Hand-in-hand

Dear reader

 “Where were you the first time you heard the word blockchain?” asks former IMD director Jim Pulcrano in his guest post. He talks about his learning curve with crypto technology and believes that we are at the beginning of a long history that will change our everyday lives.

New technology creates opportunities – but only for those companies that get to grips with it. Everyone else runs the risk of missing out. This insight feeds everything that is called open innovation, and is the reason why an increasing number of corporates are establishing accelerator programmes either alone or in a group.

Application deadlines expire next week for Digital Switzerland’s ScaleUp Bootcamps and the Basellaunch programme from BaselArea.swiss. In addition, Swisscom is launching its StartUp Challenge 2018. It’s worth participating.

Accelerators are always designed internationally and so Swiss start-ups also benefit from foreign initiatives. Zurich fintech start-up IMburse has been included in a programme established by the German insurance industry. ChemAlive is now collaborating with pharma company Merck, and ETH spin-off Adaptricity has been selected for an innovation programme in the global energy industry.

Financing rounds: biotech company Glycemicon closed a Series A round of CHF 5 million; logistics start-up Arviem raised $10 million as part of a Series B round, and the medtech pioneers from Abionic generated almost CHF 20 million in a Series C round – investors include former Nestlé CEO Peter Brabeck-Letmathe.

Looking ahead, the deadline for the business plan competition Venture expires next Thursday. On the same day, the Seedstars Summit 2018 takes place in Lausanne. And on Wednesday, Venture Day Zurich will take place at the Selnau power plant – my colleague Stefan Kyora will be among the visitors.

Have a sunny weekend

Jost Dubacher
Editor, Startupticker.ch