(Darmstadt) He joined Fraunhofer IGD as a research scientist nearly 30 years ago. Now, he is officially stepping into the lead role there. Matthias Unbescheiden has been instrumental in shaping the institute, which specializes in processing large volumes of data and complex systems in understandable ways. Now, he plans to continue down this road in the role of institute director.

Unbescheiden is particularly focused on transferring research findings to industry, especially through spin-offs. As one example, early on in his tenure at the institute, he developed an innovative spin-off strategy that goes far beyond traditional commercialization routes such as licensing and income from shareholdings to use approaches from the field of venture capital. “I am delighted that Matthias Unbescheiden is stepping into this position of responsibility as institute director at Fraunhofer IGD,” says Holger Hanselka, President of the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft. “Fraunhofer IGD stands for excellence in research on all aspects of software solutions in visual computing, the field of computer science that is based on images and models — topics that are key to the digital transformation of industry and society. With his scientific expertise and leadership experience, Unbescheiden will provide important momentum to further raise the institute’s profile as a leading institution in this field. As an expert on spin-offs, he will also further accelerate the transfer of innovative ideas to industry. I wish him and the entire team at the institute great success as they work together to shape the digital future.” 

Born in Wiesbaden, Unbescheiden studied computer science at the Technical University of Darmstadt, where he also obtained his doctorate. He also earned an executive MBA for technology managers at RWTH Aachen University. Unbescheiden started out as a research scientist at Fraunhofer IGD in 1995 and went on to lead the Virtual Reality group in the Visualization and Virtual Reality department from 1998 to 2000. In 2005, he became deputy institute director and now succeeds Dieter Fellner in the role of institute director, who retired after years of service. Unbescheiden has also been a member — and, from 2017 to 2022, the chair — of the High-Tech Gründerfonds Digital Tech investment committee for over 20 years, and he supports several Fraunhofer IGD spin-offs as a member of the board or advisory council.

“I am taking on the responsibilities of the institute director at a challenging time. I would like to thank everyone for the trust they are showing in me in by naming me to this role,” Unbescheiden says. “My goal is to work with our dedicated and com-mitted team to continue to pursue our institute’s successful strategic alignment, further strengthen our interdisciplinary research and zero in on expanding dialogue with partners from science and research, business and industry and the public sector, all aimed at solutions geared toward real-world practice and a future-proof society.”