Economic miracle from 1000 kicks
11.10.2023
What unfolds if you empower 1,000 researchers with 10,000 Swiss francs each to boost their business concepts and equip them with the skills to sway customers and attract investors? Innovative solutions addressing social challenges and promising job opportunities. Even Venture Kick's founders wouldn't have fathomed that this initiative would lead to a real economic miracle. Today, the Swiss startup accelerator is a European leader and looks back on a portfolio of 675 high-tech companies with 13,305 jobs and a financing volume of 7.8 billion Swiss francs.
 October 3 Venture Kick Stage 1 winners: Kelvin Stott (Amporin Pharmaceuticals), Kathrin Grossenbacher (BRAva), Carolina Paganini (Check Biosciences), Moritz Futscher (BTRY), and Iwan Hächler (solabs)
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World-class research as raw material
Research at Swiss universities is a global leader in many areas. Switzerland stands as the world champion in patent innovation and has consistently attracted top-tier talent. Among other things, the PC, the computer mouse, and the Internet originated in Switzerland. Apart from the mouse (which found success through Logitech), however, the commercial potential of these innovations was primarily exploited in Silicon Valley. Venture Kick was launched in 2007 to address this imbalance, with the goal of doubling the number of startups stemming from Swiss universities. The idea sought to kick researchers out of the labs and onto the market, turning them into successful entrepreneurs.
Over 50 million for 1,000 startup projects
In addition to financial support of up to 150,000 Swiss francs, the company founders benefited from intensive coaching and an extensive network of international investors and industry experts. "To successfully bring innovations to market, startups need to build strong business cases that excite future customers, partners and investors," says Co-Managing Director Beat Schillig. As of today, 783 companies have been founded from the 1,000 startup projects that have mastered the first stage and received 10,000 Swiss francs in the last 16 years. 675 of these companies remain active on the market today.
In addition to the 50 million francs in seed capital provided by Venture Kick, the startups have been financed with a further 7.8 billion francs from investors. The introduction of Kickfund further enhances the funding landscape, offering startups the opportunity to access over one million in seed capital through Venture Kick.
More and more female founders create promising jobs
From 2007 to 2012, less than 20% of startups included women on their founding teams. However, this percentage has risen to an encouraging 48% in the last three years. In addition to the high survival rate of 85%, Venture Kick's startups show strong growth momentum. Over the past decade, these startups have driven substantial job growth with an average increase of 19%, resulting in a current total of 13,305 today. About half of these startups originate from ETH Zurich and EPFL. Today, Venture Kick startups are present in 24 cantons, where they contribute to the national economy.
Venture Kick's portfolio boasts global market leaders in high-growth future sectors, such as Climeworks (renowned for their CO2 direct air capture technology) and InSphero (pioneers in 3D cell cultures for pharmaceutical research). On a national front, startups like Planted (specializing in plant-based meat) are gaining recognition among consumers, marking their significant impact on the industry.
Number 1 in Europe with a global impact
With 1,000 startup projects funded, Venture Kick is the leading startup accelerator in Europe and among the TOP 10 worldwide. Venture Kick is organized as a foundation and is funded exclusively by private donors and foundations. "When we launched our initiative, we knew the importance of our mission," says Pascale Vonmont, President of the Strategy Committee. "But the results far exceeded our expectations. The 155-fold leverage of investors for every franc Venture Kick provides and startups developing good solutions to global societal problems make us proud!"
The operational team behind Venture Kick doesn't plan to rest on its laurels, aiming to create over 20,000 jobs by 2027. "The number of talented researchers from Swiss universities who apply to Venture Kick with start-up intentions is steadily increasing. To fully exploit this potential for Switzerland as a business location, we are looking for more partners," says Beat Schillig. "The 1,000th Kick is history. We will kick the next 1,000 startup projects even faster and better."
About Venture Kick: from CHF 10,000 to 1 million plus
Aspiring founders with ties to Swiss universities can present their business ideas to the philanthropic Venture Kick initiative. Every year, around 100 winning projects receive an initial "kick" of CHF 10,000. The selected startups then face the jury twice over a 9-month competitive process to win a total of CHF 150,000 in seed capital. This gives them access to an international network of 200 successful entrepreneurs and investors. The winners of the third stage of Venture Kick can access an additional CHF 850,000 from the Kickfund, while the winners of stage 1 can apply for a grant of CHF 150,000 from InnoBooster.
Since its founding in 2007, Venture Kick has supported 1,000 Swiss startup projects with CHF 50.3 million. Thanks to financial support, coaching and networking with investors, this initiative has led to the emergence of 783 thriving startups and the creation of 13,305 jobs. Entrepreneurs have received 7.8 billion francs from investors to finance further growth. In 2023, 64 "kicked" startups made it into the prestigious TOP 100 Swiss Startups ranking.
In 2023, Venture Kick will pay out 6.3 million Swiss francs to startup projects from Swiss universities to bring science-based innovations to global markets.
