THE BIOPÔLE REVIEW – 2022 EDITION

THE BIOPÔLE REVIEW

PIERRE-JEAN WIPFF

‘Innovation is about people’

Page 30 2022 The year in review Page 6

PARTNERSHIPS Clinique La Prairie and its pioneering heritage Page 40

OUTLOOK

The past, the present and the future Page 64

ARCHIVE | Until the late 1990s, the land now occupied by the Biopôle campus was dedicated to agriculture. The La Ferme restaurant, currently managed by Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV, Centre hospitalier universitaire vaudois), is housed in an old farm building constructed in 1794. It is the last vestige of the site’s agricultural past, long since overtaken by the urban development of the cities of Lausanne and Épalinges. The above photograph, taken using a drone in 2006, shows the early stages of construction work on the Metio and Lysine buildings.

Credits

Editor: Biopôle SA

Direction: Emanuela Jurietti

Editorial production: Fran Hamilton and Rosie Tate, Tate & Clayburn

Graphics: Stéphanie Pointet, Agence NOW*

Photography: Adrien Gremaud (pages 4, 23), Burckhardt+Partner and HRS Real Estate SA (pages 54, 59, 71), Dexter surgical robotic system © Distalmotion (page 12), Rafael_Wiedenmeier @ Getty Images (page 68), Metio building © EPIC Suisse (page 68), Losinger Marazzi SA, Arcadie and Architram (pages 48, 71), Superlab Suisse © L. Nguyen (pages 52, 56, 71), Serine building © Nicolas Sedlatchek (page 70), Nicolas Spuhler (pages: 3, 10, 16, 28, 31, 40, 42, 45, 46, 50, 51, 53, 55, 56, 57, 60, 62, 64, 67, 69, 70, 74, 77, 80), TL (page 68).

Cover: Pierre-Jean Wipff, Director of Innovation and Partnerships at Biopôle SA since January 2022, visited the production facilities of Distalmotion, which now occupy more than 2,000 m2 in the Phenyl building. Michael Friederich and his team have been growing their company there since 2018, photography by Nicolas Spuhler.

It’s a Biopôle first!

Eighteen years have passed since Biopôle SA was created in 2004. Looking back at the company’s journey, so many people have contributed to its history. Such a vibrant community has been created that we wanted to record some of its stories and share some of the work taking place on campus. And this is where this publication comes in. It’s a pleasure for me to present to you the first edition of The Biopôle Review.

Switzerland, and Romandie in particular, is home to a wealth of important activity in the life sciences: it’s an exciting environment where people like to exchange, and exchange leads to innovation. This magazine serves to document and share the pivotal role that Biopôle SA, and the Biopôle campus as a whole, play within this scientific ecosystem. In particular, it is an opportunity for us to reflect on our progress and achievements in 2022 and look forward with ambition to 2023.

Half the people on campus work in research and development, so it’s no wonder that innovation plays such an important role in our activities. In 2022, Pierre-Jean Wipff joined our team to lead our efforts in nurturing innovation and partnerships across and beyond our community. In our interview, he explains Biopôle SA’s approach and the programmes it has developed to support its members and the life sciences ecosystem around them.

We also took a moment to meet with our President of the Board Nouria Hernandez and CEO Nasri Nahas who share their reflections on Biopôle and their vision for its future. It’s an inspiring reminder of what can be achieved by really listening to people and understanding their needs.

I hope you enjoy reading this publication as much as I did, and whether you are a Biopôle member, a partner, an associate, or just a curious bystander, I hope you will find it informative, inspiring and motivating.

Emanuela Jurietti

The park today and tomorrow – by 2025 there will be 14 buildings on site.

The year in review

Today, a strong community

It’s been a landmark year for the Biopôle community. After two years of pandemic, which forced people to work from home and created insecurity for some businesses, our members have returned to the campus and thrown themselves into activities with renewed enthusiasm. We take the opportunity to reflect on the successes of our members and the community as a whole in 2022.

Fundraising figures

In 2022, CHF 397m* were raised by companies based at Biopôle. A total investment of CHF 2.2b has been raised by Biopôle-based start-ups since their inception.

The top five amounts raised in 2022 were:

• US$90m – Distalmotion

• US$38m – Opna Bio

• €27m – Incepto

• US$20m – Novigenix

• €14m – Hedera Dx

* This figure is based on public and semi-public data, but may not be complete as not all companies disclose their funding rounds.

Clinical trials

• ADC Therapeutics shared results from a phase 2 clinical trial of Cami in relapsed or refractory Hodgkin lymphoma patients

• Argá Medtech initiated a first-inhuman study for its CSE system

• The first successful transplant of Cartibeads for Vanarix

• GetSet Surgical announced its first patient surgeries

• Ichnos Sciences initiated a first-inhuman study for ISB 1442

• Purple Biotech announced the initiation of a phase 2 study for CM24 in 2L PDAC patients

Landmark partnerships

• After winning the Clinique La Prairie Innovation Award in April, Volumina Medical announced the closing of its Series A funding led by Clinique La Prairie, among others

• Two Biopôle-based companies, Alithea and Adipogen Life Sciences, announced their partnership

