Dear reader
The report card given to the sector by the new Swiss Biotech Report is good, even excellent, considering the uncertain and sometimes difficult environment, with a strong Swiss franc, tariff threats and a closed IPO window. This applies not only to investment but also to turnover, employment figures and the number of biotech companies, which, in contrast to other countries, has continued to grow.
The report notes a growing maturity of the ecosystem, citing the increasing number of serial entrepreneurs and a broader talent pool, even in smaller companies, which are increasingly bringing experienced professionals on board for production and marketing. This is resonating with investors, as demonstrated by Windward Bio’s USD 165 million funding announced this week. Two other biotech companies, Biodelphis Therapeutics and NewcelX, have also secured investments.
First, founders have gained valuable experience and, second, the increasing complexity of diagnostics and therapies, along with the growing importance of AI, has created new opportunities that Swiss start-ups are quick to seize. Moonlight AI, which develops AI-based image analysis for clinical diagnostics, has secured USD 3.3 million in funding. Bioscibex has delivered the first units of its device, which simplifies and automates cell culture workflows, to customers. And DOCUmenter launched its sovereign Swiss AI clinical documentation platform this week. In addition, another gene therapy start-up, Immitra Bio, and an AI-based digital health company, CustomSurg, are two of the companies supported by the InnoBooster programme.
I would like to draw your attention to our monthly editorial on female founders, which provides an overview of news about start-ups led by women; this week, we reported on the growth of Kitro and Duramon. We also published an article on LinkedIn about the progress of the Swiss start-up scene in general, which addresses not only achievements to date but also the current strong momentum and the sense of urgency required to tackle the remaining challenges.
The application deadlines for the Swiss Excellence Product Award, ClimateLaunchpad, the Innovation Sandbox for AI, Venture Leaders Medtech and the Medtech Innovation Event are approaching. Further deadlines can be found in our calendar. And last but not least, Collective Gathering and Swiss Startup Days will take place in Bern on 20 and 21 May. You can also meet me in the same week at the EHL HumanX Summit.
Have a good weekend.
Stefan Kyora
Editor in Chief, Startupticker.ch
