25 Corporate Incubators examples

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Corporations are increasingly leaning into incubators to drive innovation and find growth in new markets.

In our latest downloadable deck, we’ve examined 25 leading Corporate Incubators to give you an insightful view of how this innovation strategy is being used successfully around the world.
Dive right in and learn from the corporations taking control of their future.

Download your copy using the following link: https://bundl.buzz/25corpincubators

1. 25
corporate
incubators,
examined.
VINCI
ROYAL BANK OF CANADA
LEO PHARMA
GOOGLE
WALMART
RABOBANK
DAIMLER

2. Introduction.
Part 01.

3. “Corporate incubators
fuel innovation
beyond funding,
they’re willing to
venture and explore
the unknown. “

Corporations are increasingly leaning into incubators to
drive innovation and find growth in new markets.
So, which corporates are building incubators, how are
they finding success, and what has come out of it?
To give you a better view of how this innovation
strategy is being used, we’ve examined 25 leading
corporate incubators from around the world.
You’ll find out how they activate startup ideas, the type
of models they favour, where they focus their
entrepreneurial energy, and the game-changing
ventures that were born of it. 
If you’re looking to build your own corporate incubator,
currently in developing one, or wanting to take it to the
next level, this list will give you the insight to success. 
Thomas Van Halewyck
Co-founder and managing
partner at Bundl
LINKEDINEMAIL

4. 25 corporate incubators,
examined for you.
Part 02.

5. Launched in 2014
Headquarters in Germany
Active in Aerospace
The Lufthansa Innovation Hub in Berlin, Germany is
the digital innovation unit of the global aviation
conglomerate Lufthansa Group. The business is led
by serial entrepreneur Gleb Tritus and Christian
Langer, Chief Digital O"cer of Lufthansa Group, and
brings together employees of the airline's Frankfurt
am Main headquarters with talent of the German
startup ecosystem.

#1
Lufthansa Innovation Hub
ExternalInternal
Activities
Acceleration
M & A
Incubation
Investment

Selection of ventures
We design the happy
journey of tomorrow.
Founded by Lufthansa
ExternalInternal
Entrepreneurship
RadicalCore
Type of innovation
Adjacent

6. #2
RBC Ventures
ExternalInternal
Activities
Acceleration
M & A
Incubation
Investment

Launched in 2014
Headquarters in Canada
Active in Banking
RBC Ventures is moving beyond banking to create
meaningful solutions that touch every Canadian.
They are building new ventures, acquiring growing
firms, making investments, and partnering with
organisations that share their vision. The results are
products and services that solve problems and make
lives better.
Go beyond banking.
Selection of ventures
Founded by Royal Bank of Canada
ExternalInternal
Entrepreneurship
RadicalCore
Type of innovation
Adjacent

7. #3
Capital One Labs
ExternalInternal
Activities
Acceleration
M & A
Incubation
Investment

Selection of ventures
We explore the
intersection of
technology and finance.
Founded by Capital One
Launched in 2012
Headquarters in the USA
Active in Fintech
Capital One Labs is an experimental product and
technology incubator that identifies high-impact
opportunities and provides its clients with impactful
solutions. It exists of a cross-functional team of
product managers, designers, data scientists,
developers, and other professionals. It combines
startup culture with the financial backing of a
Fortune 200 company.
ExternalInternal
Entrepreneurship
RadicalCore
Type of innovation
Adjacent

8. #4
Store N°8
ExternalInternal
Activities
Acceleration
M & A
Incubation
Investment

Selection of ventures
Transforming the future
of retail.
Founded by Walmart
Founded in 2017
Headquarters in the USA
Active in Retail
Store No. 8 is named after a location where Walmart
founder Sam Walton was known to experiment.
Here, startups to grow and flourish under the
umbrella of the world's largest retailer. The goal is to
have a fast-moving, separate entity to identify
emerging technologies that can be developed and
used across Walmart.
ExternalInternal
Entrepreneurship
RadicalCore
Type of innovation
Adjacent

9. #5
Chemovator
ExternalInternal
Activities
Acceleration
M & A
Incubation
Investment

Selection of ventures
Incubating Chemistry
Businesses.
Founded by BASF
Founded in 2018
Headquarters in Germany
Active in Chemistry
Chemovator is a tool for BASF to test early stage
business ideas and explore unconventional growth
opportunities. It delivers de-risked and investable
business plans for BASF to internalise or to form
BASF spin-o# companies. Chemovator employs a
startup mindset – fast, lean, and customer-focused.
ExternalInternal
Entrepreneurship
RadicalCore
Type of innovation
Adjacent

10. #6
Area 120
ExternalInternal
Activities
Acceleration
M & A
Incubation
Investment

