Open Calls

Take your company to the next level! Apply for our digitalization challenge by 14 September 2026 and win up to 100,000 Swiss francs for digital technology development and implementation.

The CYREN ZH Cybersecurity Clinic – jointly run by the ZHAW School of Engineering, the ZHAW School of Management and Law and the University of Zurich – offers organizations such as SMEs, municipalities, start-ups and other institutions the opportunity to work on specific cybersecurity challenges together with students – free of charge.

As part of the clinic, the students work closely with the organizations and are supervised by cybersecurity experts from the universities. This results in practical solutions, for example by developing security concepts, carrying out penetration tests, hardening systems or evaluating security tools. This collaboration creates real added value for everyone involved: the organizations benefit from actionable results and an improved level of safety, while the students deepen their practical experience by applying the knowledge acquired in class to real projects.

The geographical focus is on the canton of Zurich; projects beyond this are also possible.

Capacity for new projects will be available again from fall 2026. Take this opportunity to strengthen your cybersecurity in a targeted manner – we look forward to working with you. Contacting us at an early stage helps us to plan the limited project capacities optimally.

The call for entries for the Swiss Technology Award 2026 has been launched.
We are looking for pioneering technology-based innovations from Switzerland – from research projects and start-ups to established companies.
The Swiss Technology Award is the most important technology prize in Switzerland and honors outstanding innovations in three categories every year: Inventors, Start-ups and Industry
Innovation.
Finalists benefit from visibility at Open-i, media coverage, access to a strong network from the worlds of business, politics and science as well as a
professional image film.
Apply now for the Swiss Technology Award 2026:
https://www.open-i.swiss/sta-apply

Are you building one of Switzerland’s top fintech/insurtech/regtech startups? Then join Venture Leaders Fintech 2026 and spend a week in London, one of the world’s leading financial hubs.

For one intensive week, the ten selected Venture Leaders Fintech 2026 will meet top venture capitalists, corporate partners, and international entrepreneurs.
They will gain first-hand insights into the UK market, connect with leading investors, and experience one of the most dynamic startup ecosystems in the world.

Don’t miss the opportunity to accelerate your growth, expand your network, and represent Switzerland’s next generation of fintech leaders.

Why You Should Apply

Investor Access: Meet leading venture capital firms and fintech investors in London.
Market & Regulatory Insights: Learn from global experts and successful entrepreneurs operating at scale.
Refine Your UK Strategy: Position your solution for European and global financial markets.
Strategic Connections: Connect with banks, insurers, and financial institutions.
Community: Build lasting connections with industry leaders, mentors, and fellow founders.
Visibility: Position your startup on the international stage and increase credibility with global stakeholders.
Exclusive Experience: Join a unique, once-in-a-lifetime program designed to fast-track your international growth.

🚀 Your idea can change age(ing): Age Innovation Prize 2026

Are you working on an idea, project, start-up or product that will improve the lives of older people in Switzerland? Then now is the time!
The Age Innovation Prize 2026 – organized by the IAF Institute for Age Research is entering its fourth round – in partnership with the Age Foundation and prize sponsor Margerite.

🆕 New 2026: Two winning teams:
🏆 1 Technological innovation (AgeTech)
🏆 1 Social innovation (e.g. new forms of housing, support or participation models)

📅 Submission: April 13th – June 14, 2026

🎁 Prizes (per winning team):
– Margerite: Consulting voucher (CHF 3,500)
– IAF: Cooperation voucher (CHF 4,000)
– Professionally produced video
and for the winning teams and all shortlisted projects:
– Pitch coaching by the City of Zurich
– Stage, visibility & networking at the Swiss AgeTech Conference

👥 Jury of experts from industry, innovation and social & public institutions: Swisscom, Margerite GmbH, City of Zurich, Switzerland Innovation Park Ost, Swico – Association of Digitizers, Swiss Cyber Experts, Impact2go, focus50plus, University of Zurich, Age Foundation, City of St.Gallen, Institut et Haute Ecole de la Santé La Source, GERONTOLOGIE CH, SBB CFF FFS, University of Geneva, OST – Eastern Switzerland University of Applied Sciences, University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Southern Switzerland (SUPSI).

