Switzerland's TOP medtech startups 2020
02.10.2020 12:35
Isabelle Mitchell
The TOP 100 Swiss Startup Award ranking has become a benchmark in Switzerland’s startup ecosystem. To make sure the startups get all the attention they deserve, we will feature the top startups in each vertical. Medtech is next and impresses with innovative solutions that improve the quality of life—for people and animals.
Every year, the 100 most innovative and promising Swiss startups are picked by a panel of 100 leading investors and startup experts. Each jury member nominates 10 Swiss startups that are less than five years old and show the greatest commercial potential. The first-placed company gets 10 points, the second 9, and so on. All these individual rankings are compiled to generate the final TOP 100 Swiss Startup Award ranking, which recognizes the startups that have most impressed all 100 jury members. In the coming weeks, we will look at the top startups in each vertical.

1. Piavita
Piavita aims to digitalize the veterinary industry by combining combined sensors, big data, and AI to form a platform for the remote monitoring of sick and convalescent horses. The technical basis is a sensor technology in which the sensor, strapped to the horse’s chest, allows vital signs, such as pulse and temperature, to be measured through the coat. Veterinarians in private practices and university research clinics across the United States and Europe are using the company’s flagship solution—the Piavet System.
2. Aktiia
The cuffless blood pressure monitor from
Aktiia, a Swiss Center for Electronics and Microtechnology (CSEM) spin-off, allows blood pressure measurement around the clock. A bracelet is worn on the wrist and works with commercially available optical sensors. The product is about to be launched on the market, and the capital required came from a financing round of more than CHF 6 million in spring 2020.
3. G-Therapeutics (GTX Medical)
People with spinal cord injuries can begin to hope: the implantable spinal cord stimulation system developed by
G-Therapeutics, an EPFL spin-off, is about to enter the market. Neuro- stimulation therapy has been shown to restore function in a selected number of patients. A financing round to enable further growth was concluded after the merger with US company NeuroRecovery Technologies last autumn.
The best medtech startup according to the TOP 100 Public Vote
The TOP 100 Public Vote runs parallel to the expert jury ranking and allows the public—everyone with a LinkedIn account can cast one vote—to choose the most promising startup.
Medtech winner Public Vote: Sleepiz
Sleepiz aims to enable the medical community to take healthcare into the home environment. The startup provides an easy-to-use, contactless device that is placed on the patient’s bedside table and measures movements—originating from heart contractions and breathing patterns as well as body motions—with medical-grade accuracy. Sleepiz aims to diagnose sleep disorders, perform long-term monitoring, and control the progression of chronic diseases to provide faster intervention and better treatment.