The History of the Hasso Plattner Institute and its Founder

The Hasso Plattner Institute for Digital Engineering (HPI) is academically established as a joint digital engineering faculty of the University of Potsdam and the HPI. It combines unique, practice-oriented degree programs with innovative methods and excellent research in close cooperation with business and industry.

Founded by Hasso Plattner in 1998, the HPI has become Germany’s university-based center of excellence for digital engineering. It is one of the flagship initiatives supported by the Hasso Plattner Foundation

This institute here in Potsdam is my contribution to educating internationally competitive young managers who shape and advance the digital world.

Prof. Dr. Hasso Plattner, Founder

Hasso Plattner: the visionary behind HPI

Hasso Plattner, the founder of the Hasso Plattner Institute, is a visionary and an IT pioneer. By establishing the institute in 1998, he laid the foundation for a unique computer science education that has enabled numerous graduates to shape the digital world. His commitment to cutting-edge technologies and innovation extends far beyond the Institute.

Overview of the history of the HPI

Since its foundation, HPI has combined future-oriented study programs with excellent research and cooperation with leading businesses and industry. 

These are the most important milestones and successes of the Hasso Plattner Institute at a glance:

MDs: Prof. Dr. Tobias Friedrich, Prof. Dr. Ralf Herbrich and Dr. Marcus Kölling

Managing Directors of the Hasso Plattner Institute

2023 – present 
Prof. Dr. Tobias Friedrich, Prof. Dr. Ralf Herbrich und Dr. Marcus Kölling 

2004 – 2023 
Prof. Dr. Christoph Meinel 

1998 – 2004 
Prof. Dr. Siegfried Wendt Founding Representative and Director

Plattner's Honors

Plattner's social commitment is outstanding and has received many awards. Here is a selection of the most important honors and awards: 

The Hasso Plattner Foundation: The Organization Behind HPI

Hasso Plattner's commitment is unique and extends far beyond SAP and the HPI. Enabling international and national projects, the founder is not only a driving force in science and research but also in education and culture. To this end, he established the Hasso Plattner Foundation in 2015.

The Hasso Plattner Foundation supports charitable initiatives to educate and inspire current and future generations in the areas of science and education, social and conservation, and art and culture. 

At the heart of the foundation's work is a belief in the power of innovation and education to bring about positive societal change. 

The Hasso Plattner Foundation pursues directly and exclusively charitable purposes. The foundation strives to realize its charitable purposes primarily through long-term partnerships with experts in the respective fields. This ensures that its commitment has the greatest possible effect.

The Foundation

The three focus areas

With its three focus areas, the foundation makes a contribution to education, nature conservation, and culture. Further information can be found here.

Science & Education

Initiatives in this area educate future generations to enable technology-based science, develop innovative solutions, and make a tangible impact. All this with the aim of accelerating the adoption of digital technologies. 

  • Hasso Plattner Institute
  • Hasso Plattner Institute for Digital Health at Mount Sinai
  • Hasso Plattner D-School Afrika
  • Data4Life

Social & Conservation

In order to preserve our planet for future generations, the foundation supports nature conservation and educational projects, especially on the African continent. 

  • Sabine Plattner African Charities
  • Embark in Knowledge
  • Leadership for Conservation in Africa
  • George Child & Family Welfare

Art & Culture

The initiatives in this area promote cultural preservation, education, and access to art. In addition, the foundation is involved in provenance research and the preservation of cultural heritage. 

  • Museum Barberini
  • DAS MINSK Kunsthaus in Potsdam
  • TALES
  • Wildenstein Plattner Institute
  • Navigating.art 

Plattner's commitment to art and culture in Potsdam

Museum Barberini

The traces of Plattner's commitment can also be found in art and culture. Visitors to the "Museum Barberini" in downtown Potsdam enter the reconstruction of a palace destroyed in World War II, which Plattner had rebuilt as a museum building. Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel and former Federal President Joachim Gauck are among the first of the many prominent guests since the opening on 20 January 2017. 

Since September 2020, the Museum Barberini has been presenting the Hasso Plattner Collection, which is on permanent loan to the museum from the Hasso Plattner Foundation. With 115 masterpieces of Impressionism and Post-Impressionism, including 40 works by Claude Monet alone, Museum Barberini is one of the most important centers of Impressionist landscape painting worldwide. Based on the collection, the museum also shows up to three temporary exhibitions a year with important loans from international collections. The exhibitions are designed in cooperation with international museum partners and prepared through scientific conferences. 

Program & Tickets

Museum Barberini am Alter Markt Potsdam Copyright: Lukas Spoerl
Copyright: Museum Barberini / Lukas Spoerl

Current Exhibition at Museum Barberini

The exhibition "Maurice de Vlaminck: Modern Art Rebel" is the first posthumous retrospective and provides a broad overview of Vlaminck's entire painting oeuvre.

More information & tickets

DAS MINSK Kunsthaus in Potsdam

Just a few hundred meters away from the Museum Barberini, DAS MINSK Kunsthaus in Potsdam opened in September 2022. It is a unique place that combines art and history. The former "Minsk" terrace restaurant fell into disrepair after reunification. It was purchased by the Hasso Plattner Foundation in 2019, and construction work began in 2020, with the building's architecture reflecting both preservation and renewal and the name being retained.  

The exhibitions in DAS MINSK Kunsthaus in Potsdam show art from the former German Democratic Republic, which is part of the Hasso Plattner collection, as well as contemporary art. 

Program & Tickets

Building of DAS MINSK Kunsthaus in Potsdam
Copyright: DAS MINSK

Current Exhibition at DAS MINSK

Image of the painting Iris by Noah Davis that shows women with yellow fans

The exhibition "NOAH DAVIS" is the largest international institutional survey to date of the late artist (1983-2015) bringing together over 50 works spanning the artist’s complete oeuvre.

More information & tickets

Last change: 04/10/2024, Julia Porstendörfer