Introduction
Frank Thelen (born October 10, 1975) is a German businessman, investor and author based in Bonn, Germany.
He was a co-founder of companies such as ip.labs and doo. As of 2014, he is the CEO of venture capital firm e42, now Freigeist Capital, which has invested in startups such as Wunderlist, MyTaxi, KaufDa, pitch,, Lilium GmbH and Hardt Hyperloop.
Thelen consults the Microsoft Ventures accelerator in Berlin, and he also supports startups in German politics. Together with the German State Minister for Digitization, Dorothee Bär, he is a leading member of the German Innovation Council.
Career
In 2012, Thelen spoke at the f.ounders Conference in New York and was given the “Innovate by Society” Award by Microsoft handed out by German Chancellor Angela Merkel that same year for his startup doo
Thelen supports startups in German politics.
In 2014 he joined the German version of the TV show "Dragons' Den" (Shark tank), called "Die Höhle der Löwen" as investor. "Die Höhle der Löwen" is a reality television program format in which entrepreneurs pitch their business ideas to a panel of venture capitalists in the hope of securing investment finance from them.[11]
He is also a regular guest in German talk shows like 'Hart aber fair'.
In 2018 his autobiography "Frank Thelen - Die Autobiografie: Startup-DNA - Hinfallen, aufstehen, die Welt verändern" was published and has been a bestseller for several weeks. He is convinced that "The next decade will be the biggest challenge in humankind’s history." Also he is fighting for a strong European economy.