First Swiss start-ups receive financial support from Horizon 2020 SME instrument

Tue, 11 Jul 2017 09:29:58 +0200

Four Swiss start-ups will receive CHF 50’000 each through the Horizon 2020 SME instrument scheme. The instrument, provided with about € 3 billion, is accessible to Swiss SMEs since January 2017. Next application deadline is 6 September.

Since January 2017, Swiss researchers and organisations are able to fully participate in Horizon 2020, the European Union's research and innovation funding programme. Since then Swiss SME including start-ups are eligible to apply for the Horizon 2020 SME instrument. Provided with about € 3 billion in funding over the period 2014-2020, the SME Instrument helps high-potential SMEs to develop groundbreaking innovative ideas for products, services or processes that are ready to face global market competition.
This week the first Swiss companies were announced which were selected for funding through the SME instrument. These include:
- AMPHIRO (Cleantech): connected shower consumption meters
- Daedalean (ICT): autonomous flight control for the electric personal aircraft of the near future
- DEPsys (Cleantech): smart grid optimisation platform
- SENSARS NEUROPROSTHETICS (Medtech): neuroprosthetic device allowing amputees to feel again from missing limbs

Each project will receive €50’000 to finance a feasibility study for innovative products that can disrupt the market. Companies also receive business support services and up to three days of free business coaching.

These companies were selected for a Phase 1 project and may in future apply for a Phase 2 financing scheme, allowing to benefit from a further financing - up to €2.5M - for activities focusing on bringing innovative ideas (product, process, service etc.) to industrial readiness and maturity for market introduction, focusing on demonstration, testing, prototyping, piloting, scaling-up, miniaturization, design, market replication and the like.

SCIPROM will be pleased to support Swiss SMEs in the preparation of proposals for the SME instrument, together with our business partner Inspiralia, a Spanish company which has long-term experience in the SME instrument and supported DEPsys in their SME instrument proposal prepation.

Source: http://www.startupticker.ch