Selection of ventures
Area 120 is Google’s
workshop for
experimental products.
Founded by Google
Founded in 2016
Headquarters in the USA
Active in Technology
Area 120 is an experimental program within Google
to help small teams rapidly build new products in an
entrepreneurial environment. It is where Googlers
spend 100% of their time on 20% projects. So far,
Google employees have pitched more than a
thousand ideas of which 50 got a green light.
ExternalInternal
Entrepreneurship
RadicalCore
Type of innovation
Adjacent

11. #7
Leo Innovation Lab
ExternalInternal
Activities
Acceleration
M & A
Incubation
Investment

Selection of ventures
We nurture companies
to lead the digital
health revolution.
Founded by Leo Pharma
Founded in 2015
Headquarters in Denmark
Active in Healthcare
LEO Innovation Lab is an independent unit,
established by LEO Pharma as part of a long-term
strategic decision to focus on patient needs. They
are innovating to improve the lives of people with
chronic skin conditions - not with medical
treatments but through digital solutions. They do
this by looking at the aspects of everyday life that
a#ects a person with a skin condition.
ExternalInternal
Entrepreneurship
RadicalCore
Type of innovation
Adjacent

12. #8
Lab 1886
ExternalInternal
Activities
Acceleration
M & A
Incubation
Investment

Selection of ventures
We bring ideas to life.
Founded by Daimler
Founded in 2007
Headquarters in Germany
Active in Automotive
Lab1886 is an independent innovation lab within
Daimler AG. It is where new business ideas, including
outside the core business, are identified, incubated
and brought to market maturity. The aim is to
proceed faster from the idea to the product or
business model. By realising a portfolio of
innovations, Lab1886 helps Daimler AG to secure a
sustainable and profitable future.
ExternalInternal
Entrepreneurship
RadicalCore
Type of innovation
Adjacent

13. #9
Hubraum
ExternalInternal
Activities
Acceleration
M & A
Incubation
Investment

Selection of ventures
We bring startups and
the leading European
telco tech together.
Founded by Deutsche Telekom
Founded in 2012
Headquarters in Germany
Active in Telecom
Hubraum is the tech incubator of Deutsche Telekom.
By bringing early-stage startups and the leading
European telco together, Hubraum strives to ignite
innovation and create new business opportunities
for both sides. Startups benefit from co-innovation
programs, seed-investments, tech assets and
knowledge. In return Deutsche Telekom benefits
from new business opportunities.
ExternalInternal
Entrepreneurship
RadicalCore
Type of innovation
Adjacent

14. #10
Rabo Frontier
Ventures
ExternalInternal
Entrepreneurship
Activities
RadicalCore
Type of innovation
Adjacent
Acceleration
M & A
Incubation
Investment

Selection of ventures
Backing the best
fintech and agritech
entrepreneurs.
Founded by Rabobank
Founded in 2018
Headquarters in the Netherlands
Active in Banking
Rabo Frontier Ventures is part of broader innovation
agenda, in which internal and external food & agri
ventures are supported to scale their business.
Rabobank provides them capital, non-financial
support like access to their customers, knowledge
and network. They want to transform the Agri
industry by building sustainable and future proof
business models in this rapidly changing world.

15. Practical insights
about corporate
incubators.
DOWNLOAD THE REPORT
10 key steps you need to take
to make it a success.

16. ExternalInternal
Entrepreneurship
Activities
RadicalCore
Type of innovation
Adjacent

Selection of ventures
We build disruptive
companies from the
ground up.
Founded in 2016
Headquarters in France
Active in Technology
Kamet Ventures is a venture inventor and builder. It is
focused on creating breakthrough companies that
will redefine the sectors of Insurtech, Digital Health,
and Mobility. It provides a unique framework for
ideation and experimentation and supports the
development and launch of new businesses by
providing extensive operational support and
privileged access to its network of market-leading
advisors and experts.
#11
Kamet Ventures
Founded by AXA
Acceleration
M & A
Incubation
Investment

17. ExternalInternal
Entrepreneurship
Activities
RadicalCore
Type of innovation
Adjacent
Incubation

Selection of ventures
Let’s build the cities of
the future together.
Founded in 2017
Headquarters in France
Active in Construction
Leonard is the VINCI Group's innovation and
foresight platform. Set up to invent and serve the
group's future business activities, Leonard is in
charge of tracking emerging trends, identifying long-
term challenges and goals, pinpointing opportunities
for change in the group's businesses and
organizational structure, identifying new growth
drivers and developing innovative project incubation
and acceleration programmes open to both group
employees and startups.
#12
Leonard
Founded by Vinci
Acceleration
M & A Investment

