DRFZ is part of the Health Innovation Quarter Berlin-Mitte

Hi_Q: A Hub for Innovation in Biotech and Life Science

The DRFZ is part of the newly emerging site for biotech and life sciences in Berlin-Mitte: the Health Innovation Quarter Berlin-Mitte (Hi_Q). Initiated by Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin and Bayer AG, Hi_Q connects the areas of research, development, production, and market launch across the entire innovation chain.

The new hub Hi_Q spans approximately five kilometers from the Charité Mitte campus through the Bayer site to the Charité Virchow-Klinikum campus.

Charité and Bayer form the core of the initiative, including the Berlin Center for Gene and Cell Therapies. In the future, Hi_Q is set to be strengthened by additional partners already established in the area. The goal is to create a high-performing innovation and development network with international visibility for cutting-edge medical and biotechnological research and care—in the spirit of a “Boston on the Spree.”

On Friday, March 27, 2026, Senator for Economics Franziska Giffey officially designated the Health Innovation Quarter Berlin-Mitte as the latest “Future Site” during Berlin Campus Day.

Other Future Sites in Berlin

The Hi_Q is one of 12 Future Sites in Berlin. Berlin’s Future Sites include 2,200 companies, SMEs, and startups, as well as 42 research institutes in Berlin-Buch, Marzahn, Adlershof, Charlottenburg, and Siemensstadt, to name just a few sites. The Future Sites are funded by the Senate Department for Economics, Energy, and Public Enterprises.

Photo (Ute Hoffmann): Uta Bielfeldt, Adminstrative Director of the DRFZ; Bettina von Streit, Site Manager Berlin, Bayer AG; Astrid Lurati, Chief Financial and Infrastructure Officer at Charité; Franziska Giffey, Mayor and Senator for Economic Affairs, Energy and Public Enterprises; Nevine Shalaby, MDC-Berlin, Innovation and Entreprneuership; Stefan Oelrich, Member of the Board of Management of Bayer AG and Head of the Pharmaceuticals Division