👉 Interested? Submit your project – see link.

This is the sixth time that companies from the Zürcher Unterland can apply for the coveted innovation prize. This was launched in 2021 by the Regional Economic Council to recognise and highlight innovations from the lowlands. Companies from the Zürcher Unterland region can apply now. We are looking for companies that can convince with innovative products, services, processes, business models or organizational forms – regardless of whether these are technologically highly complex or deliberately simple and practical.

To apply, you must have your registered office or a branch in the Zürcher Unterland. In addition, the innovation should have been implemented in the last three years or be at an advanced stage of implementation. Applications will be accepted online until July 10, 2026: https://zueriunterland.ch/wirtschaft-im-zueriunterland/innovationspreis-zueriunterland/

The prize money of CHF 5000 for the winning company and CHF 2500 each for second and third place is sponsored by Zürcher Kantonalbank.

The innovations submitted are evaluated by the ZüriUnterland Economic Council, which acts as a jury, according to the following criteria:
– Degree of innovation
– Impact on the regional economy
– Impact on social life (ESG Social / Social Sustainability)
– Impact on the environment (ESG Environmental / ecological sustainability)
– Transferability to other companies

The award ceremony will take place on August 31, 2026 as part of the ZüriUnterland location promotion innovation event. The event will take place in Embrach at the premises of the winner of the Innovation Award 2025, Kyburz Switzerland AG.

Swiss and South Korean participants are invited to submit proposals for joint projects in the research and development of innovative applications and products with strong commercial potential in Switzerland and South Korea.

This call for projects is open to Swiss and South Korean partners. It aims to encourage innovation, in the following technologies in particular:

Biotech and Medtech;
Digitalisation, Industry 4.0, Internet of Things (IoT), Artificial Intelligence;
Additive manufacturing;
Smart materials / innovative surfaces;
Augmented and virtual reality;
Hydrogen technologies;
Renewable energies and batteries.

Online information webinar: 25 March 2026
Application deadline: 30 June 2026
Announcement of decisions: 31 August 2026
Earliest start date for projects: 1 November 2026

AcceleratorX, a European accelerator launched today, addresses a blind spot in Swiss startup funding: no more coaching and investor readiness, but direct market access – with real pilot customers from the first week of the program.
The program is based on the CommUnity International Network (34 agencies, 30 countries, 2,000+ experts) and is aimed at AI MarTech startups in the seed phase.
Applications are now open at: WWW.ACCELERATORX.EU

Start-up promotion in Switzerland is on a solid footing. Institutionally anchored programs prepare founders for the growth phase: with coaching, networking and access to venture capital. What is missing, however, is direct, broad market access – especially for start-ups in the MarTech sector. AcceleratorX closes precisely this gap.

The three-month program connects AI startups with real pilot clients from the first week of the program: 34 independent marketing and communications agencies from 30 European countries, united in the CommUnity International Network with over 2,000 professionals. The network also includes Die Botschafter Kommunikationsagentur from St. Gallen as the Swiss Hub of CommUnity International.

The key difference: traditional funding programs make startups pitch-ready. AcceleratorX makes them marketable. Market validation, pilot projects and scaled user feedback are not promises, but part of the program from day 1.

“The biggest hurdle for AI start-ups is not the technology and often not the capital – it’s market access. MarTech solutions in particular don’t need more advice, but real customer relationships that quickly validate what works and what doesn’t,” says Axel Thoma, Director at AcceleratorX.

The program is aimed at AI start-ups in the seed phase with a functioning MVP. In addition to the structured curriculum, a mentoring team of experienced entrepreneurs accompanies the selected start-ups: founders who have built, scaled and developed international markets themselves – as operational coaches, not theoretical advisors.

AcceleratorX was developed by Vlad Popovici and Axel Thoma and is anchored in CommUnity International – Europe’s leading network of independent creative and marketing agencies.

Applications for the first cohort are now open. The selection is made competitively on the basis of growth potential.

WWW.ACCELERATORX.EU