Wakeline, a Düsseldorf-based deep-tech startup founded in 2025, has appointed Marius Kremeyer as its founding Chief Revenue Officer (CRO). The company builds AI systems that keep learning while in operation, rather than relying on historical data alone. Kremeyer, who in 2013 became Optimizely's first employee in Europe and most recently ran several go-to-market functions at SoSafe, took up the role on 1 July 2026. His appointment marks the company's first strategic hire following its €2.1 million pre-seed round. His mandate: to take Wakeline's technology to market readiness and build the sales organisation from the ground up.
"We have built something that doesn't exist in this form: an architecture that keeps learning while it runs, while the rest of the market relies on models that lag behind reality. Now comes the part that decides everything: bringing this technology to market. That's why we brought Marius on board. He translates complex technology so that customers see its value straight away," says Tim Gülke, PhD, CEO of Wakeline
A track record in building European sales teams
Kremeyer has spent more than a decade helping to build the sales organisations of European tech companies. In 2013 he joined Optimizely, then a company of fewer than 50 people worldwide, first in Amsterdam and, from 2015, out of Cologne. Early on he took on the hands-on work, from interviewing candidates to planning the sales team's territories. By the time he left, the workforce had grown more than tenfold worldwide. He brought that international SaaS experience to Staffbase, where he built out the solutions engineering team and, for a time, led German sales and partner management. Most recently, at SoSafe, he ran three go-to-market areas at once, solutions engineering, GTM enablement and sales across Northern Europe.
"At every stage of my career so far, I've worked at the interface between technology and business. That is exactly what appeals to me about Wakeline: translating complex technology into tangible customer value. My goal is to turn continuously learning AI into a product that companies around the world use every day. To get there, I'm building the go-to-market function from the ground up and then scaling it," says Marius Kremeyer, founding CRO of Wakeline
Setting the course after the pre-seed round
Wakeline closed its €2.1 million pre-seed round in June 2026, led by Aachen-based TechVision Fonds with participation from Cologne-based investor neoteq ventures. Part of the proceeds was earmarked for stepping up its go-to-market activity. With Kremeyer's appointment, the company now fills that need with its first dedicated sales leader.
Kremeyer will first focus on marketing and product marketing, sharpening Wakeline's ideal customer profile and tailoring the product to the industries that stand to benefit most. Building on that, he will then scale the sales team and establish the go-to-market process.