November 14, 2014
Spoilt for choice
Dear Reader
Research and Economics Minister Johann Schneider-Ammann has declared 2014 the year of vocational training. There are days for anything and everything, but the coming week is quite clearly devoted to founders and young entrepreneurs. We are talking about Global Entrepreneur Week (GEW), a collaboration of the US Kauffman Foundation with local organisers on all five continents. In Switzerland, it will start on Monday in Chur and end the following Sunday in Köniz.
But life still goes on: on Thursday, founders, investors and supporters are spoilt for choice. The 3rd Swiss Venture Day Romandie is on the agenda in Lausanne; in Zurich-Altstätten, IBM will present both its supercomputer Watson and its Global Entrepreneur programme; and in Basel, the Swiss Innovation Forum is taking place. The startupticker team will, obviously, be present everywhere.
We will also, as always, process the most important news from the scene. In the last week, in addition to a CHF4.5 million financing round by biotech company Histide two customer acquisitions caught the eye.
Sophia Genetics has had a good 12 months; after a financing round of more than USD 13 million it’s gained the second largest university hospital network in France as a partner. The Big Data applications from Lausanne will be deployed at the Hospices Civils de Lyon.
Geneva-based Mobino has also been successful: the company of internet pioneer Jean-François Groff will provide the technology for PostFinance’s planned digital payment system.
And last but not least, the awards ceremony of the Zurich Climate Prize takes place on Wednesday, 26 November. Anyone who wants to be present at the pinnacle of the Swiss cleantech scene has until next Friday to sign up.
Have a good weekend.
Jost Dubacher
Editor, startupticker.ch