"Helping entrepreneurs succeed by providing them with innovative and effective solutions."
A 1-year pre-incubation program designed to empower academic researchers and early-stage entrepreneurs in life sciences and health by providing them with real-world knowledge and skills, global network, and expertise to successfully navigate the journey from early discovery to the development of viable solutions.
Schedule 2026-2027
Phase 1 (April-June)
Thursday 23rd of April, 10h00-12h00
Location: Innovation Office, Basel
• Overview of different ways of entrepreneurship.
• Developing entrepreneurial thinking: risk-taking, creativity, and innovation.
• Entrepreneurship competences and self-reflection.Thursday 23rd of April, 13h30-17h00
Location: Innovation Office, Basel
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Gain a clear understanding of the journey from research to commercialization.
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Recognize key milestones in life sciences product development.
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Learn strategic approaches to developing a viable business case.
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Friday 24th of April, 09h00-12h00
Location: Innovation Office, Basel
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Understand the TPP framework for life sciences ventures.
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Draft a preliminary TPP document tailored to the venture.
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Identify and prioritize key R&D and business milestones.
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Thursday 21st of May, 09h00-12h00
Location: Online via Zoom
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Learn techniques to identify and validate market needs.
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Conduct industry and market analysis to define target customers.
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Refine value propositions based on customer and market insights.
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Thursday 04th of June, 09h00-12h00
Location: Online via Zoom
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Learn techniques to identify and validate market needs.
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Conduct industry and market analysis to define target customers.
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Refine value propositions based on customer and market insights.
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Thursday 04th of June, 13h00-17h00
Location: Innovation Office, Basel
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Understand the key steps, timelines, and considerations when moving your project toward first-in-human studies.
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Explore how to conceptualize, structure, and present pre-clinical results to support clinical readiness.
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Gain clarity on the roles of investigators, study teams, and collaborators essential to a successful clinical phase.
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Friday 05th of June, 09h00-12h00
Location: Innovation Office, Basel
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Create a professional and compelling pitch deck.
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Improve oral pitch delivery through hands-on practice.
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Receive feedback to refine and perfect pitching skills.
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Thursday 11th of June, 17h00-18h00
Location: Innovation Office, Basel
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Pitch your startup project in a supportive environment and gain valuable exposure.
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Receive constructive feedback from experts and peers.
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Strengthen your communication and investor-readiness.
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Phase 2 (June-Sept)
Thursday 18th of June, 09h00-12h00
Location: Innovation Office, Basel
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How to gain resilience (going through the process).
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Founder’s mentality.
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Understand pillars of resilience.
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What are the common pitfalls, and how can you build resilience to them?
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How competition can motivate you?
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Work with examples of resilience within start-ups.
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Thursday 18th of June, 13h00-17h00
Location: Innovation Office, Basel
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What is a pivot and why should you pivot?
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When should you pivot?
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Evaluation of ideas to pivot towards.
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Good reasons not to pivot.
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Extend user feedback on idea.
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Wednesday 26th of August, 09h00-12h00
Location: Innovation Office, Basel
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Learn how to navigate key requirements, timelines, and approval pathways across different markets.
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Identify the right regulatory strategy for your project.
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Gain insight into working with regulatory authorities.
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Wednesday 26th of August, 13h00-17h00
Location: Innovation Office, Basel
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Discover leadership styles using 3h, DiSC, or Gallup models.
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Identify personal strengths and their impact on team dynamics.
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Develop strategies to build and manage effective teams.
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Thursday 10th of September, 09h00-12h00
Location: Online via Zoom
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Understand the essentials of IP management in life sciences.
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Explore strategies for protecting and licensing innovations.
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Apply knowledge to create or refine an IP strategy for the venture.
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Thursday 24th of September, 13h00-17h00
Location: TBD
Thursday 24th of September, 13h00-17h00
Location: TBD
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Pitch your startup project in a supportive environment and gain valuable exposure.
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Receive constructive feedback from experts and peers.
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Strengthen your communication and investor-readiness.
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Phase 3 (Oct-Feb)
Dates TBC - 4 Online Sessions
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Learn from leading international startups and experts.
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Gain insights into global market strategies and best practices.
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Apply international perspectives to enhance venture scalability.
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Thursday 19th of November, 09h00-12h00
Location: TBD
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Develop a robust early-stage financial plan.
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Explore dilutive and non dilutive funding opportunities and grant strategies.
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Learn strategies to effectively approach investors.
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Thursday 19th of November, 13h00-17h00
Location: TBD
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Understand different monetization models and how to align them with your value proposition.
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Learn practical frameworks to determine pricing based on your project’s maturity, market validation, and customer traction.
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Explore how pricing decisions connect to growth, funding, and long-term financial resilience.
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Thursday 3rd of December, 13h00-17h00
Location: Innovation Office, Basel
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Create a professional and compelling pitch deck.
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Improve oral pitch delivery through hands-on practice.
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Receive feedback to refine and perfect pitching skills.
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Thursday 3rd of December, 17h00-18h00
Location: Innovation Office, Basel
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Pitch your startup project in a supportive environment and gain valuable exposure.
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Receive constructive feedback from experts and peers.
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Strengthen your communication and investor-readiness.
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February 2027
Closing event of the program.
SPARK Teams will pitch to a panel of investors, experts, and potential partners.