• Ichnos Sciences became Biopôle SA’s latest corporate partner

• Hôpital de La Tour became a new sponsor of the Digital Health Hub

• The construction of three new buildings was announced by Biopôle SA in collaboration with Edmond de Rothschild Real Estate SICAV

And also…

• Roche Diagnostics arrived on site

• Ichnos Sciences announced trispecific antibody ISB 2001 as its next clinical candidate for relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma

• HAYA Therapeutics opened its US office

• Abionic received IVDR certification for its predictive ultra-rapid sepsis test, allowing for the management of antibiotic administration

• SEED Biosciences’ DISPENCELL was approved for use in clean rooms and sterile environments and the company expanded its presence on site

• Limula launched its pilot phase at the Institut Paoli-Calmettes in Marseille

• Blistee, an innovation developed by AdhereUp, was the first project supported by Biopôle SA through its collaboration with the Hands-on-Human Health Hub (H4)

• Four Biopôle-based companies – SEED Biosciences, Volumina Medical, Resistell and HAYA Therapeutics – were among the TOP 100 Swiss startups, with HAYA Therapeutics placed in the top ten, while scale-up Distalmotion was selected for the ‘Modernising medicine scale-ups’ and ‘TOP fundraising rounds’ categories

• A four-part Q&A Marketing and Communication series, which covered data visualisation, the use of Twitter for conferences, managing and protecting your reputation and harnessing employee advocacy

• A four-part Market Access for Medtech series, including an introduction and sessions on the patient perspective, the product perspective and the health system perspective

• A three-part Medical Software Development series, covering good practices, cybersecurity and digital and growth

• An early-stage investments seminar comprising individual presentations, a round table and a networking session

• Two ‘CHUV meets Biopôle’ networking sessions giving Biopôle members the opportunity to meet key people from central departments at the hospital

• Biopôle Companies Present Themselves, our quarterly event where Biopôle members can discover other enterprises on site in a lunchtime session

More than 50 events organised on site

The year in review

Mhetra moved to the new space dedicated to small and medium offices on the second floor of the Serine building in June 2022.

New community members

The arrival of Roche Diagnostics to Biopôle in June was a highlight of the year and created great expectations within the regional ecosystem. Indeed, every new arrival enriches our community and the collaborative opportunities that are created within it.

In 2022, 28 companies joined our campus and 46% of these ‘newbies’ chose StartLab, Superlab or the Digital Health Hub (DH2) as their new home. Thanks to our serviced laboratory offering, 46% of the newcomers work in biotech.

AKYmed

Alcimed Consulto

eHealth Group

Epiterna Exogems

Incepto Medical

Leman Biotech

Limula

MediCrops

Medilsys

Medistri

Mhetra

Mosaic NeuroSciences

OCT Global

Online Control

Orbis Medicines

Parithera

PeriVision

Pilatus Biosciences

Pollux Scientific

Qarad

Resistell

Roche Diagnostics Switzerland

Santorio Foundation

SP Groups

Vanarix

XPND Medical

A busy year for…

Distalmotion

This medical device company has experienced fast growth since 2021, when it undertook its first clinical cases in Switzerland using Dexter – the world’s first and only on-demand surgical robotic system. This innovative approach to robotic surgery is providing surgeons with the unique

ability to choose the most adapted and efficient tool, between robotics and laparoscopy, at any time in the procedure.

In 2022, Dexter performed its first surgeries in Germany, scaling quickly to operate on a daily basis across urology, gynaecology and

general surgery at Saintonge Hospital in France. Its clinical and commercial roll-out was accelerated by the closing of a US$90m Series E financing round last year and the company looks set to scale even further in years to come.

HAYA Therapeutics

The year in review

Last year saw HAYA Therapeutics work with an emerging pipeline of lncRNAtargeting candidates and forge ahead with its pioneering next-generation therapies for fibrotic diseases, establishing a new laboratory space at JLABS @ San Diego, growing its functional genomics team and securing a US$5m seed extension and CHF 3.1m of extra funding from Innosuisse.

The company also made some major new hires, welcoming Ahmad Masri to its Scientific Advisory Board and appointing Brian Thomas as the chairperson of its board of directors. It was named the eighth Best Swiss Startup of 2022 by the TOP 100 Swiss Startup Awards and considered ‘one to watch’ by investors and analysts alike.

ADC Therapeutics

It was a productive and eventful year for ADC Therapeutics – a commercial, global leader and pioneer in the field of antibodydrug conjugates (ADCs) that develops ADCs for patients with hematological malignancies and solid tumours.

The company appointed a new CEO, industry veteran Ameet Mallik, along with a seasoned Chief Business & Strategy Officer, David Gilman.

It was the first full year of US sales for the company's newly approved product for relapsed or refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, ZYNLONTA. ZYNLONTA also extended its global reach, with licensing agreements in Europe and Japan. Positive pivotal data for another ADC, Cami, was shared through a prestigious oral presentation at the European Hematology Association’s annual congress. The company also hosted its first ever R&D day to share the progress of its proprietary ADC platform in hematology and solid tumours.

Novigenix

Novigenix is a precision oncology biotech specialising in liquid biopsy immunotranscriptomic solutions for early detection of cancer, therapy optimisation and biopharma solutions for drug development. Over the course of 2022, the company closed its Series B funding round and completed EU validation patient recruitment for its next-generation ColoxNGS test for the early detection of colorectal cancer. It also presented new data on its patient stratification programme on melanoma patient ICI therapy at the European Society

for Medical Oncology.

