15.07.2019

Österreis: Warum ein IT-Manager im Marchfeld Reis anbaut

Es ist eine Frage, vor der schon viele gestanden sind: Den elterlichen Hof übernehmen oder einer anderen Karriere nachgehen? Gregor Neumeyer hat sich entschlossen, beides zu machen. In der Landwirtschaft geht der Head of Digital Delivery der Uniqa mit seinem Startup Österreis aber neue Wege.
/artikel/oesterreis-reis-marchfeld-oesterreich
Österreis: Gründer Gregor Neumeyer ist im Vollzeit-Beruf Head of Digital Delivery der Uniqa, daneben baut er im Marchfeld Reis an
(c) Österreis: Gründer Gregor Neumeyer

„Wenn ihr gute Bilder machen wollt, solltet ihr besser im August oder September kommen“, sagt Gregor Neumeyer im Gespräch mit dem brutkasten. Dann werden die Reis-Pflanzen auf seinen Feldern in Gerasdorf im niederösterreichischen Marchfeld ausgewachsen und die Rispen schön zu erkennen sein. Die Feldfrucht, die Neumeyer da anbaut, zeigt schon, dass er als Landwirt einen besonderen Weg geht. Und der genannte Zeithorizont zeigt, dass Neumeyers Startup Österreis an einen in der Startup-Welt ungewöhnlichen Zyklus gebunden ist. „Wir müssen in der Landwirtschaft immer ein Jahr warten. Da geht es eben mehr um organisches Wachstum, als um raketenhafte Skalierung“, sagt er.

+++ AgTech: “Mein Traktor Lenkt Sich Seit Heuer Selbst” +++

Vertragslandwirte für die Reisanbau-Skalierung

Dabei hat der IT-Spezialist, der im Vollzeit-Beruf als Head of Digital Delivery bei der Uniqa arbeitet, durchaus einen Plan, wie er Österreis skalieren will. Die eigenen Felder beackert sein pensionierter Vater, der als Unternehmer im Elektro-Einzelhandel auch schon Nebenerwerbslandwirt war. Doch inzwischen – 2015 hatte man mit dem Reisanbau begonnen – sind es nicht mehr nur die eigenen Felder. „Wir arbeiten mit einem Vertragslandwirte-Modell. Das heißt, andere Landwirte bekommen von uns Saatgut und Know-how und liefern den Reis im Rohzustand zu einem vereinbarten Preis. Wir übernehmen dann Reinigung, Verarbeitung, Verpackung und Vermarktung“, sagt Neumeyer.

Österreis: „Premium-Produkt“ in B2C-Direktvermarktung

Es sind die letzten zwei genannten Punkte, denen sich der Gründer hauptsächlich widmet und die Österreis eben zu einem Startup machen und es von „üblichen“ landwirtschaftlichen Betrieben unterscheiden. Derzeit läuft der Vertrieb noch primär über B2C-Direktvermarktung. 80 Prozent würden darüber abgesetzt, sagt der Gründer. „Kunden müssen von Anfang bis Ende das Gefühl haben, ein Premium-Produkt zu bekommen“. Punkten will man bei denen nicht nur mit biologischer Landwirtschaft und einer besseren CO2-Bilanz wegen kurzer Transportwege, sondern auch mit Vorteilen, die sich durch die Anbaumethode ergeben.

Reis aus Österreich: „Eine Nische mit Zukunft“

„Es gibt eine handvoll Reisbauern in Österreich und alles setzen aufgrund der Gegebenheiten wie ich auf Trockenreisanbau. Beim Nassreis-Verfahren, wie man es aus China kennt, gelangen etwa Schwermetalle wie Arsen in das Getreide. Diese Belastung haben wir gar nicht“, erklärt Neumeyer. Dafür erziele man im Trocken-Anbau auf der gleichen Fläche auch nur ein Viertel des Ertrags. „Reis aus Österreich bleibt daher eine Nische. Aber eine Nische mit Zukunft – allein schon aus gesundheitlichen Gründen“, ist der Gründer sicher.

Österreis: Reis aus Österreich im Trockenreis-Verfahren angebaut
(c) Österreis: Impression von der Ernte 2017

Erweiterung mit Waffeln, Bier und Knäckebrot

Beim reinen B2C-Vertrieb soll es auf Dauer nicht bleiben. „Irgendwann verliert österreichischer Reis auch seine Skurrilität“, sagt Neumeyer. Hier kommt der zweite Teil der Skalierungsstrategie zum Tragen. „Wir arbeiten immer stärker mit Weiterverarbeitern zusammen, die aus unserem Reis neue Produkte machen. Das sind etwa bereits Reiswaffeln, Bier und Knäckebrot. Wir sind aber zum Beispiel auch in Gesprächen mit einem großen Babynahrungs-Hersteller“, erklärt Neumeyer. Im Creative Pre-Incubator (CPI) an der FH Wiener Neustadt/Standort Wieselburg entwickelte man ein alkoholisches Lifestyle-Getränk auf Reismilchbasis.