18. ExternalInternal
Entrepreneurship
Activities
RadicalCore
Type of innovation
Adjacent
Acceleration Incubation

Selection of ventures
Small idea's,
Big Innovations.
Founded in 2012
Headquarters in South Korea
Active in Consumer Electronics
C-Lab is an in-house idea incubation program that
encourages a creative corporate culture and
nurtures innovative ideas from Samsung employees.
Introduced in 2015, the  C-Lab spin-o# policy  helps
Samsung employees who have successfully
completed  C-Lab  projects to launch their own start-
ups. Samsung supports the spin-o # companies
through seed money investment and business
consulting to accelerate their growth, while
guaranteeing their independent management. So far,
C-Lab has supported over 220 projects.
#13
C-Lab
Founded by Samsung
M & A Investment

19. ExternalInternal
Entrepreneurship
Activities
RadicalCore
Type of innovation
Adjacent
Acceleration Incubation

Selection of ventures
We put the ‘X’ in NEXT.
Founded in 2013
Headquarters in Silicon Valley,
Berlin, New York, San Fransisco,
Tel Aviv, Korea
Active in Digital Technology
The NEXT Product group is devoted to creating new
software and services businesses and platforms.
Teams develop ideas into products, grow products
into businesses, and scale businesses with the power
to transform the future of software.
Their ventures are often driven by a shift in
consumer behaviour, a new enabling technology, a
new platform reaching critical mass, a new interface
becoming intuitive, a new distribution channel being
found—amplified by the convergence of many of
these scenarios. 
#14
Samsung Next
Founded by Samsung
InvestmentM & A

20. ExternalInternal
Entrepreneurship
Activities
RadicalCore
Type of innovation
Adjacent

Selection of ventures
Products crafted from
your insights.
Founded in 2011
Headquarters in the USA
Active in Home Appliances
W-Labs seeks to discover unique facets of
consumers that lead to new products. They push
those products and ideas to fail, so they can learn
from mistakes, and fast. It consists of a mighty group
of thinkers, tinkerers, and creatives. It’s an
environment where those who have an
entrepreneurial spirit can bring their business drive
to a startup-like division, even within a global
corporation. They do whatever it takes to bring
innovative products to life.
#15
W-Labs
Founded by Whirlpool
Incubation
M & A Investment
Acceleration

21. ExternalInternal
Entrepreneurship
Activities
RadicalCore
Type of innovation
Adjacent
Incubation

Selection of ventures
We are Heimat for
startups.
Founded in 2013
Headquarters in Germany
Active in Technology
Grow is a platform for startups and an open space
for entrepreneurs inside of Bosch. They’re focused
on radical ideas in order to develop new, sustainable
and profitable business in new markets for Bosch.
Grow o#ers access to infrastructure, the connection
to the group, as well as shared services. They are
financed by Bosch and supported by the Grow
platform team from preparation through incubation
and scaling, empowering them to transform their
ideas into new businesses.
#16
Grow
Founded by Robert Bosch
M & A Investment
Acceleration

22. ExternalInternal
Entrepreneurship
Activities
RadicalCore
Type of innovation
Adjacent
Acceleration
M & A
Incubation

Selection of ventures
Digital has the potential
of transforming the
core business of Thales
and its customers.
Founded in 2017
Headquarters in Paris, France
Active in Digital Technology
The Digital Factory has been launched to accelerate
the digital transformation of Thales and its
customers inn five core areas: aerospace, space,
ground transportation, defense and security. The aim
is not only to create and accelerate new ventures,
but also to create a cultural shift within Thales.
The Digital Factory is hosted inside Station F in Paris
and has around 11 startups that, in most cases, will
be handed over to existing business units.
#17
Thales Digital Factory
Founded by Thales
Quentin Reytinas
Investment

23. ExternalInternal
Entrepreneurship
Activities
RadicalCore
Type of innovation
Adjacent
Acceleration
M & A
Incubation

Selection of ventures
A platform dedicated to
nurturing, scaling, and
accelerating growth
Founded in 2018
Headquarters in Chicago, USA
Active in Food and beverages
The program was created to turn startups with
disruptive products and brands into thriving
companies in the food and beverage industry.
Companies invited into the incubator program are
given a unique opportunity with an abundance of
tools and resources to help make their goals a reality.
Springboard is looking for authentic brands to
partner with as well as startups for their incubator
program.
#18
Springboard
Founded by Kraft Heinz
Quentin Reytinas
Investment

24. ExternalInternal
Entrepreneurship
Activities
RadicalCore
Type of innovation
Adjacent
Acceleration
M & A
Incubation

Selection of ventures
It has always been in
our DNA to service tech
businesses and content
creators.
Founded in 2017
Headquarters in Paris, France
Active in Digital Technology
Naver is a listed Asian-born internet company that
owns 80% of the search market in Korea and is the
mother company of Line, a Japanese messaging app
that has reached the $1 billion revenue landmark in
less than 5 years
Their digital factory in France is building a
community of DOERS ready to share and generate
opportunities for each other. Next to helping
entrepreneurs move forward they also invest in
existing startups.
#19
Space Green
Founded by Naver
Investment

25. ExternalInternal
Entrepreneurship
Activities
RadicalCore
Type of innovation
Adjacent
Acceleration
M & A

Selection of ventures
We must do everything
possible to unleash the
creative capabilities of
Michelin employees."
Founded in 2014
Headquarters in France
Active in Mobility
The Incubator Program O"ce covers projects linked
to three strategic fields (excluding tires): Services and
Solutions, Mobility Experiences and High-tech
Materials. The role is to detect projects that could
support future growth and develop them in a lean
fashion.