The Novigenix proprietary platform LITOseek provides liquid biopsy interrogation of host immune function with high-throughput analytic capacity for biopharma applications and clinical development of new therapies. The company is actively engaging with biopharma partners to support their clinical programmes. In light of all these developments, Novigenix is scaling up its team to over 25 full-time employees and is looking forward to a number of key milestone announcements in 2023.

Discover our companies

Of the more than 132 companies and research institutes currently hosted on the Biopôle campus, 122 work in the life sciences. The numbers represent a significant increase from the 47 companies hosted five years ago, and with that growth comes greater diversity in terms of maturity, therapeutic focus and industries, which also contributes to the wider region’s prosperity and attractiveness. We take a closer look at how things currently stand and the companies’ outlook for 2023.

The essentials

122 companies and research institutes on the Biôpole campus work in the life sciences

Almost 40% work in pharma or biotech

60% collaborate with a research institute or company on site

40+ occupy a serviced or private laboratory on site

70% increased their employee numbers in 2022

The year in review

Growth and outlook for 2023

55% expect strong or very strong growth in 2023

270+ new jobs are expected to be created by existing companies in 2023

37% are looking to expand their facilities on site

The challenges faced by executives

44% talent acquisition

34% other

32% investor management

27% corporate growth

22% regulatory pressure

11% impact of the pandemic

8% employee engagement

6% geopolitical instability

1% climate change

What we’ve learned a community

Emanuela’s work focuses on organising and adapting activities to make sure that the community can exchange information and collaborate.

about building

Emanuela Jurietti, Marketing and Communications Director

I joined Biopôle SA in 2018, but started working with the team back in 2015, when I was in PR – Biopôle was my main client. I still remember my first meeting with Nasri Nahas, the then-new CEO. He told me about the campus and his vision for it, then said something that intrigued me: ‘We’re going to build a new community.’ At that point I wondered, how is it possible to build one from scratch? Yet at the start of 2023, the Biopôle campus is home to a vibrant, thriving community, so it seems a fine position from which to look back and consider how it happened.

First steps: Knock on doors and share your vision

In 2015, people had been working at the Biopôle campus for over half a decade. There were 20 life sciences companies on site, all working in the same sector, with common interests, common knowledge and common objectives – but no sense of community. First Nasri and later our whole team worked to change that. We referred to the community in internal and external communication, sharing our vision with the CEOs on site and the life sciences community beyond. We started organising events and found community ambassadors who were convinced about

the added value of what we were doing. We set up an intranet so that people could find information about the campus, which evolved into the MyBiopôle app. And slowly, it worked. At some point, all the talk of the community became more than just talk. In fact, Biopôle members started using tools that we had provided, such as the app, and organising their own community events!

But who is the community?

When I mention the community, it’s not just one big group, encompassing the 2,500 people on site. We actually have lots of different communities – layers – and people can belong to many of them at once: the community of entrepreneurs, postgrads completing their PhDs on campus, the expats, the StartLab-ers, the DH2 residents, or the deeply committed Afterwork attendees! Biopôle SA’s role is to identify those communities and consider where we can play a role to bring them together.

How we engage the community has changed a lot. In the past, we had to go knocking on doors to get people involved. And lots of people weren’t interested. They didn’t see it as a valuable use of their time. Now, people are proactive about being part of the community and newcomers join our campus mainly because they want to profit from said community spirit. They see the point of getting out of their offices, coming to the events and

exchanging ideas with the people around them – and they actually want more. I guess that when people experience the beauty of collaborating, it’s addictive – and you don’t want it to stop, because such events lead to opportunities, collaboration, sharing of knowledge and networks.

Of course, this is still a working environment. People have busy, busy diaries. So we have to make sure that community activities are relevant and accessible to them. They need to fit around their working days: a workshop at midday with sandwiches, for example. And food, in general, is very important. Everyone needs to eat! We ensure that the restaurants, food trucks and picnic areas are places where the community can meet as part of their day-to-day lives. It’s hard to have a good conversation in front of your computer. The campus is designed to provide spaces where people can take time to eat, relax and see what’s going on around them.

Biopôle SA as a mediator

One of our key jobs is to connect people. We act as brokers in the community. Someone can come to us and say, ‘I’m looking for a particular person or service’ and we can introduce them because we have a unique understanding of the campus, our members and beyond.

When a new company arrives on campus, we guide them through a carefully crafted onboarding process. Newcomers get a series of emails and a welcome brochure, so they have all the information they need. Whenever a company moves, whatever its size, the team all need to know the basics: how to get to the campus, where to park, where they can eat. We support them with that basic information so they can relax and settle into their work.

What I’ve learned from the Biopôle community

Working at Biopôle has taught me a lot about how – and how not – to build a life sciences community. With my background in communications, when I first arrived, I thought communication was key. I envisaged an internal social media platform, where people could share information and connect. But that doesn’t work here. People have their own social media already. They don’t need another platform. Instead, they want practical things; a chance to meet over a beer or to learn in their lunchtime.

