January 20, 2017
Competing with the best
Dear reader
The international activities of Swiss companies are not only due to the small domestic market – Swiss start-ups are becoming more ambitious in their goals. Many young companies want to be among the best in the world today.
An example of this is Teleport: the start-up, which makes interactive videos, has made it into the current batch of the global benchmark US accelerator 500 Startups. We asked the CEO, Gavrilo Bozovic, former head of engineering at the joint research institute of EPFL and art and design university ECAL, about his experiences. His most important insight: “Nobody cares about your technology.”
Fintech start-up Bexio develops business software for SMEs – a niche that is big enough in Switzerland in which to survive. But Bexio wants more. It has taken over Elohna in Berlin and has thus not only expanded geographically, but also extended its product portfolio with payroll accounting.
Geneva-based biotech company ObsEva is aiming for an IPO in the US. It has announced encouraging results from a clinical trial, and also the appointment of an experienced CFO to work from its new US office in Boston.
It’s no wonder then that the foreign media are also discovering the ambitious Swiss: six start-up founders can be found on the current Forbes 30 under 30 list.
Numerous support offers exist for anyone who wants to make an international splash. Biowatch, for example, secured CHF1.2 million from, inter alia, the Polytech Ecosystem Ventures Fund, which builds bridges with its networks in both Switzerland and the US.
Three competitions currently open for application also offer international attention: venture leaders China and the life science-focused venture leaders trip to Boston. A global competition for energy start-ups with the support of swissnex San Francisco has also been launched. The programme is designed to expose energy start-ups with a working prototype to global network industry players.
Deadlines for important awards are approaching: applications for the Swiss Economic Award are open until 31 January, and the application deadline for the CTI Medtech Award expires on 6 February.
Next week we present the Swiss Venture Capital Report 2017 at the two brunches. The event in Lausanne is fully booked, but places are still available for the brunch in Zurich on 24 January – registration is open until Sunday. I will be happy to see you there.
Have a good winter weekend
Stefan Kyora
Editor in Chief, Startupticker.ch