Omegga, registered in Munich in 2022 and run by managing directors Till Nöllgen and Katharina Heßeler, is building a machine that tells male from female chicken embryos inside the egg, so hatcheries can remove male eggs before they hatch instead of killing the chicks. Around seven billion male day-old chicks are killed each year because laying breeds are useless for meat, and Germany and France have banned the practice since 2022 and 2023, according to Omegga. Its EIC Accelerator project received an EU contribution of €2,432,150 towards a total cost of €3,474,500 and ran from April 2024 to March 2026, according to CORDIS.
The project's first-year report says Omegga developed a measurement unit that analyses eggs inside the incubator, trained its AI on thousands of test eggs and ran its first industry trials at the Gut Averfeld hatchery in Germany, according to CORDIS. In May 2026 Omegga announced a €10 million seed round with IQ Capital and Capnamic, saying it would scale deployments with hatcheries worldwide and double its team within a year, according to Innovate Animal Ag, which called Gut Averfeld its most prominent installation. No other hatchery customer has been named.
Company file
- Legal entity
- Omegga GmbH, Munich
- Founded
- October 2022
- Managing directors
- Till Nöllgen, Katharina Heßeler
- Product
- Optical in-ovo sexing system inside the incubator
- Investors
- IQ Capital, Capnamic
- Named hatchery
- Gut Averfeld, Germany
- EIC funding
- Blended finance, €2.43M grant
Where Omegga Stands Now
Omegga's registered share capital rose from €25,003 to €60,166 in March 2026, and patent applications on its incubator system and method were published in November 2025 and March 2026, according to North Data. Its website quotes Burkhard Brinkschulte, head of the Gut Averfeld hatchery. The company has not published how many machines it has installed, its sexing accuracy in commercial use or its price per egg.
"A real price advantage for laying hen farmers, and a great opportunity for an internationally scalable model."
Burkhard Brinkschulte, CEO, Gut Averfeld hatchery, on Omegga's websiteThe Technology: Light Through the Shell
A rotating arm inside the incubator moves to each egg and scans it with visible light every five hours from day three to day six of incubation. AI then classifies the embryos by day seven, and male and unviable eggs are removed, freeing more than half of the incubator space, the company says. Unlike methods that puncture the shell, the approach is purely optical. Omegga says most competing methods work between days 9 and 13, and that its system costs significantly less, without publishing a price.
What the EIC Award Promised, and What the Record Shows
The project promised "the world's first low-cost in-ovo sexing solution". It ended in March 2026 with a working system trialled at a commercial hatchery and fresh private capital. What the record does not show is the low cost in numbers, independent accuracy data or adoption beyond one hatchery.
- Working in-incubator systemDeliveredIndustry trials.
- Low costUnverifiedNo price published.
- Hatchery adoptionPartialOne named site.
- Follow-on fundingDelivered€10M seed.
The Money
The €10 million seed round is four times the EIC grant. The award was listed as blended finance, but no EIC Fund investment has been announced. Omegga's accounts were not accessible in free sources.
What Cannot Be Checked
Questions for the EIC
Whether the EIC Fund invested, what the project's final report says, how accurate the system is in daily hatchery use and what it costs per egg are not public.
Why Europe Should Care
The project report notes that Italy is banning chick culling from 2027, and Omegga says an EU-wide ban is under discussion. Hatcheries will need affordable ways to comply. A cheap, early and non-invasive method made in Europe would make a ban easier to enforce.
What the award promised
The world's first low-cost in-ovo sexing to end chick culling.
What the record shows
A trialled system, €10M raised and one named hatchery.
The Verdict
Promising, not yet proven at scale
Omegga turned EIC money into a working system and a large seed round. The low cost and wide adoption it promised are still to be shown.
Omegga and the EIC have not been asked for comment for this article. It is based entirely on public records and published statements, linked throughout.