Also, I’ve learned that trial and error is a key approach here. You can try to analyse it, but the communities here are so diverse, you don’t know what will work until you try it. We’ve got to try different times, places, activities and see what sticks. And it won’t always work! In 2019, I asked to install a giant chess game on the esplanade – I thought it would be a great place to gather over lunch. But no one ever played that game and, believe me, my team makes great fun of me. I hope that by reading this, someone might want to play – I haven’t lost hope!

Most importantly I have learned, contrary to what we thought at the beginning, that a community manager is essential at any stage of a community. You cannot ‘build’ a community and, once you are satisfied, let it go. A community is the sum of the interactions between people: it’s alive and requires constant work to keep it nurtured.

" In entrepreneurship, you have to love what you do because you face so many challenges along the way."

One of the monthly Afterworks organised on campus in 2022. With each event sponsored by a different resident company, the Afterworks allow the community to meet over a drink in a relaxed environment at the end of the day.

The talents of our community

We host more than 2,500 people on site, working in industry and academia. In November 2022, we sent out two surveys1 – one to the wider Biopôle community and another to CEOs or branch leads – to get a better understanding of the people working every day on campus. The results were surprising.

Who employs the people on campus?

75% start-ups, scale-ups or corporates

20% academic and research institutions

5% associations or governmental organisations

How old are the people working here?

50% of people are between 30 and 39 years old

Where do people on campus come from and what is their home language?

92% are originally from Europe

36% from Switzerland

27% from France

67% say they speak French at home

15% speak English at home

1 Survey 1 sample: the Biopôle campus community. Data collected: November 2022. Engagement: 206 responses Survey 2 sample: CEOs or branch leads at Biopôle. Data collected: November 2022. Engagement: 68 responses

The year in review

How educated are the people on campus and what is their focus?

What department do you work in?

75% of the people working on site have a Master’s degree or higher

Key facts about…

… members who have obtained a doctoral degree or higher

52% obtained their last diploma in Switzerland

74% work in R&D

54% are women

21% work part time

9% have a C-level role (e.g. CEO, CFO, CIO)

… our executives at Biopôle 2

People working in…

… industry

… academia

76% are men

49% are between 25 and 44 years old

51% have obtained a doctoral degree or higher

73% says meeting senior executives from neighbouring companies is one of their top priorities

2 Results for this column came from survey 2.

54% are men

37% have obtained a doctoral degree or higher

51% work in R&D

50% work in a company employing less than 20 people

14% work part time

53% are women

32% are between 18 and 29 years old

21% have obtained a doctoral degree or higher

71% work in R&D

20% work part time

Academia and industry joining forces

Biopôle’s fast-growing campus benefits from its location in the canton of Vaud, regarded as one of Europe’s most dynamic areas in the life sciences and home to a number of prestigious academic institutions, including the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne (EPFL, École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne), the University of Lausanne (UNIL) and the CHUV. Today we are proud to witness how our community unites industry with academic and clinical research to advance crucial life sciences research and development.

Creating a collaboration framework

Over the years, Biopôle has become home to highly qualified students, leading academics and prestigious research institutes, including UNIL’s Department of Biochemistry, UNIL-CHUV’s Departments of Oncology and Immunology, Unisanté and the Ludwig Cancer Research institute.

Promoting public and private partnerships between Biopôle members and academia is one of our priorities and we regularly make our academic members aware of the potential for collaboration with our companies and partners. Similarly, we ensure that our companies can maximise the benefit of having access to academia’s in-depth knowledge of their subject

areas. And collaboration takes on many forms, such as research with a university or clinical lab, a clinical trial or a licence in or out.

We’ve also built a strong academic network that plays a vital role in Biopôle’s innovation programmes. Representatives from the CHUV, EPFL and UNIL sit on the Biopôle Start-up Fund’s

Scientific Advisory Board or are involved as experts on the Vanguard Accelerator programme, ensuring technological advances are reviewed by relevant specialists. Through those networks, Biopôle member PeriVision launched a pilot study with the Jules-Gonin Eye Hospital in 2022 to challenge its next-generation eye-testing innovation, while

Consulto explored a clinical case study in Rheumatology with our Vanguard Expert and Head of Rheumatology at CHUV Professor Thomas Hügle.

Indeed, such is the CHUV’s reputation that collaboration with the organisation is an ambition for most start-ups. To help them realise that goal, we organised ‘CHUV

meets Biopôle’ in 2022 –a two-part presentation giving entrepreneurs the chance to learn about partnership opportunities with the hospital. The sessions provided Biopôle’s entrepreneurs with an opportunity for an initial interaction with key contacts in health technology assessment – helping them understand how and why

The six buildings of the Centre des laboratoires d’Épalinges (middle of the photo) were initially built to host the ISREC Foundation in 1976; today they host the Faculty of Biology and Medicine and the Department of Biochemistry of UNIL and the CHUV.

hospitals choose (or don’t choose) a technology. Other departments, such as clinical development, technology transfer and clinical data science were also available for interaction.

Finding talent at source

Undergraduate and postgraduate students are key targets for our companies within the Biopôle ecosystem. In that regard, we provided four of our start-ups with

booths at the Life Sciences Career Day networking and careers guidance event organised by BioScience Network Lausanne in May, bringing our start-ups into contact with students and young researchers working in academia.

