Since 2022, Switzerland has boasted the highest per capita density of start-ups operating in the area of sustainability. Over the past two years, the share of sustainable start-ups among all technology and science-oriented new companies has risen from 4 percent to just under 10 percent. At the same time, the total volume of venture capital investments in this area increased from 200 million Swiss francs to 600 million Swiss francs across the same time frame. These are the findings of the Swiss Startup Radar 2022/2023, which is available in three languages and was published by the online news portal startupticker.ch and the University of Lausanne.
This fifth edition of the Swiss Startup Radar focuses on sustainable start-ups. In addition to national sources, the authors also evaluated international databases such as Pitchbook and Crunchbase, further details of which can be found in a press release. Overall, the analysis is based on data from around 5,000 domestic and more than 250,000 foreign start-ups.
According to the information in the press release, two sectors in Switzerland stand out in particular in terms of sustainability: mechanical engineering and the food industry. Both sectors boast “mature innovation ecosystems”, the press release states. These strengths are centered around meat substitute products and platforms for resource-saving agriculture based on Artificial Intelligence (AI), in addition to natural fiber-based composite materials for more environmentally friendly mobility.
