Three ETH start-ups win de Vigier Award
Last night, seven Swiss start-ups received the W.A. de Vigier Award. The two ETH spin-offs Alivion and NematX as well as ETH start-up Nemosia were among them.
From more than 200 submitted projects, the jury of the W.A. de Vigier Foundation selected seven young Swiss entrepreneurs to each receive a prize of CHF 100,000. Two of them – Alivion based in Menzingen and NematiX based in Zurich – were founded at ETH Zurich. Nemosia is another successful young company that wants to commercialize a technology developed at ETH Zurich. ETH spin-off diaxxo was also among the ten finalists.
The jurors of the de Vigier Foundation evaluated the companies in terms of innovation, social relevance, technical and financial feasibility, market opportunities and potential for creating new jobs.
Equipping electronics with a sense of smell
Sniff a substance and immediately detect whether it contains harmful ingredients? ETH spin-off external pageAlivion is developing wearable devices equipped with chemical sensors that can detect individual molecules. The technology is based on breakthroughs in nanotechnology made at ETH Zurich.
The portable gas sensors can be used to analyse toxic pollutants in, for example, the food we eat or the air we breathe. The device’s possible areas of applications include healthcare, environmental monitoring, and occupational and food safety.
High-performance polymer 3D printing
Specialised companies working in fields ranging from electronics to aerospace need small batches of high-performance polymer components. Producing such parts is associated with high costs and renders such business unprofitable for many companies.
ETH spin-off external pageNematiX offers an industrial 3D printing solution based on novel liquid crystal polymers that combines superior part performance with manufacturing precision. Customers benefit from up to 80% lower costs, three times faster delivery times and fully recyclable materials.
Early diagnosis of neurodegenerative diseases
Early detection and intervention give people the best chance of fighting neurodegenerative diseases. external pageNemosia's neuroimaging technique can identify such diseases at an early stage and supports the development and monitoring of therapies.
Reduced diagnostic time, effective drug development and personalised treatment are just a few of the advantages of this technology for our aging society.
About the de Vigier Award
The W.A. de Vigier Award is the oldest award for young entrepreneurs in Switzerland and, with annual prize money of up to CHF 600,000 (six times CHF 100,000), is one of the most highly endowed start-up prizes in Switzerland. Over the past 33 years, the foundation has distributed over CHF 11 million of seed money. The results are some 100 flourishing start-ups, successful IPOs, multiple company exits and, most importantly, many new jobs.