Biopôle also actively collaborates with different associations to promote entrepreneurship. Throughout 2022, several delegations

of under- and postgraduate students came to visit the campus. In one such event, held in December, SV Industry brought EPFL students to meet two of our start-ups –Parithera and Distalmotion – as they opened their doors for a facility visit. The entrepreneurs also gave the students an insight into what it is like to work in their start-ups and what it takes to develop new innovations.

Tigen is a Swiss Biopôlebased biotech company working on T-cell-based therapies to treat cancer. Being a catalyst in the cell and gene ecosystem, it is scouting for novel science, co-develops therapies to commercial readiness and works with partners for global distribution.

In October 2022, Tigen exercised a licensing option with the CHUV on behalf of the Ludwig Cancer Research institute, based at the UNIL-CHUV Department of Oncology at Biopôle and one of four branches worldwide dedicated to preventing and controlling

cancer. This first project focuses on developing a neoantigen-specific tumour infiltrating lymphocytes (NeoTIL) product. The relationship is built on an option, collaboration and licence agreement that covers the Neoantigenspecific T cell programme at the CHUV. It has strong foundations built on the partners’ complementary expertise and a mutual openness to learning and building on ideas, suggesting a long-term outlook for potentially better therapies.

‘The collaboration between the Ludwig institute, the CHUV, UNIL and

Tigen is unique. Experts in research, clinical and technical development are collaborating, early on and seamlessly, with the goal of accelerating access to novel therapies for patients.’ Jonathan Skipper, Executive Vice President for Technology Development, Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research

‘We are enthused to catalyse the further development with our technical, clinical and regulatory expertise and to eventually bring the novel therapies to patients around the globe.’ Emmanuel Savioz, Founder and CEO of Tigen

Real-world therapies: Tigen and Ludwig Cancer Research institute

More than 50 events were organised by Biopôle SA in 2022 – opportunities for community members to network and connect.

Insights from our entrepreneurs

We interviewed more than 25 entrepreneurs and experts from our community during 2022 who shared their journeys and their views about their respective fields. Here, we’ve handpicked three stories to spread knowledge, provide inspiration or just pique your curiosity.

Dr Loïc Roch, Co-founder and CTO of Atinary Technologies

We merge high-performance computing, materials sciences and AI to fast-track R&D. At Atinary, we make experiment planning easy and companies can deploy our AI technology seamlessly in their R&D processes, today.

Discovering new materials – such as biomaterials or pharmaceutical substances – is a very slow and expensive process. It can take many years and tens or hundreds of millions of dollars. This is the problem that we’re tackling at Atinary. Our technology fast-tracks R&D and makes it cheaper. Using a cloud-based machine learning platform, we have the power to process the data and suggest experiments that will lead to those discoveries faster.

In Switzerland, we benefit from a rich ecosystem that combines leading companies in chemistry, pharma and life sciences with top universities and talent. And at Biopôle there’s a real spirit of collaboration and lots of opportunities to work in partnership with others, which is a huge advantage.

" Every day when I go to the office and work with the team, it’s amazing to see what we’ve created from zero."

Ivan Mestrangelo, CEO of MediCrops Biomedical Technologies AG

At MediCrops, we aim to produce medicinal cannabis products from seed to sale. Our main challenge is turning a natural product into something stable and reproducible on a large scale. Ultimately, we would like to create a platform that connects doctors with patients, as well as developing training for doctors so they’re more aware of the products and their benefits.

One of the main lessons I’ve learned is finding the right people. Over the years, I’ve employed over 130 people. It hasn’t always worked out, but when you’ve hired so many people, you start to get a bit of an instinct. In my previous companies, I recruited people really quickly. Now, I’ve learned to take my time. It’s timeconsuming, but well worth it.

Geoffroy Lapeyre, Co-founder and Board Member of Novostia

My father is a heart surgeon and an inventor, so I’ve been surrounded by science and medical innovations for as long as I can remember. As a young boy, artificial hearts that my father developed were among my favourite toys.

Novostia’s heart valve uses very strong materials that don’t degenerate and has a unique design that mimics natural valves.

" In entrepreneurship, you have to love what you do because you face so many challenges along the way."

" You can have a great device or innovation, but ultimately the success of your project depends on having a team that’s pushing to overcome challenges."

Innovation

Innovation

‘Innovation is about people’

The Biopôle campus in Lausanne is full of companies with new ideas for tackling the life sciences challenges of today. It’s exciting, demanding work, which means it can often be tricky to pause and look up to take stock of what’s going on around you. Enter PierreJean Wipff. His role as Biopôle SA’s Innovation and Partnerships Director is to consider the bigger picture. In other words, PierreJean focuses on understanding the different journeys being made by Biopôle’s members and partners and seeing where the opportunities lie for them to innovate together.

The background

Pierre-Jean joined Biopôle SA at the start of 2022, but has been based on the campus for a decade, joining only a few years after the first buildings were inaugurated. ‘I’m kind of the dinosaur of Biopôle,’ he jokes. With a background in cell and molecular biology, he started a company right after finishing his PhD. The move coincided with the financial crisis of the late 2000s, which offered him

valuable experience: ‘I know what it takes to start a company when it’s really not the right time.’ Since then, he has specialised in building comprehensive ecosystems on which

Pierre-Jean Wipff has a wealth of experience in assisting innovating life sciences start-ups. After several years as a innovation advisor at Innovaud, he joined the Biopôle SA team in January 2022.

companies can rely, enabling entrepreneurs to move forward faster. Indeed, those skills are now vital in his role at Biopôle SA. Pierre-Jean describes his job as ‘matchmaking’, putting the right people together: ‘I help companies find opportunities for their development and then nail down those opportunities.’

