On November 11, 2025, our alumnus and benefactor, Albrecht Fürst zu Oettingen-Spielberg, passed away at the age of 74.
Albrecht Fürst zu Oettingen-Spielberg studied physics at TUM and remained closely connected to the university throughout his life. He was one of the first generous donors to the TUM University Foundation and was also committed to our university on an ideological level. For many years, he served on the foundation's committees—both on the executive board and the foundation council—and was also involved in the TUM Board of Trustees.
We were particularly impressed by his consistently friendly and approachable manner toward everyone he met and his great enthusiasm—whether for scientific topics, our dedicated students, or culture. We will honor his memory.
Rainer Stellwag passed away on October 26, 2025, at the age of 86. He was an alumnus and, since 2017, a benefactor of the TUM University Foundation.
Rainer Stellwag graduated with a degree in physics from what was then the Technical University of Munich in 1965. He then moved into business—and computer science, a field that was still new at the time. With the expertise he had acquired in this field, he then moved to Munich Re, where he was responsible for managing IT activities worldwide for 30 years.
He was drawn to the wider world with great enthusiasm – but he never forgot TUM, whose development he always followed with great interest – and his connection to the “TUM family” meant a great deal to him. His desire to offer young people the same excellent educational opportunities he himself had enjoyed led him to become a generous donor to the TUM University Foundation. We will honor his memory.
On July 17, 2025, Senator E.h. Dr. Karl Busch passed away at the age of 96. Dr. Busch had close ties to the Technical University of Munich and followed the development of his alma mater with great interest.
After completing his studies and doctorate at TUM and subsequently working in his grandparents' company, he founded his own business. With the invention of his first vacuum pump, he enjoyed great success right from the start. Together with his wife and later also with his children, he built up a globally active group of companies with great skill and entrepreneurial foresight. Throughout all these years, he retained his social and humanistic attitude and lived for his company.
Dr. Busch was a very impressive and extraordinary person with a big heart. We felt this not only through his generous donations to the TUM University Foundation—his social commitment became particularly evident when he spontaneously donated a large sum of money to the TUM University Foundation to alleviate the financial hardship of many students affected by the earthquake in Turkey and Syria.
We are very proud and grateful to have had such a committed friend and supporter in him. We will miss him and always honor his memory.
Eleonore Classen passed away on June 13, 2025 at the age of 91. As a patron, Mrs. Classen generously supported the TUM University Foundation.
TUM will honor the memory of Mrs. Classen and her husband Prof. Dr. Meinhard Classen, former professor of medicine at TUM.
We mourn the loss of our benefactor.
On October 13, 2024, Senator E.h. Dr. Wilhelm Winterstein passed away at the age of 93.
Senator E.h. Dr. Winterstein was closely associated with the TU Munich for many years - following in the footsteps of his grandfathers, the Honorary Senator Dr. Theodor Winterstein and the Honorary Doctor of the former THM, Wilhelm von Fink. One of the reasons he gave for his generous financial and non-material commitment to the Technical University of Munich was that he not only wanted to inherit his grandfathers, but also to continue their work. He always viewed new developments at the TU Munich with great interest and was actively involved. Not only large projects, but also the promotion of students were very close to his heart.
Senator E.h. Dr. Winterstein was a generous patron - we are very grateful to him for his commitment.
We will miss him and will always honor his memory.
Dr. Karl Heinz Weiss died on September 8, 2024, at the age of 95. He was a a benefactor of the TUM University Foundation since 2020 and co-founder of the Karl Max von Bauernfeind Association (KMvB).
Dr. Weiss was closely associated with the Technical University of Munich for many years. As a founding member of the KMvB and as a member of the TUM Board of Trustees, he rendered outstanding services to the development of TUM. A concern that he also made clear with his donation to the TUM University Foundation.
The students were particularly close to his heart. For this reason, he also donated German scholarships for many years. But he didn't just make donations; personal contact with the scholarship holders was also always important to him. He was interested in hearing what they were doing with their studies and how they were going about it. The scholarship holders were always very impressed by his personality.
We will miss him and will always honor his memory.