CHF 10,000 for cosmic muon imaging, a next-gen hip implant, AI-driven rental workflows automation, a modular microtiter co-culture device, and a digital sports ecosystem

Augetik: Seeing the unseen, powered by the Universe
Augetik addresses the growing need to image the interior structure of large, dense, and critical structures, where conventional imaging and non-destructive testing methods fail with limited penetration depth, safety constraints, and costly downtime.
Emerging as a spin-off from the Paul Scherrer Institut PSI, an internationally renowned Swiss institution recognized for pioneering research in particle physics and muon science and technology, Augetik is grounded in decades of scientific excellence and technical innovation. Their solution combines compact, modular muon detectors with a cloud-native analytics stack that automates reconstruction, visualization, and monitoring of internal structures at scale.
By making cosmic muon imaging commercially viable across energy, infrastructure, industrial, security, and geoscience sectors, Augetik targets a multi-billion–euro global market for advanced non-destructive testing and subsurface imaging.
The Venture Kick funds will be used to enhance their prototype, expand pilot partnerships for product validation and optimization, and further expand their business plan.

Medrich: A next-generation hip implant for active patients
Switzerland ranks among the world’s leading countries in hip replacements per capita, yet current implants often fail within 10–16 years. In younger and more active patients, revision rates reach up to 33%, largely because existing materials cannot replicate the ultra-low friction and damping properties of natural cartilage, limiting implant longevity and quality of life.
Medrich addresses this unmet need with a titanium–hydrogel joint implant, developed at ETH Zurich by Dr. Xiaoyu Du (CEO) and Prof. Stephen Ferguson (Scientific Advisor), with patent pending. Its hydrogel-on-hydrogel articulating surface achieves ultra-low friction and superior shock absorption, closely mimicking native cartilage and offering particular benefits for active patients. Supported by clinical advisors from Tierspital Zurich and Harvard Medical School, Medrich targets a $7B+ global joint replacement market. The company will enter via veterinary applications, allowing faster validation and early revenues, before scaling to human medicine. 
The Venture Kick funds will be used to help Medrich progress toward market entry through product performance validation and customer engagement.

robinrent.ai: AI-driven rental workflows for a faster, fairer Swiss housing market
They address two core problems: tenants waste time searching and applying repeatedly across portals, while landlords struggle with fragmented processes, manual communication, and slow applicant screening.
The team builds a dual solution: mietdossier.ch offers personalised, AI-supported property search, a continuously updated applicant register, and one-click applications. For landlords, robinrent automates the full rental workflow – from communication to viewings, document handling, and screening – and runs data-driven multi-channel marketing to publish listings efficiently across all major portals. The Swiss rental market is large and highly digital, making it an attractive opportunity for scalable automation tools.
They will use the Venture Kick Stage 1 funds to strengthen product development, expand pilot partnerships with property managers, and accelerate go-to-market activities.

Versarys Bioscience: Modular high-throughput device for biological interaction studies
Current co-culture assays mix mammalian and/or bacterial species in a single well, preventing species-specific readouts during incubation. Manual transfers and plating are slow, error-prone, and unsuitable for automation or high-throughput analysis.
The startup is being founded by Lukas Schwyter (UZH), CEO, and Filippo Cuni (ETHZ), CSO. It has developed a modular microtiter co-culture device that separates microbial and mammalian populations with semi-permeable membranes, allowing controlled chemical exchange while enabling independent tracking. Built to ANSI/SLAS microplate standards, it integrates with microplate readers and lab automation for scalable, high-throughput interaction studies. The global microtiter plate market, valued at USD1.2 billion, offers strong opportunities across academic, biotech, and pharmaceutical sectors.
The Venture Kick funds will be used to advance prototype refinement and performance validation, supporting the transition of the co-culture device from a laboratory prototype to a market-ready product.

PIN Sport App: The digital sports ecosystem connecting athletes, clubs, and communities
Across Switzerland, 46% of sports clubs face at least one existential issue, from recruiting young players to keeping members and volunteers engaged. Without a central digital home, talent discovery, club visibility, and community building remain fragmented. PIN Sport App transforms this landscape by creating a connected ecosystem where every athlete, team, club, and federation can build visibility, collaborate, and grow.
The startup was founded in Switzerland by Pearl Oti-Amoako with a team of specialists in AI, business strategy, UX, and software engineering. Their platform is a digital sports ecosystem, combining digital identity, club management, and community engagement
in one environment. It empowers athletes to showcase their journey, helps clubs operate and grow, and enables volunteers and supporters to contribute meaningfully.
Serving a DACH landscape of 39–41 million participants and over 120’000 clubs, PIN Sport App aims to become the leading digital sports network in Switzerland and beyond.
The Venture Kick funds will be used to enhance UX/UI, expand core functionalities, and accelerate the onboarding of clubs and federations. This investment will drive targeted outreach, strengthen network eXects, and lay the groundwork for scalable growth
across the region. PIN Sport App