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A successful final year for the CTI. Activity Report 2017 From 1996 to 2017 the CTI was the Swiss Confederation’s funding agency for innovation. By providing advice, network- ing opportunities and funding, it supported economic growth based on scientific research in order to create a strong Swiss economy. The organisa- tion has continued to support science-based innovations in Switzerland under the new name of Innosuisse and with a new organisational structure since January 2018. Contents Foreword by the CTI President 4 In focus 6 CTI Funding 7 Interview with the Director of the CTI Secretariat 8 Moving forward with Innosuisse 10 Statistics 2017 13 Success stories Statistics 2017 33 Success stories Statistics 2017 45 Success stories Statistics 2017 54 Success stories BRIDGE 62 Enterprise Europe Network 66 Annex 69 CTI Activity Report 2017 Foreword by the CTI President Foreword Innovation funding has a long and important history in the Swiss economy. As early as the 19th century, the newly formed country represented fertile ground for entrepre- neurs. Towards the end of the Second World War, the seeds of today’s programme of innovation funding were sown at a federal level. Over the decades, the Federal Council and the Federal Parliament have periodically mod- ified the form and content of the programme, but always with the same aim in mind: converting scientific findings into economic value. Innovation projects involving compa- nies and research partners lie at the heart of the activities today, as they did in the past. Since 2011 the Commission for Technology and Innovation (CTI) has been an independent executive commission. Six teams of people were responsible for the funding instru- ments, supported by the Secretariat and by coaches and mentors for start-ups and SMEs. In 2016 the Federal Council and the Federal Parliament decided that the organisation needed to take a new evolu- tionary step forwards. At the beginning of 2018 the CTI became Innosuisse, a public law entity. What have been the organisation’s main experiences over the last few years as a commission? I spoke to many partners of the CTI and found out which features of our funding activities they most valued. These Walter Steinlin, CTI President included rapid decision-making; responsible and helpful experts who could be contacted in person and provided guidance during the projects; individually tailored support The result was a management culture which is sometimes for start-ups with decisions made immediately after the dis- described as “EEE”: enable, empower, enforce. This is cussions; and experts with extensive networks who guar- very different from the “CCC” culture: command, control, antee start-ups in particular the opportunity to work closely correct. with other players. “Enabling” meant equipping the members of the commis- In management terms, the key issue was to make the best sion to carry out their independent work as efficiently as possible use of the skills of the funding teams in the scien- possible, as well as providing comprehensive information, tific fields and in the art of innovation management and to helping with organisational issues and preparing for and increase the motivation of the team members. The primary following up on activities. This included selecting new aim was to implement the clearly defined legal funding team members not only on the basis of their technical mandate, but also to develop funding instruments further. skills, but also their ability to work in a team. 4 CTI Activity Report 2017 Foreword by the CTI President “Empowering” meant delegating decision-making to the Innovation funding is and will remain an art. With its cul- greatest possible extent to the team meetings for decisions ture and its lean processes, the CTI made the best possible on applications, to the team members for on-site visits and use of the money entrusted to it by showing a great deal of to the special panels for their sphere of responsibility. This commitment and initiative. We helped to ensure that obviously also involved taking responsibility for the deci- knowledge was turned into value for the benefit of our sions that had been made and their consequences. country. “Enforcing” meant applying the basic rules for dealing I would like to thank everyone who has been involved so with subsidies – transparency, no hint of bias, the term of far and to give my best wishes to the people responsible for office – even if they sometimes ran counter to the direct the new organisation. We handed over our funding man- innovation funding. date to Innosuisse on 1 January 2018. My experience of this culture was the huge commitment and sense of responsibility of the commission members, coaches and innovation mentors. The team meetings in- volved open and constructive debates, corrections, improve- Walter Steinlin ments and additions, which meant that individual opinions CTI President very quickly developed into well-informed, coordinated decisions. These were often very different from the original proposals. My experience of the Energy funding programme at the Swiss Competence Centres for Energy Research (SCCER) was very similar. Here there was a multi-disciplinary inno- vation dynamic based on considerable respect for the researchers, but also consistent formal and process regula- tions, which will strengthen national energy research in the long term beyond the CTI era. In 2017 for the first time we carried out a systematic assess- ment of the economic impact of the funding instruments. As we expected, the results were very difficult to quantify. However, they included a lot of information about funding partners, who were fundamentally satisfied, and the varied effects of the funding instruments. Of course we also received feedback about weak points and problems with the collaboration. Despite the best intentions and despite the responsibility taken by the decision-makers, there were some decisions which in retrospect should have been made differently. For this reason, the discussions with disappointed applicants were also important. They led at least to a better understanding and sometimes even to new or improved applications. CTI Activity Report 2017 5 In focus In focus 6 CTI Activity Report 2017 In focus CTI Funding in 2014–2017 in CHF m BRIDGE funding programme Dissemination of information KTT Support 6.6 0.6 R&D Funding Start-up and Entrepreneurship 4.7 (incl. overhead contributions) 9.9 151.4 4.1 9.2 186.5 SCCER 10.1 4.1 29.8 163.5 26.4 3.7 9.8 26.7 118.5 18.8 Total 2014 150.8 2015 204.4 2016 226.2 2017 203.2 Since 1 January 2017 the CTI has been legally obliged for the R&D projects to pay a standard contribution to the indirect costs (overheads) of all the research institutions. The overhead contributions are calculated as a flat-rate percentage (in 2017: 15 per cent) of the staff costs. CTI Activity Report 2017 7 In focus “We launched the new organisation and continued the CTI funding activities on a high level.” Annalise Eggimann, what was future the coaching will take place in by the CTI increased significantly com- your personal experience of the three phases: initial coaching, core pared with 2016 (from around 28 to final year of the CTI? coaching and scale-up coaching. We 37 per cent). The National Thematic It was an extremely busy year. We will give start-ups a voucher for Networks (NTN) continued to play a launched the new organisation and, coaching services and they can select key role. The proportion of approved at the same time, we continued the their coach from a pool of experienced R&D projects submitted by NTNs was CTI funding activities on a high level. entrepreneurs. This is also a new pro- 14 per cent, which is slightly below I was very pleased with the hard work cess, because coaches were simply the level in the previous year. The and commitment shown by everyone allocated in the past. three new NTNs for additive manufac- involved. But now I’m happy that turing processes and Industry 4.0, the Innosuisse is really getting off the What are you expecting to happen digital economy and interactive and ground. as a result? imaging technologies have begun The new legal provisions give the work. The eight existing networks What were the funding activities start-ups more responsibility. They have successfully started their second like in the field of R&D? can choose a coach to meet their spe- period. Given that once again it was a year cific needs, but they are also more without special measures, the level of accountable for their personal pro- The aim in the field of energy is interest was very high with 823 appli- gress. We also expect that the more for the competence centres to take cations. Because the CTI was being obvious competition between the ac- a more interdisciplinary approach transformed into Innosuisse, applica- credited coaches will help to increase to working together. Why is this? tions could only be submitted up to quality levels. During the first funding period, the 3 November. We received almost 100 applications in October and nearly 200 during the first three days of No- “Innosuisse has the same mandate vember. All the applications were still processed under the aegis of the CTI. as the CTI.” Although this final rush to submit ap- Annalise Eggimann, Director of the CTI and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Innosuisse plications indicated that there was a last-minute panic among applicants, they did not need to worry. Innosuisse has the same mandate as the CTI and And the training modules? Swiss Competence Centres for Energy the project funding in particular will They are going well and the modules Research (SCCER) succeeded in estab- continue almost unchanged.

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