All Winners

Shaping tomorrow’s world:
previous winners of Pionierpreis

In the crowd of start-ups that thrive in Switzerland, it is not always easy to assess the future potential of individual business ideas. Prizes are therefore welcome and helpful yardsticks because their award is always preceded by a comprehensive review by experts. The jury has spent a great deal of time and effort evaluating and carefully considering the reasons for its decision.

The Pionierpreis is therefore a welcome compass for orientation in the thicket of start-ups. It makes outstanding ideas visible and puts them in the spotlight. Some of the award winners over more than two decades have become outstanding examples of entrepreneurial success.

 

2024 Decentriq

New standards in cybersecurity

2023 Synthara AG

For developing in-memory computing capacities.

2022 Lumiphase AG

For developing a revolutionary technology to produce electro-optical semiconductor chips.

2021 matriq AG

For developing an 8 mm diameter mold insert equipped with two hundred heating elements that applies a 2D code in data matrix format to moldable plastic element. 

2020 Microcaps AG

For developing a new manufacturing process for microcapsules that guarantees they are of identical size, thereby leading to a more controlled effect and reduced side effects of medicines.

2019 Optimo Medical AG

For developing a digital twin for eye surgery that helps surgeons plan eye operations on a patient-specific basis.

2018 Scewo AG

For developing a stair-climbing wheelchair.

2017 Twenty Green AG

For developing a probiotic additive for animal feed that strengthens the animals’ immune system.

2016 Nomoko AG

For developing a new type of digital camera with higher resolution and specialized software that converts the camera’s 2D images into digital 3D models.

2015 Nanolive SA

For the development of live cell tomography.

2014 AOT AG

For the development of non-contact bone cutting based on laser, robotic, sensor, and navigation technologies.

2013 Swisslitho AG

For the development of a new scanning lithography device for building two- and three-dimensional structures on a nanometer scale.

2012 Cytosurge AG

For the development and market launch of FluidFM technology, the world’s smallest syringe at the tip of an atomic force microscope, opening up new applications in the fields of biomedicine, single cell biology, and semiconductor manufacturing.

2011 Yourehab AG

For the development of a novel, highly interdisciplinary system for the rehabilitation of neurological movement disorders by integrating the virtual world into neurorehabilitation and enabling patients to return to society faster and much more cost-effectively.

2010 Neurimmune Therapeutics AG

For the development of the fundamentally novel drug discovery process Reverse Translational Medicine, which for the first time enables the cure of previously incurable diseases thanks to the development of therapies based on human antibodies.

2009 Optotune AG

For developing the next generation of adaptive optical lenses that use electroactive polymers to mimic the principle of the human eye.

2008 NemoDevices GmbH

For the development of a monitoring system for minimally invasive measurement of cerebral blood flow directly at the bedside.

2007 Arktis Radiation Detectors AG

For the development of a detector technology that allows new methods for measuring radioactive radiation.

2006 Flisom AG

For the development and innovation of flexible, high-efficiency solar cells on plastic films.

2005 EpiSpeed AG

For the development and market introduction of process applications for low-energy plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (LEPECVD).

2004 Symetis AG

For the development of autologous, living, growing, and self-healing cardio-vascular implants using the concept of tissue engineering.

2003 iwood

For a novel biotechnological process for the production of starch-bound lightweight wood-based panels (SLPs) from sawdust and wood dust using microorganisms.

2002 Levitronix GmbH

For the development and market launch of magnetic bearing pumps for blood and high-purity liquids based on a bearingless electric motor.