite web|url=https://www.heise.de/newsticker/meldung/Xing-uebernimmt-Lebenslauf-com-2210113.html|title=Xing übernimmt Lebenslauf.com|publisher=Heise Online|language=German|date=May 28, 2014|access-date=July 29, 2017}}

In 2016, Bachem founded the CODE University of Applied Sciences in Berlin in an effort to improve the education of software developers since existing computer science courses appeared outdated and too theoretical to him.{{cite web|title=Reprogrammed|publisher=deutschland.de|date=June 12, 2017|url=https://www.deutschland.de/en/topic/knowledge/reprogrammed|access-date=December 31, 2017}}{{cite web|first=Jens|last=Tönnesmann|title=Calling All Tech Talent|publisher=Handelsblatt|date=June 3, 2017|access-date=December 31, 2017|url=https://global.handelsblatt.com/companies-markets/a-first-private-college-for-tech-talent-775593}} The accredited private university was granted state recognition by the state of Berlin in July 2017 and commenced its English-language studies in October 2017.{{cite news|first=Annette|last=Kuhn|url=https://www.morgenpost.de/berlin/article211264435/Code-University-startet-im-Oktober-in-Berlin.html|title=Studieren mit Zukunft|periodical=Berliner Morgenpost|at=p. 12|language=German|date=July 16, 2017}} Bachem is the youngest university chancellor in Germany.{{cite news|title=Menschen 2017|periodical=Handelsblatt|language=German|issue=242|date=December 15, 2017|at=p. 78|url=https://www.handelsblatt.com/my/unternehmen/management/menschen-des-jahres-2017/gruender-des-jahres-thomas-bachem-digitaler-ueberzeugungstaeter/20676642.html}}

In addition to its own entrepreneurial activities Bachem supports young startup companies as an angel investor.{{cite web|url=https://www.cavalry.vc/expert/thomas-bachem/|title=Thomas Bachem - Cavalry Ventures|publisher=Cavalry Ventures|access-date=August 16, 2019}}{{cite web|url=https://www.gruenderszene.de/allgemein/homelike-portraet|title=Dieses Startup vermittelt Wohnungen auf Zeit an Geschäftsleute|publisher=Gründerszene|language=German|date=April 4, 2016|access-date=December 31, 2017}}{{cite web|url=https://www.deutsche-startups.de/2017/02/09/profounders-setzt-auf-steuererklaerung-fuer-studenten/|title=PROfounders setzt auf Steuererklärung für Studenten|publisher=deutsche-startups.de|language=German|date=February 9, 2017|access-date=December 31, 2017}}

In 2012, Bachem, together with other internet entrepreneurs, founded the German Startups Association as a political voice for startups in Germany.{{cite web|url=https://www.gruenderszene.de/news/bundesverband-deutsche-startups|title=Startup-Verband will über 1.000 Mitglieder|language=German|publisher=Gründerszene|date=October 18, 2012|access-date=December 31, 2017}} He serves as its Vice Chairman ever since.{{cite web|url=https://deutschestartups.org/der-verband/vorstand/|title=Members of the Board|publisher=German Startups Association|access-date=December 31, 2017}}

Bachem also initiated the non-profit Code+Design Initiative{{cite web|url=http://www.hochrhein-zeitung.de/themen/bildung/15245-code-design-camp-fuer-150-jugendliche-in-koeln|title=Code+Design Camp für 150 Jugendliche in Köln|publisher=Hochrhein-Zeitung|date=October 7, 2016|access-date=December 31, 2017}} and is a senator of the German Academy of Science and Engineering.{{cite web|url=http://www.acatech.de/uk/home-uk/organisation/senate.html|title=Members of the Senate|publisher=Acatech|access-date=December 31, 2017}} He is a long-time member of the Entrepreneurs' Organization and for many years served as a regional board chair.{{cite web|url=http://www.eogermany.com/kontakt-2/kontakt-rhine-ruhr/|title=Chapter Rhine-Ruhr|publisher=Entrepreneurs' Organization|language=German|access-date=December 31, 2017}}

Germany's leading business newspaper Handelsblatt named Bachem "Founder of the Year 2017".{{cite news|title=Menschen 2017|periodical=Handelsblatt|issue=242|language=German|date=December 15, 2017|at=p. 78|url=https://www.handelsblatt.com/my/unternehmen/management/menschen-des-jahres-2017/gruender-des-jahres-thomas-bachem-digitaler-ueberzeugungstaeter/20676642.html}} German magazine Capital honored him in the same year as "Young Elite - Top 40 under 40" in the Society and Science category.{{cite news|title=Junge Elite – Top 40 unter 40|periodical=Capital|language=German|issue=12/2017|date=November 16, 2017|at=p. 82|url=https://www.capital.de/karriere/junge-elite-top-40-unter-40-gesellschaft-und-wissenschaft}} In December 2017, the magazine Business Punk named him one of "100 Rising Stars" in its "Watchlist 2018".{{cite news|title=Watchlist 2018|periodical=Business Punk|language=German|issue=6/2017|date=December 7, 2017|at=p. 44}} In August 2019, he received the "Innovators Under 35" award of the German issue of MIT Technology Review and was named "Social Innovator of the Year".{{cite news|title=Die besten "Innovatoren unter 35": Unsere Visionäre|periodical=MIT Technology Review|issue=9/2019|language=German|date=2019-08-15|at=p. 52|url=https://www.heise.de/tr/artikel/Die-besten-Innovatoren-unter-35-Unsere-Visionaere-4495572.html}}{{cite web|url=https://www.heise-gruppe.de/presse/Die-Visionaere-Die-Gewinner-des-TR-Awards-4516830.html|title=Technology Review kürte zehn Innovatoren unter 35 Jahren|language=German|publisher=MIT Technology Review|date=September 9, 2019|access-date=September 10, 2019}}

Previously, Bachem was already named as a "famous German founder" in 2010 by business magazine WirtschaftsWoche and in 2014 as one of 25 "notorious founders - Germany's pioneers."{{cite web|url=http://www.wiwo.de/erfolg/gruender/gruenderszene-beruehmte-deutsche-gruender/4637730.html?p=2|title=Berühmte deutsche Gründer|publisher=WirtschaftsWoche|language=German|date=October 20, 2010|access-date=December 31, 2017}}{{cite news|title=Diese 25 Vordenker der deutschen Gründerszene sollten Sie kennen|periodical=WirtschaftsWoche|language=German|issue=29/2014|date=June 14, 2014|at=p. 64}}

In 2019, the university he founded was awarded the "German Excellence Prize"{{cite web|url=https://www.n-tv.de/ratgeber/tests/Deutscher-Exzellenz-Preis-verliehen-article20801279.html|title=Deutscher Exzellenz-Preis verliehen|publisher=n-tv|language=German|access-date=August 15, 2019}} as well as honored as an "Excellent Place" in the annual "Land of Ideas" competition.{{cite web|url=https://land-der-ideen.de/projekt/code-university-of-applied-sciences-3900|title=Ausgezeichnete Orte 2019|publisher=Deutschland – Land der Ideen|language=German|access-date=August 15, 2019}}

{{reflist}}

• [http://thomasbachem.com/ Thomas Bachem's Personal Website]

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Category:1985 births

Category:Living people

Category:Businesspeople from Cologne

Category:German computer programmers

Category:German company founders

Category:21st-century German businesspeople