At the Biopôle campus, such opportunities could ultimately mean a licence, agreement

" I help companies find opportunities for their development and then nail down those opportunities."

or investment. But they also include the steps building up to those milestones, such as support with pilots and other collaborative or development projects, as well as facilitating information exchanges about projects, methods, strategies, goals and milestones. As Pierre-Jean puts it, Biopôle SA offers ‘a continuum of opportunities’.

Fostering the spirit of connection

Driving innovation is a key part of Biopôle SA’s vision, but Pierre-Jean believes innovation is itself a misunderstood concept. ‘It’s perceived as being super cool, but when you’re trying to build your company, it’s anything but – you really need to be prepared for relentless efforts in your quest for maturation, in your quest for impact’. He believes that is truer now than ever: ‘The competition is even more fierce than it was 10 or 15 years ago. The world is large and everybody – every country – is innovating. You have to see the people who are moving in the same direction as you – you have to differentiate yourself or be at the front of the pack to be successful’.

When the challenge is so great, what can Biopôle SA do to support its members?

Pierre-Jean feels that it’s significant that, even though the team is small (seven employees and one intern at the end of 2022), they choose to have someone on site who is dedicated to driving innovation and who is there to make connections. To him, that’s a sign that ‘Innovation is at the heart of the community that Biopôle is striving to build’.

Pierre-Jean feels that it’s vital to bring the entrepreneur out of their bubble: ‘Entrepreneurs are so focused on their day-today activities that sometimes they don’t grasp the opportunity to talk to their neighbours. And if you don’t encourage this spirit of communication – a spirit of connection –

" Entrepreneurs are so focused on their day-to-day activities that sometimes they don’t grasp the opportunity to talk to their neighbours."

The organisers of the Start-up Day, dedicated to pharma and biotech, that took place at the end of November 2022 in collaboration with Biopôle's corporate partners CSL Behring and Bristol Myres Squibb, as well as corporate member Ferring Pharmaceuticals.

then you really miss opportunities. You have to create the conditions to make these interactions happen.’

So why doesn’t Biopôle SA offer coaching?

According to Pierre-Jean, there are many accessible coaching programmes in Switzerland: ‘Companies don’t need another layer of coaching – we’re not adding value. Instead, we need to be here for everyone at Biopôle, from start-ups to major companies.’

2023: Building for collaboration

Looking forward, Biopôle SA plans to focus more closely on investors and corporate partners in 2023. ‘We’ve seen that the corporates have a lot of scouting capacity around the world, but they’re often unaware of what is happening in their own region,’ observes Pierre-Jean. ‘We’re here to make connections. We’ve learned that putting the corporations and the start-ups together adds a lot of value to the ecosystem.’

One way of making those connections is through Biopôle’s Corporate Partnership scheme, which has been running for two years. Biopôle SA currently has six different partners –Bristol Myers Squibb, CSL Behring, Ichnos Sciences, Labcorp, Swiss Medical Network and Clinique La Prairie – who, according to PierreJean, share a common thread of expressing the need to be closer to innovation environments.

‘All of them want to be introduced to new ideas, to be more active and to create a difference,’ he explains. ‘So they commit to engaging with our community. They organise events with us, partner with us for workshops and seminars, participate on juries for our initiatives and in turn, we put companies of interest under their radar and foster the relationship further through projects, collaboration and discussions.’

Corporate partners

In 2022, six corporate partners engaged with our community

• Bristol Myers Squibb •

• Clinique La Prairie •

• CSL Behring •

• Ichnos Sciences •

• Labcorp •

• Swiss Medical Network •

100+ one-to-one meetings between start-ups and our corporate partners

Vanguard

In 2022, the programme welcomed:

• Consulto •

• PeriVision •

50+ introductions were made between members and experts, investors and early adopters

Biopôle Start-up Fund

In 2022, the fund was awarded to:

• Biped.ai •

• Genknowme •

• Limula •

• ND Biosciences •

• Parithera •

• PeriVision •

• Testmate Health •

• Volumina Medical •

CHF 460,000 were given to promising start-ups selected by the fund’s Scientific Advisory Board in 2022

This network includes the Vanguard jury, a group of more than 25 individuals who represent different parts of the value chain. Sometimes, when these people really click with their Vanguard applicants, they might follow their progress in the long term. ‘It’s part of an entrepreneur’s job to seduce investors, customers, adopters,’ says Pierre-Jean. ‘When we’re considering projects for the Vanguard Accelerator programme, we consider which projects people might fall in love with.’

While the Vanguard Accelerator programme is open to all projects willing to interact with the Biopôle community, the Biopôle Start-up Fund is especially for Biopôle members and specifically young life sciences companies that have raised less than CHF 5m and are less than five years old.

