Winner of the Startup Pitch of the Ark Foundation last year, this Swiss biotechnology gem is taking off! Among the three companies to receive FIT support, alongside Carewell and Perivision, Bioscibex is also in the running for Venture Kick.
Unveiled this week, FIT support via a Tech Growth loan of CHF 300,000, a Tech Seed loan of CHF 100,000 and a Digital Seed loan of CHF 50,000 respectively goes to three innovative start-ups including Bioscibex.
Bioscibex and its bioreactor, which are revolutionizing the production of drugs
Biopharmaceuticals have proven effective in the treatment of a large number of diseases, including autoimmune diseases and cancer. However, their high cost, due to high production costs, is a major obstacle to access for many patients. In order to reduce the cost of these treatments, the production process must be simplified.
Currently, this process involves seven complex, costly and contamination-prone consecutive steps.
Thanks to its innovative bioreactor, Bioscibex, led by Chloé Albietz (CEO) and François Carruzzo (CTO), has reduced these steps to just two, thus minimizing costs, contamination risks and time. Thanks to a unique combination of two-axis movements, the bioreactor developed by Bioscibex offers the widest range of volumes on the market, enabling cell expansion from 30 ml to 30 l in a single step.
Thanks to the CHF 100,000 Tech Seed loan granted by FIT, Bioscibex will be able to continue investing in the research and development of its beta prototype for customer testing. This prototype will be ready by mid-2025.
In addition to FIT’s support, Bioscibex is in the running at Venture Kick!
Bioscibex is one of five projects selected for the first phase of Venture Kick’s financial and entrepreneurial support, with initial funding of CHF 10,000, alongside four other projects selected for their potential:
- airScale: Founded by Sohail Zubi (CEO) and Andreas Laursen (CTO), this company offers a simple solution for measuring the weight of immobile patients, thanks to an innovative device.
- Inkocell Therapeutics: led by Mathieu Girardin (CEO) and Angela Madurga Alonso (CSO), Inkocell is redefining cell therapy by developing curative solutions for patients suffering from serious illnesses.
- MyoLink: Vincent Mendez (CEO), together with scientific supervisors Fiorenzo Artoni and Silvestro Micera, is working on a technology to improve gait rehabilitation through real-time muscle monitoring.
- Xelerit: Federico Martelli (CEO), Camilla Mazzoleni (CPO) and Riccardo M. (CTO) are developing a solution to make industrial automation faster and cheaper, thus facilitating the relocation of industrial processes.
Venture Kick: a springboard for Swiss start-ups
Since its creation in 2007, Venture Kick has supported more than 1,000 Swiss start-ups, with total funding of more than 50 million Swiss francs
The program is divided into three stages:
- Stage one: initial funding of CHF 10,000 to structure the business idea.
- Stage two: A convertible loan of CHF 40,000 to develop the business model and find potential customers.
- Stage three: Additional support of CHF 100,000 to prepare for market entry.
Startups that have completed these stages can also benefit from additional funding via Kickfund (CHF 850,000) and an InnoBooster grant (CHF 150,000).