When starting more than 4000 ideas where
admitted, many ideas where taken back to the
Business Units and others accelerated updates to
existing products. And 14 ventures started at the
Incubator Program O"ce.
#20
Incubator
Program O"ce 
Investment
Incubation
Founded by Michelin

26. ExternalInternal
Entrepreneurship
Activities
RadicalCore
Type of innovation
Adjacent
Acceleration
M & A
Incubation

Selection of ventures
Because we know great
ideas can come from
everywhere.
Founded in 2012
Headquarters in the USA
Active in Life sciences
Johnson & Johnson Innovation or JLABS is a global
network of open innovation ecosystems. They’re
enabling and empowering innovators across a broad
healthcare spectrum including pharmaceuticals and
medical devices.
They also focus on consumer and health tech
sectors that create and accelerate the delivery of
life-saving, life-enhancing solutions to patients
around the world.  With 420 startups over six years
that have secured $11.6bn in funding Johnson &
Johnson is betting big on innovation.

#21
J-Labs
Founded by Johnson & Johnson
Investment

27. ExternalInternal
Entrepreneurship
Activities
RadicalCore
Type of innovation
Adjacent
Acceleration Incubation

Selection of ventures
80 percent of Ford X’s
investing goes to
people and ideas that
come from within Ford.
Founded in 2018
Headquarters in the USA
Active in Mobility
Ford X is Ford Mobility’s venture incubator. They
unite entrepreneurs, designers and engineers to
envision, build and validate new mobility ventures
and business models to shape the future of
transportation.
Although being very open about their process, most
things happen behind closed doors.
#22
Ford X
Founded by Ford
InvestmentM & A

28. ExternalInternal
Entrepreneurship
Activities
RadicalCore
Type of innovation
Adjacent
Acceleration Incubation

Selection of ventures
We develop new
solutions that improve
the current service of
Albert Heijn.
Founded in 2018
Headquarters in the Netherlands
Active in Groceries
Albert Heijn Labs uses the lean startup method to
work on new concept and innovation. Most of these
initiatives create knowledge that can be brought
back to the core of service Albert Heijn.
For many projects, the Lab partners up with other
businesses such as an Achmea (insurance), Bol.com
(online retail) and Samsung (refrigerators).
#23
Albert Heijn Labs
Founded by Albert Heijn
InvestmentM & A

29. Launched in 2014
Headquarters in the UK
Active in Consumer Goods
Unilever Foundry works with pioneering startups to
identify and accelerate partnership opportunities on
a global scale, using their creativity and expertise to
unleash disruptive innovation.  By driving innovation
in Unilever’s brands and functions, they are helping
to make sustainable living commonplace by
establishing more e"cient and e#ective solutions for
consumers.

#24
The Unilever Foundry
ExternalInternal
Activities
M & A
Incubation
Investment

Selection of ventures
Collaborate. Experiment. Pioneer.
Founded by Unilever
ExternalInternal
Entrepreneurship
RadicalCore
Type of innovation
Adjacent
Acceleration

30. ExternalInternal
Entrepreneurship
Activities
RadicalCore
Type of innovation
Adjacent
Acceleration
M & A
Incubation

Selection of ventures
We are also developing
our own prototypes for
tomorrow’s financial
world. 
Founded in 2014
Headquarters in Germany
Active in Banking
Main Incubator GmbH is a wholly-owned subsidiary
of Commerzbank. As a Research & Development
Unit Main Incubator deals with future topics and
emerging technologies such as blockchain, big data,
machine learning, artificial intelligence, biometrics,
robotics, virtual reality, cloud, open API, wearables,
IoT and quantum computing.
By developing their own prototypes Main Incubator
is proactively shaping new ventures. Through
strategic investments in tech-driven startups Main
ncubator makes innovation available for
Commerzbank and its customers.
#25
Main Incubator
Founded by Commerzbank
Investment

31. Reach out to me and get
the conversation started.
Thomas Van Halewyck
Co-founder and managing
partner at Bundl
LINKEDINEMAIL
We can help set up
your corporate
incubator, take it to
the next level, or
create your newest
venture.