Nurturing trust between people

Biopôle SA created two major initiatives that support start-ups: the Vanguard Accelerator programme and the Biopôle Start-up Fund. The former is dedicated to helping digital health start-ups mature. ‘We take companies that have a proof of concept or a minimal viable product, and we help them to find the focus that will bring them the most value,’ says Pierre-Jean. ‘It’s a crucial time: you don’t have a lot of money and you have to make crucial decisions about where to take your company,' he continues. Biopôle SA helps in that intellectual process, not through mentorship or coaching, but by acting as super connectors. It opens its network and extended network, so that the entrepreneurs can talk freely to validate their business hypotheses.

The fund is special because it covers companies’ basic needs, such as the lease, salaries and materials. Pierre-Jean explains the rationale: ‘These are the first things in your balance sheet, which must be paid before you think about financing. We help young companies so that they can focus on the other valuable activities. And we have a top-quality jury, made up of scientists, corporate investors and representatives from universities and tech, who select the companies and provide valuable feedback.’

Running for just over a year, Biopôle SA supported eight companies through the fund in 2022, offering a total of CHF 460,000. All the recipients have experienced significant progress. ‘We concretely assisted companies with acquiring critical devices that helped

" It’s part of an entrepreneur’s job to seduce investors, customers, adopters."

Innovation

them to be up and running faster, to be fully independent from universities, for instance.’

Innovating for the future

Pierre-Jean paints a bright picture of the future of innovation in life sciences, with exciting AI developments and original ways to support patients and identify better care pathways leading the way. ‘We are at the dawn of a new era.’

According to Pierre-Jean, Biopôle SA provides much more than its flagship initiatives. ‘We offer premium infrastructure, visibility, but one thing that really differentiates us is the way we nurture trust between people, so that they can exchange meaningful or helpful information, and the way we connect people or organise events or opportunities to connect them either passively or actively.'

‘People benefit from the dynamics, momentum, growth and successes of the community,’ he continues. ‘In 2022, Biopôlebased companies raised almost CHF 400m. It’s a momentum that really engages people in our community to move forward themselves.’

And that era includes open innovation. Twenty years ago, people were encouraged not to talk about their intellectual property and work behind closed doors. Now, in both the corporate and start-up world, Pierre-Jean sees a change: ‘Of course there will still be IP, protections, patents, the need not to disclose everything, but the more you interact, the more you can get involved.’

‘People are talking and exchanging ideas. Innovation is about people, and Biopôle is working to help open more of those doors –to help people find each other.’

" We nurture trust between people."

The Limula team, together with Nasri Nahas, CEO of Biopôle SA, at the announcement of Limula’s being selected for the Biopôle Start-up Fund in October 2022. The team currently works in StartLab.

The Biopôle Start-up Fund is a flagship initiative that supports the most promising life sciences ventures on campus so they can focus on exciting innovations in human health. The winners are selected by the nine members of our Scientific Advisory Board. They have shared their motivation drivers and their outlook for 2023.

Meet the Scientific Advisory Board

Ronald Kempers is the CEO and CFO of Mymetics Corporation, an earlystage vaccine development company, as well as an adviser for several start-up and scaleup companies. He predicts that 2023 will be an exciting year in the fields of AI and virtual reality, and is inspired by new technologies and innovations that disrupt the status quo and open up fresh business opportunities.

Vincent Ossipow is a Partner at Omega Funds – a venture capital firm investing in healthcare from Geneva and Boston – and is passionate about the intersection of innovative science and its practical applications for the general population. In his role, he has been involved with companies that have brought almost 50 new products to market and he hopes to continue investing in emerging talents and biomedical research start-ups in the year ahead.

Andy Oates is Dean of the School of Life Sciences at EPFL and directs the Timing, Oscillations, Patterns laboratory at the Institute of Bioengineering in Lausanne. His key professional interests lie in developmental biology, biological timing and pattern formation, and he was responsible for the discovery of a Doppler effect in an embryo – an all-time career highlight.

Tanja Dowe is the CEO of the Debiopharm Innovation Fund, the corporate venture capital arm of the Debiopharm Group, where she has worked for the past six years. In her role, she has built a strong digital health portfolio and plans to keep expanding with new investments in the year ahead – helping the start-ups in her care to reach their next value inflection and rolling out some exciting new plans for the future.

Nicolas Mermod is a Professor Emeritus at UNIL, specialising in Molecular Biotechnology and Genetics, with a particular focus on medical applications. He is driven by a desire to understand human life and will be taking a particularly keen interest in the fields of epigenetic analysis, nextgeneration DNA sequencing and gene therapy in 2023.

Stefan Kohler is the Innovation Deputy at the CHUV medical directorate in Lausanne exploring new ideas at the interface of healthcare and cutting-edge science. His main focus is on medical technologies, largely in the device and digital space, and he is committed to helping as many CHUV healthcare professionals as possible to advance their innovative ideas in the months and years ahead.

Philippe Renaud is a scientific adviser and Professor Emeritus at EPFL, where he conducts research into microtechnology, medtech and microfluidic systems. He is inspired by scientific discovery, passionate about the transfer of knowledge from academics to commercial companies and looks forward to seeing what developments 2023 brings in the area of microphysiological systems.