The Venture Kick Foundation is supported by the Gebert Rüf Foundation, the Ernst Göhner Foundation, the Hauser Foundation, André Hoffmann, Hansjörg Wyss, Martin Haefner, Fondation Pro Techno, ESA BIC Switzerland and Swisscom.
For more information, see our special publication and venturekick.ch, where you can learn more about all startup projects supported by Venture Kick. Watch the short videos of alumni tackling global challenges and follow the success stories of our startups on Facebook, X and LinkedIn.
Download the magazine's special edition!
Research at Swiss universities is a global leader in many areas. Switzerland stands as the world champion in patent innovation and has consistently attracted top-tier talent. Among other things, the PC, the computer mouse, and the Internet originated in Switzerland. Apart from the mouse (which found success through Logitech), however, the commercial potential of these innovations was primarily exploited in Silicon Valley. Venture Kick was launched in 2007 to address this imbalance, with the goal of doubling the number of startups stemming from Swiss universities. The idea sought to kick researchers out of the labs and onto the market, turning them into successful entrepreneurs.
Over 50 million for 1,000 startup projects
In addition to financial support of up to 150,000 Swiss francs, the company founders benefited from intensive coaching and an extensive network of international investors and industry experts. "To successfully bring innovations to market, startups need to build strong business cases that excite future customers, partners and investors," says Co-Managing Director Beat Schillig. As of today, 783 companies have been founded from the 1,000 startup projects that have mastered the first stage and received 10,000 Swiss francs in the last 16 years. 675 of these companies remain active on the market today.
In addition to the 50 million francs in seed capital provided by Venture Kick, the startups have been financed with a further 7.8 billion francs from investors. The introduction of Kickfund further enhances the funding landscape, offering startups the opportunity to access over one million in seed capital through Venture Kick.
More and more female founders create promising jobs
From 2007 to 2012, less than 20% of startups included women on their founding teams. However, this percentage has risen to an encouraging 48% in the last three years. In addition to the high survival rate of 85%, Venture Kick's startups show strong growth momentum. Over the past decade, these startups have driven substantial job growth with an average increase of 19%, resulting in a current total of 13,305 today. About half of these startups originate from ETH Zurich and EPFL. Today, Venture Kick startups are present in 24 cantons, where they contribute to the national economy.
Venture Kick's portfolio boasts global market leaders in high-growth future sectors, such as Climeworks (renowned for their CO2 direct air capture technology) and InSphero (pioneers in 3D cell cultures for pharmaceutical research). On a national front, startups like Planted (specializing in plant-based meat) are gaining recognition among consumers, marking their significant impact on the industry.
Number 1 in Europe with a global impact
With 1,000 startup projects funded, Venture Kick is the leading startup accelerator in Europe and among the TOP 10 worldwide. Venture Kick is organized as a foundation and is funded exclusively by private donors and foundations. "When we launched our initiative, we knew the importance of our mission," says Pascale Vonmont, President of the Strategy Committee. "But the results far exceeded our expectations. The 155-fold leverage of investors for every franc Venture Kick provides and startups developing good solutions to global societal problems make us proud!"
The operational team behind Venture Kick doesn't plan to rest on its laurels, aiming to create over 20,000 jobs by 2027. "The number of talented researchers from Swiss universities who apply to Venture Kick with start-up intentions is steadily increasing. To fully exploit this potential for Switzerland as a business location, we are looking for more partners," says Beat Schillig. "The 1,000th Kick is history. We will kick the next 1,000 startup projects even faster and better."
About Venture Kick: from CHF 10,000 to 1 million plus
Aspiring founders with ties to Swiss universities can present their business ideas to the philanthropic Venture Kick initiative. Every year, around 100 winning projects receive an initial "kick" of CHF 10,000. The selected startups then face the jury twice over a 9-month competitive process to win a total of CHF 150,000 in seed capital. This gives them access to an international network of 200 successful entrepreneurs and investors. The winners of the third stage of Venture Kick can access an additional CHF 850,000 from the Kickfund, while the winners of stage 1 can apply for a grant of CHF 150,000 from InnoBooster.
Since its founding in 2007, Venture Kick has supported 1,000 Swiss startup projects with CHF 50.3 million. Thanks to financial support, coaching and networking with investors, this initiative has led to the emergence of 783 thriving startups and the creation of 13,305 jobs. Entrepreneurs have received 7.8 billion francs from investors to finance further growth. In 2023, 64 "kicked" startups made it into the prestigious TOP 100 Swiss Startups ranking.
In 2023, Venture Kick will pay out 6.3 million Swiss francs to startup projects from Swiss universities to bring science-based innovations to global markets.
The Venture Kick Foundation is supported by the Gebert Rüf Foundation, the Ernst Göhner Foundation, the Hauser Foundation, André Hoffmann, Hansjörg Wyss, Martin Haefner, Fondation Pro Techno, ESA BIC Switzerland and Swisscom.
For more information, see our special publication and venturekick.ch, where you can learn more about all startup projects supported by Venture Kick. Watch the short videos of alumni tackling global challenges and follow the success stories of our startups on Facebook, X and LinkedIn.
Download the magazine's special edition!