Steiner was born on June 11, 1904, in Hamburg, then German Empire. He reportedly suffered from several conditions, including paranoia, insomnia and night terrors.

Before the war, Friedrich Steiner was a genius who had earned a collection of degrees and was thus sought by the Waffen-SS for his service in the various Wunderwaffen projects. His role was the creation of Nova 6, a toxin with such deadliness even the creator himself was horrified at what he had done.