Applications for the year 2026-2027 are now open!
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Potential Startup Projects
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Teams with groundbreaking innovations or solutions that target an unmet medical need
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Teams working in Life Sciences & Health
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Your profiles
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Master's students
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PhDs, and Postdoctoral researchers
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Professors
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Mentors and supporters (can be part of your team but not as main applicant)
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University Affiliation
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Applicants must have a connection or affiliation with a university or academic institution
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Unsure about your eligibility ? Contact us here!
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SPARK at Stanford program is the cornerstone for our program. It was established by Professor Daria Mochly-Rosen in 2006 for advancing new biomedical research discoveries into promising new treatments for patients. It provides top-notch mentoring and education, and a cost-effective model to generate proof of concept by using industry standards.
SPARK Western Switzerland follows the same principles that have been cornerstones of SPARK at Stanford, and our program is an official member of SPARK Global network since September 2024.
Program
Phase 1
Refining Your Idea & Validating Your Market
Gain the skills to define problems, craft value propositions, validate market demand, and develop a roadmap with key milestones from concept to prototype.
Phase 2
The Fundamentals of Drug & MD Development
Empower your team with essential technical, regulatory, and intellectual property knowledge to confidently advance your project toward success.
Phase 3
Propelling Your Startup Idea
Learn how to secure funding, pitch effectively, and how to enter global markets.
Mentoring
Teams will benefit from tailored advice and diverse perspectives, with one mentor bringing a business background and another providing scientific expertise. Regular mentor meetings will be organised, ensuring that each team stays aligned with their milestones and deliverables, receiving consistent guidance to advance their ideas effectively.
Access to SPARK Global Network &
SPARK Stanford Online Platform
Our SPARK Mentors
Celia Oculi
Global Portfolio Strategy Lead at Roche
Felix Frueh
Expert in Precision Medecin, Entrepreneur in Residence
James Creeden
Entrepreneurship for Mission-Driven Healthcare
Kay Brunner
Strategic Advisor, Investor & Board Member - Health & Innovation
Kelly Caroll
Early-stage investor, Business advisor
Marshall Ungar
Fractional COO/CFO for Biotech and Deep Tech Startups
Osiris Marroquin Belaunzaran
Biotech Executive, Entrepreneur
Ulrich Hoffmann
Life Science Consultant & Educator
Christoph Bally
Managing Consultant HR Services, Executive Coach, Leadership Development, Start-Up Coach
Daniel Häring
Advisor, Mentor, Coach, Business Angel, Director, Business and Financial Advisor
Knut Sturmhoefel
Innovation Through Collaboration: Advise BioPharmas in BD strategy, transaction & alliance execution
Sanja Tomovska
Founder and CEO Quant Biomarkers , Venture Partner Rambam VC, Advisory board
Thilo Enderle
Managing Director of Innovelias GmbH
Our SPARKees
NanoZymeX
Boris Sevarika & Margarita Dinamarca from the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Basel
NanoZymeX is a next-generation enzyme delivery platform for Pompe disease which provides more effective therapy, with less side effects.
REsolve
Kevin Baumann, Lukas Beckert, & Mitchell Bruederlin from the Biozentrum, University of Basel
Unspecific molecular interactions remain a major challenge in achieving precision at the nanoscale. The 𝗥𝗘𝘀𝗼𝗹𝘃𝗲 team is developing a modular single-molecule platform to measure and control these interactions with unprecedented specificity and flexibility.
Evolverator
Dr. Asli Azizoglu & Dr. Eline Bijman from ETH D-BSSE
Eline and Asli are working on a new discovery platform to discover functional antibodies against challenging and unexplored drug targets in the body. They are using an evolution-based approach to expand the search space, reduce discovery costs and uncover novel antibodies to act as agonists and antagonists of these drug targets.
SelfGraph
Mehdi Daemi, David Coynel, Nathalie Schicktanz, Ehssan Amini, & Sepideh Ehteshami from the Cognitive Neuroscience Division, University of Basel
SelfGraph is digital personalized psychyotherapy to make mental healthcare affordable and accessible.
SynovIO
Stavros Giaglis, André Nicki Tiaden, & Simone Häner Massimi from the Department of Biomedicine, University of Basel
SynovIO uses patient-derived joint organoids and molecular fingerprints to match arthritis patients with the right therapy - faster, smarter, and personalised.
201 Therapeutics
Sandro Nuciforo, Fredrik Trulsson, & Katja Sterk from the Department of Biomedicine, University of Basel
201 Therapeutics is leveraging the world’s most comprehensive collection of liver cancer organoids to develop small-molecule therapies. These cellular models capture tumor heterogeneity and enable the discovery of targeted treatments for specific liver cancer subtypes.
SleepIntech
PhD Yanheng GUO from CHUV/EPFL, Prof. Dr. Martin Broome from CHUV, Prof. Dr. Raphael Heinzer from CHUV, & Prof. PhD Dominique Pioletti from EPFL
SleepIntech develops personalized smart medical devices that merge innovative design with AI-powered insights to treat sleep apnea more effectively and improve overall quality of life.
Immunoscreen
Yasmin Alshoubaki from the Department of Biomedicine, University of Basel
Immunoscreen is developing a diagnostic panel for early prediction of cardiovascular disease risk.
Contacts
Partners
