Evictas and Polariton win for Faster Internet and More-Efficient CRISPR Gene-Editing
24.04.2019
The two Swiss startups are gaining speed as they aim to accelerate communication infrastructure and gene-editing techniques. Both convinced juries to earn their 2nd 'kick' from Venture Kick, and 40,000 Swiss francs pre-seed funding.
 Venture Kick winners Evictas and Polariton Technologies
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 Michael Hauer and Shany Koren of Evictas
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 Claudia Hoessbacher of Polariton Technologies
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Evictas: developing a drug to improve CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing
Hundreds of thousands of people are born with incurable hematopoietic diseases such as Sickle cell and beta thalassemia each year. Gene editing techniques could unlock cures by repairing the disease-driving mutations. The problem is that novel editing techniques such as CRISPR-Cas9 are inefficient.
Michael Hauer, who contributed to the CRISPR-Cas9 discovery while at the Doudna lab at Berkeley, and completed a PhD on DNA repair at the Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, launched Evictas with oncologist Shany Koren. The duo's candidate drug aims to increase the efficiency of gene editing, by briefly changing the target cells to make their DNA more accessible.
Michael Hauer, who contributed to the CRISPR-Cas9 discovery while at the Doudna lab at Berkeley, and completed a PhD on DNA repair at the Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, launched Evictas with oncologist Shany Koren. The duo's candidate drug aims to increase the efficiency of gene editing, by briefly changing the target cells to make their DNA more accessible.
The next six months will see Evictas approach gene-editing industry leaders in the U.S. and Switzerland, while continuing to screen for lead candidate drugs. They also look forward to sharpening their business case at a second Kickers Camp. The value of the first is still fresh in their minds: "We enhanced the whole business-case. The camp is full of open questions and productive criticism. One of the great advantages is the group – drawn from different industries and scientists in other fields – so you see other pitches from other industries," says Koren.
"As a team of two, heavily involved in research, it forces you to come back to your business model. You have to do both. The experts kick you further! The same with the jury – we note every feedback we receive," adds Hauer.
Evictas' profile"As a team of two, heavily involved in research, it forces you to come back to your business model. You have to do both. The experts kick you further! The same with the jury – we note every feedback we receive," adds Hauer.
Polariton Technologies AG: Faster Communication Infrastructure
Our world is filling with digital devices that need to communicate with each other, and modern lifestyles mean people want to receive more data via the internet. Modulators, which convert electrical signals into the light signals necessary to cross the world in fiber optic cables, are an essential part of our communication infrastructure. ETH Zurich Pioneer Fellow Claudia Hoessbacher and co-founders Wolfgang Heni and Benedikt Bäuerle have found a way to shrink these components to nanoscale, while providing unprecedented speeds of data transmission and reducing its energy consumption.
Since winning stage 1, the team validated business assumptions and networked with peers in the U.S. and Germany. Becoming an entrepreneur was a gradual process, Hoessbacher says: "it starts with an idea, you discuss it with others, they encourage you, you discuss with a customer, they find it interesting, you meet with experienced entrepreneurs."
The startup, which incorporated in February, also won support from Innobooster and enjoyed Venture Kick training at a Kickers Camp. "I liked it a lot. We received positive, very concrete feedback that helped us improve. It's also great to meet fellow entrepreneurs at similar stages in completely different fields. They have the same problems, so we exchanged ideas, learnt from each other and stay in touch."
In the coming months the company will finalize its prototype - the culmination of six years of research - and demo with an international customer. "It's about moving research towards the market. This is our baby, I’d love to see it out there."