Four academic venture projects get FIT Grants

Maven Health revolutionises the prevention and screening of metabolic diseases 

Maven Health, a spin-off from EPFL, aims to revolutionise the prevention and screening of metabolic diseases, which represent a significant burden for the Swiss healthcare system. Using advanced spectroscopy technology, combined with a proprietary software platform and machine learning algorithms, Maven Health is developing a non-invasive saliva screening solution. This approach enables a comprehensive assessment of metabolic health with increased accuracy, while being less invasive and providing more actionable insights than traditional methods. 


The project has the potential to radically transform the way healthcare professionals manage metabolic health, offering a more holistic and proactive solution. Maven Health has been awarded a CHF 100,000 FIT InnoGrant. 
  


Diagnosing neonatal sepsis with NeoSens 

Second project to emerge from EPFL, NeoSens has designed a device to significantly improve the early diagnosis of neonatal sepsis in low- and middle-income countries. By combining artificial intelligence and biosensing technology, NeoSens offers rapid, accurate and cost-effective diagnosis. This technology represents a major advance in the fight against antibiotic resistance and the reduction of healthcare costs associated with neonatal sepsis. NeoSens has been awarded a CHF 100,000 FIT InnoGrant. 
  


Grenat Sorter: an optical sorter for small farms 

This innovation was born of a collaboration between Josué Scheidegger and farmers in Bretonnières, who were faced with the lack of suitable technology for sorting their lentils efficiently. Grenat Sorter responds to this need by providing a compact and affordable optical sorter designed specifically for small farms. Using machine vision detection and artificial intelligence, this technology enables accurate sorting of cereals, pulses and oilseeds, with a capacity ranging from 25 to 100 kg per hour. This project represents a major advance in the agricultural sector, offering an intermediate solution between costly industrial sorters and less efficient mechanical sorting methods. 
Developed at HEIG-VD, the Grenat Sorter project has been awarded a Tech Grant of CHF 50,000. 
  


NADUP improves the efficiency of cellular cancer treatments 

NADUP, a spin-off from the University of Lausanne and the Lausanne Branch of Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, has been awarded a CHF 100,000 FIT InnoTREK grant for its pioneering work in improving CAR-T cell therapy. This type of cancer treatment is highly effective in children and young adults, but significantly less effective in older people. 


NADUP is committed to define the best rejuvenation strategy to improve current and future CAR-T cell therapies. This pioneering approach holds the potential to significantly increase the effectiveness of both existing and forthcoming therapies offering a new way of treating cancers and other diseases.

(Press release)