Deutschland als Expansionsmarkt

Bei Partnern im Vertrieb des Reis selbst gehe man dagegen eher restriktiv vor: „Wir arbeiten vorwiegend mit kleinen Händlern, die den Reis ohne Verpackung verkaufen“. Von denen habe man in Österreich 15 und bereits 5 in Deutschland. Dort sieht Neumeyer eine große Chance für Österreis. „Wir haben Mitte Mai in Berlin den ‚Next Organic Startup Award‚ geholt. Das hat uns bereits einen gewissen Push gebracht und wir sehen, dass das Produkt auch dort sehr gut ankommt“.

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01.04.2025

Call for international innovators: Turn your business idea into reality with aws First Incubator

The new program year for aws First Incubator has started! The first call is open until April 3rd and has a special focus on securing international founders, providing financial support, mentoring, and valuable networking opportunities to help new businesses thrive. Success stories like the startups "RacePace" or "nexus. Group AI" prove just how impactful the aws First Incubator program is for new businesses.
/artikel/call-for-international-innovators-turn-your-business-idea-into-reality-with-aws-first-incubator
01.04.2025

Call for international innovators: Turn your business idea into reality with aws First Incubator

The new program year for aws First Incubator has started! The first call is open until April 3rd and has a special focus on securing international founders, providing financial support, mentoring, and valuable networking opportunities to help new businesses thrive. Success stories like the startups "RacePace" or "nexus. Group AI" prove just how impactful the aws First Incubator program is for new businesses.
/artikel/call-for-international-innovators-turn-your-business-idea-into-reality-with-aws-first-incubator
The founders of © nexus. Group AI (left): Orion Forowycz and Andrei Cursaru; founder-team of © RacePace (right): Guillermo Alamán Requena, Lee Barad and Ido Dassa.

Are you in the early stages of founding your company or do you have an innovative business idea? All you need now is a project description, an application video, and a budget plan to apply for the aws First Incubator. The application deadline for the first call is open until April 3rd at 12 noonapply here! This call is specifically looking for international individuals or teams.

Austria Wirtschaftsservice (aws) is starting with its annual First Incubator program once again. They are looking for innovative minds with an entrepreneurial spirit who are either planning to start a business or have recently founded one and are still in the early stages. The program helps participants take their first steps into the market – from developing a business model to gaining the necessary know-how. brutkasten spoke with two best practice examples that are currently part of the First Incubator program.

Funding up to €55,000 possible

The aws First Incubator offers coaching and mentoring from experienced experts and founders. The funding program also includes a wide range of workshops on startup-related topics, team-specific mentoring, training sessions on business model development, and coaching sessions. Its goal is to help participants develop their business idea and make it market-ready within one to two years.

In addition, aws supports participants financially, including personnel cost subsidies, a project budget, and access to a coworking space. They also gain access to a valuable network of innovators, founders, and entrepreneurs. Projects can receive up to €55,000 in funding – click here for more details. These resources ensure that startups receive not only financial support but also strategic and operational guidance.

Selected projects are invited to the „First Startup Camp“ by aws. There, a jury of experts will decide which teams will be accepted into the First Incubator program.

Success Story: DeepTech-Startup nexus. Group AI

One of the startups currently participating in the aws First Incubator program is nexus. Group AI. The funding-program was a „game-changing moment for us, as we scale our operations and continue the development“, said the CEO. Founded by Andrei I. Cursaru (CEO) and Orion Forowycz (CTO), this DeepTech-startup develops cutting-edge AI solutions designed to strengthen societal resilience. Its flagship product, IRIS, is an AI-powered risk intelligence platform that helps governments, organizations, and enterprises navigate an increasingly complex digital landscape by providing the intelligence needed to reduce risks and enhance security.

The founders Andrei Cursaru and Orion Forowycz announced their participation at the aws First Incubator. © Screenshot/LinkedIn Andrei I. Cursaru

“Joining aws First Incubator is a dream come true“, said Cursaru. “This support will allow us to stay focused on our mission“. The funding helped nexus. Group AI on the operational and technical level, allowing them to further develop their AI system. Besides the workshops and the financial support, the founders especially praise the mentorship. “It was great to have a mentor with experience in AI startups. The mentorship is very personal.” Since then, the startup has been able to scale its product, Iris, further, and the founders have gained new entrepreneurship knowledge. The startup recently announced the launch of its pre-seed funding round.

