Klaus Tschira (7 December 1940 – 31 March 2015) was a German billionaire entrepreneur and the co-founder of the German software company SAP AG. Life After gaining his Diplom in physics and working at IBM, Tschira co-founded the German software giant SAP AG in 1972 in Mannheim, Germany together with Hans-Werner Hector, Dietmar Hopp, Hasso Plattner and Claus Wellenreuther. From 1998 to 2007, he was a board member at SAP. He was married to Gerda Tschira and had two sons, Harald and Udo. He died on 31 March 2015 in Heidelberg. Klaus Tschira Foundation The Klaus Tschira Foundation (KTF) was established by Tschira in 1995 as a non-profit organization. Its primary objective is to support projects in natural and computer sciences as well as mathematics. The KTF places strong emphasis on public understanding in these fields. Tschira's commitment to this objective was honored in 1999 with the "Deutscher Stifterpreis" by the German National Academic Foundation (German: Studienstiftung). The KTF is located at the Villa Bosch in Heidelberg, Germany, the former residence of Nobel Prize laureate for chemistry Carl Bosch (1874–1940). Gerda and Klaus Tschira Foundation In 2008, Tschira and his wife Gerda founded the Gerda and Klaus Tschira Foundation. Honors 1995: Honorary doctorate of the University of Klagenfurt 1997: Honorary senator of the University of Heidelberg 1999: Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (Verdienstkreuz am Bande) 1999: Honorary senator of the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) 1999: Deutscher Stifterpreis by the German National Academic Foundation 2000: Naming the asteroid 13028 Klaustschira by the International Astronomical Union IAU for supporting the miniaturized satellite DIVA 2003: Fellow of the Gesellschaft für Informatik 2007: Konrad-Zuse-Badge 2007: Rudolf-Diesel-Medaille by the German Institute for Inventions 2008: Alwin-Walther-Medal 2008: Honorary senator of the Heidelberg College of Education 2009: Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (Verdienstkreuz 1. Klasse) 2010: Honorary doctorate of Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) 2010: Leibniz-Medal by the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities 2011: Honorary member of the Astronomische Gesellschaft Honorary senator of the University of Mannheim See also List of billionaires References External links Klaus Tschira Foundation 1940 births 2015 deaths German billionaires Officers Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany German company founders German corporate directors 20th-century German businesspeople 21st-century German businesspeople SAP SE people IBM employees