Stories from Germany

The startup Elektron has secured an investment of 57 million Euros. The funding will reportedly be used to accelerate the company's growth and product development. Elektron operates in the technology sector.

Startup Elektron has received 57 million euros in funding. Startup company Elektron has secured an investment of 57 million Euros.

BioNTech is laying off 540 employees in Marburg, Germany. The decision follows a period where the company has not been generating profits. The scale of the job losses is described as a impact for the local city. The broadcaster noted that the company's development is no longer as dynamic as in its early stages. This decision affects a portion of the Marburg site's personnel. BioNTech, the German biotechnology company, has announced layoffs impacting approximately 540 employees. The company cited a need for restructuring and cost-saving measures. This decision follows recent financial performance reviews.

Volkswagen is set to collaborate with US electric vehicle manufacturer Rivian to further develop electronic architecture for electric models. The partnership is expected to cost Volkswagen up to $5.8 billion. The move follows calls for increased compromise from the SPD.

A transatlantic market valued at nearly 39 billion euros is facing intellectual property infringement issues. The Hong Kong stock market is experiencing mixed performance, with some assets being classified as defensive and others as highly volatile trading assets. Investors are advised to be cautious due to geopolitical tensions and uncertainty, leading some to favor financial stocks over AI-related shares.

Many elderly patients have been presenting to emergency rooms with gastrointestinal problems, particularly after holidays. Listeners with similar issues were encouraged to call a provided hotline.

A technical disruption at DENIC, the German Network Information Center, caused internet connectivity issues for several hours overnight. The issue originated at the DENIC registration office in Frankfurt. DENIC is responsible for managing the routing of German web addresses. The outage is affecting access to numerous German online services. Service has since been restored. The outage began at approximately 08:00 UTC. Users are experiencing widespread connectivity issues. The registry DENIC, based in Frankfurt am Main, confirmed the outage. DENIC manages nearly 18 million such internet addresses. The disruption occurred on the evening of May 5, 2026. Websites using the.de domain extension were unreachable for several hours due to internet disruptions. HR reporter Andreas Gerlach reported on the connectivity issues.

Approximately 530,000 apprenticeship positions were offered in Germany last year, representing a 4.6 percent decrease from 2024. The number of unfilled applicant positions reached nearly 40,000, the highest level since 2009. These findings were reported by Politico and are being discussed by the German federal cabinet. The data reflects the training balance for the year 2025. For academic professions, the percentage decrease was almost twice as high during the same period. Dirk Werner from the IW described the situation as paradoxical, noting 1.2 million unemployed individuals with professional or academic qualifications, while many open positions cannot be filled due to a mismatch in qualifications.

The registration authority DENIC is currently fixing a nationwide disruption affecting numerous websites in Germany. The broadcast confirmed the resolution of the outage.

A patient reportedly paid nearly 1,000 euros for aspherical eye lenses that are provided free of charge at the Braunschweig municipal clinic.