Handelsblatt Media Group

OpenAI plans Berlin office; Altman backs German data centers

OpenAI is expanding in Germany: after opening a Munich office in May 2025, CEO Sam Altman said the company will open a second office in Berlin. Altman described Germany as one of OpenAI’s most important European markets—by paying subscribers the largest in Europe and among the top three globally. OpenAI is exploring local infrastructure, including potential onshore data centers and regional GPU inference, and has held talks with German government representatives though no concrete investment or site has been announced. The company is pursuing enterprise business through partnerships such as cooperation with Deutsche Telekom to roll out ChatGPT Enterprise, highlights a binding no-data-retention guarantee for enterprise inputs, and has signalled very large global compute investments (reported at about $600 billion through 2030).

Ifo Head Proposes Unified 19% VAT

Clemens Fuest, president of the Munich Ifo Institute, proposed abolishing Germany’s reduced 7% VAT rate and applying a single 19% rate to all goods. Fuest told BILD the change would simplify the tax system but raise prices for everyday food; he argues low-income households could be fully compensated via targeted state transfers. The Ifo calculations cited estimate the reduced rate costs about €43.5 billion annually, that compensating lower-income households would cost roughly €7.2 billion, and that the reform would leave net additional revenues of over €36 billion. The proposal has triggered political debate and faces likely resistance.

Rebuy acquires Zeercle to enter brick-and-mortar

Berlin recommerce company Rebuy has acquired French buy-back platform Zeercle to add systematic in-store collection channels to its recommerce business. The purchase price was not disclosed. Zeercle operates a network of more than 700 physical stores across several European countries, including bookstore chains Hugendubel, Mondadori, Cultura and Bruna, bringing those partnerships under Rebuy and ending Zeercle's prior strategic cooperation with competitor Momox. Rebuy expects the deal to add annual sales in the low double-digit millions and plans to route acquired items into its existing inspection, refurbishment and resale processes. The company will invest in automation and robotics to handle increased volumes and will initially focus on physical media (books, films, music and games), with potential expansion into smartphones and other consumer electronics. Rebuy reported total revenue of €243 million in fiscal 2025.