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Key people at 6Wunderkinder.
6Wunderkinder was a Berlin, Germany-based software development company that created Wunderlist, a cloud-based task management and productivity application operating on a freemium software-as-a-service model. The application allowed individuals and teams to manage daily tasks, share lists, and collaborate across multiple desktop and mobile devices. Prior to its corporate acquisition, the platform scaled its operations to reach over 13 million registered users across both consumer and professional markets. The startup raised approximately $24 million in venture funding from prominent institutional investors including Sequoia Capital, Atomico, Earlybird Venture Capital, and Thrive Capital. In June 2015, Microsoft acquired the company for an estimated valuation between $100 million and $200 million, eventually migrating its core technology into the Microsoft To Do platform. The organization was founded in 2010 by Christian Reber, Charlette Prévot, Jan Martin, Sebastian Scheerer, Robert Kock, and Daniel Marschner.
Key people at 6Wunderkinder.
6Wunderkinder was a Berlin-based startup founded in 2009-2010 that developed Wunderlist, a cloud-based task management app for creating and sharing to-do lists across devices like smartphones, tablets, computers, and smartwatches.[1][2][4] It served individuals and teams seeking simple, collaborative productivity tools, solving the problem of fragmented task management in a mobile-first world with features like real-time sync, attachments, and task assignments in its free and Pro versions.[1][4][5] The company achieved rapid growth, reaching 1 million users in nine months, over 5 million downloads by 2012, and 13 million users by its 2015 acquisition by Microsoft, which integrated it into their productivity portfolio alongside Office and OneNote.[1][2][3][5]
6Wunderkinder—meaning "6 child prodigies" in German—was founded in Berlin around 2009-2010 by six friends: Christian Reber (CEO), Charlette Prevot, Daniel Marschner, Jan Martin, Robert Kock, and Sebastian Scheerer.[1][2] Reber, inspired to reinvent project management, initially sought partners via XING; investor Frank Thelen responded, providing seed funding alongside High-Tech Gründerfonds and e42 GmbH (100,000 euros initially).[1][4] The team first aimed for Wunderkit, an all-in-one productivity suite merging tasks, notes, and collaboration, but released Wunderlist in November 2010 as a teaser to maintain momentum amid development delays.[1][2]
Wunderlist exploded overnight, hitting 1 million users in nine months—faster than Twitter or Foursquare—thanks to its intuitive design and cross-platform support, including a native Linux app driven by user demand.[1][2] Early traction fueled further funding: 500,000 euros from High-Tech Gründerfonds (2010), $4.2 million Series A from Atomico (2011), stake transfer to Earlybird (2012), and $19 million Series B led by Sequoia (2013).[3][4] Pivotal moments included Wunderlist 2/Pro (collaboration upgrades) and Wunderlist 3 (2014, redesigned UI).[1]
6Wunderkinder rode the mobile-first, cloud-first productivity wave in the early 2010s, capitalizing on smartphone proliferation and demand for seamless, cross-device task apps amid fragmented tools.[2][5] Its timing was ideal: post-iPhone era, pre-Slack/Asana dominance, filling gaps in simple, beautiful to-do management while Microsoft pivoted to cloud (Office 365, acquisitions like Sunrise/Acompli).[3][5] Berlin's startup scene benefited immensely—6Wunderkinder was the first local firm to secure Sequoia funding, proving the city as a European tech hub and inspiring a startup boom.[2]
Market forces like investor enthusiasm for productivity (e.g., Series B from Sequoia/Earlybird/Atomico) and user shift to collaborative apps propelled it; Microsoft’s 2015 acquisition validated its ecosystem influence, folding Wunderlist into enterprise tools and boosting Berlin's global cred.[3][5]
Post-2015 Microsoft acquisition, 6Wunderkinder effectively sunset as Wunderlist was phased out by 2020 in favor of Microsoft To Do, leveraging its tech for broader integrations.[2][4] Looking ahead, its legacy endures in modern task apps (e.g., Zenkit, Todoist evolutions), with founder Christian Reber's influence persisting via new ventures. Trends like AI-driven productivity (e.g., auto-prioritization) and hybrid work will shape successors, amplifying 6Wunderkinder's early bet on intuitive, collaborative tools that turned six prodigies' dream into a productivity revolution.[1][2][5]