Fitness-Startup RacePace: „For us it was a dream“

Another startup that has already achieved big results with the support of the aws First Incubator is RacePace. The Viennese startup was founded in 2024 by Ido Dassa, Guillermo Alamán Requena and Lee Barad. It offers an all-in-one race day solution, providing personalized insights on pacing, nutrition, and training. The platform tracks your fitness and running route, creating a customized training plan tailored to your needs.

Back when the RacePace team applied for the aws First Incubator, they only had the idea for the platform. „For us it was a dream. We get financial support and expert guidance. And I think for us it sounded like: of course, we need to apply for it because why not? We literally have nothing to lose“, said Barad.

Advantages for foreign founders

In an interview with brutkasten, Barad pointed out how important the First Incubator is for foreign founders. “Sometimes when you’re in a new country and don’t speak the language, you can feel lost. For us, it was pretty obvious that if we wanted to continue here, we must get some kind of support and help. Also as a foreigner, you’re often not familiar with the laws in Austria. On top of that, this is our first startup, so of course it’s scary, and a lot of things can go wrong. What’s amazing is that the aws mentorship covers so many topics“, Barad said. „That is the thing that is super valuable, what’s so different in the aws First Incubator is that we actually get one-on-one support“.

Since joining the First Incubator, a lot has happened for the startup. “We really felt that someone believes in us,” said the co-founder. They launched the platform and now have hundreds of users helping them further develop the product.

Advice for applicants

Asked for one piece of advice to applicants for the aws First Incubator, Cursaru says: “Think big and act efficiently. The judges really want a startup that solves a real problem and has the potential to grow into a successful company in Austria“. Barad also has a similar advice: “First of all, don’t hesitate. Just do it. If you have an idea and a passion for building something, try to really solve a problem and do your research beforehand. I think it’s important to do your homework“.

Key requirements

To join the aws First Incubator program, applicants must meet a few key requirements. Here are the most important ones:

  • Who can apply?
    • Individuals and companies registered in Austria
    • Companies must be no more than 6 months old
  • Revenue must not exceed €10,000
  • Team size: 1 to 4 members
  • Residence status:
    • Valid residence permit with work authorization in Austria (from June 2025 to at least August 2026)
    • Applicant must have lived in Austria for no more than 5 years at the time of application
  • Nationality:
    • As an individual applicant, you must be a non-Austrian citizen
    • In a team, at least some members must be Austrian citizens
  • With a few exceptions, startups from all sectors are welcome. You can find the full eligibility criteria here.
  • By the way, additional points are awarded for projects with women in key leadership positions and projects that address socio-political challenges (SDGs).

01.04.2025

Call for international innovators: Turn your business idea into reality with aws First Incubator

The new program year for aws First Incubator has started! The first call is open until April 3rd and has a special focus on securing international founders, providing financial support, mentoring, and valuable networking opportunities to help new businesses thrive. Success stories like the startups "RacePace" or "nexus. Group AI" prove just how impactful the aws First Incubator program is for new businesses.
01.04.2025

Call for international innovators: Turn your business idea into reality with aws First Incubator

The new program year for aws First Incubator has started! The first call is open until April 3rd and has a special focus on securing international founders, providing financial support, mentoring, and valuable networking opportunities to help new businesses thrive. Success stories like the startups "RacePace" or "nexus. Group AI" prove just how impactful the aws First Incubator program is for new businesses.
The founders of © nexus. Group AI (left): Orion Forowycz and Andrei Cursaru; founder-team of © RacePace (right): Guillermo Alamán Requena, Lee Barad and Ido Dassa.

Are you in the early stages of founding your company or do you have an innovative business idea? All you need now is a project description, an application video, and a budget plan to apply for the aws First Incubator. The application deadline for the first call is open until April 3rd at 12 noonapply here! This call is specifically looking for international individuals or teams.

Austria Wirtschaftsservice (aws) is starting with its annual First Incubator program once again. They are looking for innovative minds with an entrepreneurial spirit who are either planning to start a business or have recently founded one and are still in the early stages. The program helps participants take their first steps into the market – from developing a business model to gaining the necessary know-how. brutkasten spoke with two best practice examples that are currently part of the First Incubator program.

Funding up to €55,000 possible

The aws First Incubator offers coaching and mentoring from experienced experts and founders. The funding program also includes a wide range of workshops on startup-related topics, team-specific mentoring, training sessions on business model development, and coaching sessions. Its goal is to help participants develop their business idea and make it market-ready within one to two years.

In addition, aws supports participants financially, including personnel cost subsidies, a project budget, and access to a coworking space. They also gain access to a valuable network of innovators, founders, and entrepreneurs. Projects can receive up to €55,000 in funding – click here for more details. These resources ensure that startups receive not only financial support but also strategic and operational guidance.

Selected projects are invited to the „First Startup Camp“ by aws. There, a jury of experts will decide which teams will be accepted into the First Incubator program.

Success Story: DeepTech-Startup nexus. Group AI

One of the startups currently participating in the aws First Incubator program is nexus. Group AI. The funding-program was a „game-changing moment for us, as we scale our operations and continue the development“, said the CEO. Founded by Andrei I. Cursaru (CEO) and Orion Forowycz (CTO), this DeepTech-startup develops cutting-edge AI solutions designed to strengthen societal resilience. Its flagship product, IRIS, is an AI-powered risk intelligence platform that helps governments, organizations, and enterprises navigate an increasingly complex digital landscape by providing the intelligence needed to reduce risks and enhance security.

The founders Andrei Cursaru and Orion Forowycz announced their participation at the aws First Incubator. © Screenshot/LinkedIn Andrei I. Cursaru

“Joining aws First Incubator is a dream come true“, said Cursaru. “This support will allow us to stay focused on our mission“. The funding helped nexus. Group AI on the operational and technical level, allowing them to further develop their AI system. Besides the workshops and the financial support, the founders especially praise the mentorship. “It was great to have a mentor with experience in AI startups. The mentorship is very personal.” Since then, the startup has been able to scale its product, Iris, further, and the founders have gained new entrepreneurship knowledge. The startup recently announced the launch of its pre-seed funding round.

Fitness-Startup RacePace: „For us it was a dream“

Another startup that has already achieved big results with the support of the aws First Incubator is RacePace. The Viennese startup was founded in 2024 by Ido Dassa, Guillermo Alamán Requena and Lee Barad. It offers an all-in-one race day solution, providing personalized insights on pacing, nutrition, and training. The platform tracks your fitness and running route, creating a customized training plan tailored to your needs.

Back when the RacePace team applied for the aws First Incubator, they only had the idea for the platform. „For us it was a dream. We get financial support and expert guidance. And I think for us it sounded like: of course, we need to apply for it because why not? We literally have nothing to lose“, said Barad.

Advantages for foreign founders

In an interview with brutkasten, Barad pointed out how important the First Incubator is for foreign founders. “Sometimes when you’re in a new country and don’t speak the language, you can feel lost. For us, it was pretty obvious that if we wanted to continue here, we must get some kind of support and help. Also as a foreigner, you’re often not familiar with the laws in Austria. On top of that, this is our first startup, so of course it’s scary, and a lot of things can go wrong. What’s amazing is that the aws mentorship covers so many topics“, Barad said. „That is the thing that is super valuable, what’s so different in the aws First Incubator is that we actually get one-on-one support“.

Since joining the First Incubator, a lot has happened for the startup. “We really felt that someone believes in us,” said the co-founder. They launched the platform and now have hundreds of users helping them further develop the product.

Advice for applicants

Asked for one piece of advice to applicants for the aws First Incubator, Cursaru says: “Think big and act efficiently. The judges really want a startup that solves a real problem and has the potential to grow into a successful company in Austria“. Barad also has a similar advice: “First of all, don’t hesitate. Just do it. If you have an idea and a passion for building something, try to really solve a problem and do your research beforehand. I think it’s important to do your homework“.

Key requirements

To join the aws First Incubator program, applicants must meet a few key requirements. Here are the most important ones:

  • Who can apply?
    • Individuals and companies registered in Austria
    • Companies must be no more than 6 months old
  • Revenue must not exceed €10,000
  • Team size: 1 to 4 members
  • Residence status:
    • Valid residence permit with work authorization in Austria (from June 2025 to at least August 2026)
    • Applicant must have lived in Austria for no more than 5 years at the time of application
  • Nationality:
    • As an individual applicant, you must be a non-Austrian citizen
    • In a team, at least some members must be Austrian citizens
  • With a few exceptions, startups from all sectors are welcome. You can find the full eligibility criteria here.
  • By the way, additional points are awarded for projects with women in key leadership positions and projects that address socio-political challenges (SDGs).

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