Michelle Scott is Vice President and Head of Discovery and Biotechnology Solutions at Labcorp, a large drug and device development services company. Michelle and her team help biotech companies, at the earliest stages of drug development, to translate their scientific ingenuity into transformative patient therapies. As a founder of one of Labcorp’s Women’s Enterprise Networks she is passionate about mentoring, encouraging and enabling women to achieve their full potential and fulfil their ambitions.

Katrin Siebenbuerger Hacki is a Director at Medows

Sàrl, a boutique consultancy for the medtech and life sciences industry worldwide. She enjoys working with a range of interesting start-ups, scale-ups and multinational clients and is looking forward to helping more clients reach commercial success and expand the value of their innovations to healthcare markets around the world, inspired by her passion for bringing strategic sales and marketing capabilities to the Swiss start-up scene.

Insights from our Vanguard Experts

Smart watches and apps have introduced us to the potential of digital health, whether for monitoring general health metrics, managing specific conditions or supporting lifestyle changes. Yet devices are just one part of the digital health landscape, as can be seen by the work being undertaken on the Biopôle campus, from creating artificial organ parts to harnessing AI for better health insights. As part of our mission to support promising digital health-oriented projects, our six-month Vanguard Accelerator programme provides startups and innovators with access to our panel of experienced digital health experts, who provide real-world insights from their work in healthcare and strategic advice for taking a project forward.

Research led by Professor Thomas Hügle, Head of Rheumatology at the CHUV, currently focuses on digital rheumatology and developing machine learning algorithms for disease prediction. Moreover, his work in a healthcare setting provides him with unique insights into the issues that could be solved by technology.

‘Technological innovation is set to transform patients’ experiences,’ says Thomas, ‘and up-to-date, real-world data will mean we’ll learn more about diseases – and therefore be better placed to treat them.'

AI and the predictive potential of algorithms are key. For instance, Thomas highlights how AI is being used in diabetes care to provide constant device-based monitoring of blood glucose, and he believes that is a model that might be replicated for other chronic diseases.

Medtech business leader Pierre Chavineau believes digital health innovation can make a difference in cardiovascular disease. In that regard, Pierre believes innovation must home in on the power of early diagnosis.

‘Thanks to the rise of new technologies like AI-based algorithms and wearables,’ he says, ‘patients will be able to detect abnormal heart rhythms without needing to set foot in a hospital.’ Indeed, our expert predicts future cardiology innovations will take selfmonitoring and prevention to a whole new level.

Hôpital de La Tour CEO

Rodolphe Eurin’s advice is that innovators go beyond the explicit needs of the healthcare sector. ‘It’s important to understand the constraints faced by hospitals when launching new applications.’

While the innovation potential is immense, there are also considerable challenges. Our experts predict staff training, regulation and data protection to be just some of the issues innovators must consider when developing their projects.

Fortunately, the panel’s experience, whether in research, clinical practice or business, means start-ups joining the programme will have a head start as they attempt to pre-empt any pitfalls and take their business strategies to the next level.

Simone Gibertoni, CEO of Clinique La Prairie since 2016, is aiming to continue its history of innovation to make it ‘the world’s most renowned and progressive spa-clinic’.

Clinique La Prairie and its pioneering heritage

Biopôle SA’s corporate partnership programme links local companies to Biopôle’s community, infrastructure and network – including their innovation pipeline. Clinique La Prairie, which offers luxury health and wellness programmes, is one of Biopôle’s six corporate partners. We spoke to CEO Simone Gibertoni about the special relationship that Clinique La Prairie has with Biopôle SA and the mutual benefits that it brings, including through its collaboration with Biopôle members.

A long history of innovation Simone followed, in his own words, ‘a very strange path’ into life sciences, starting in banking, moving to consulting, then cosmetics and innovation. He joined Clinique La Prairie in 2016 with an aim of building the brand and scaling it internationally. He brought his obvious passion to working in one of the fastest growing industries – the US$4.5 trillion wellness market.

According to Simone, Clinique La Prairie's vision is to be ‘the world’s most renowned and progressive spa-clinic’. It has a long history and was famous in the 1950s as a sophisticated, pioneering destination clinic. Simone explains: ‘We were the first to say that we didn’t want to only focus on wellness, talks and fasting – we wanted to have a strong medical partner.’ So Clinique La Prairie built a medical centre, concentrating on traditional and preventative medicine. At the start of 2023, its medical centre houses 50 doctors and three operating theatres. The company’s central focus has always been longevity, and its ambitions continue in that field. By 2040, Clinique La Prairie plans to have built ten more health resorts globally, as well as 40 longevity hubs in major cities. Simone outlines the rationale: ‘The weak point of what we do here in Montreux is that the people tend to come here, complete their programme, then go home, thinking that they can do whatever they want for the rest of the year because they’ve been in the clinic for one week. So I thought, how can I build a system that sustains the result I’ve been able to deliver during that week?’ The global clinics and the longevity hubs, three of which are already open, were the answer.

Technology at the service of longevity

When asked about Clinique La Prairie's approach to innovation, Simone states: ‘I want people to see us as an innovation company. I believe that in the long term people will come to us, not to do fasting or wellness programmes, but to get the best technology in longevity.’ But, of course, such technology requires new ideas and development, often coming from dynamic start-ups. Simone explains why the company needs partners: ‘I don’t have billions to put into the innovation myself, so we need to scout for it. We’re very lucky to have a company like Biopôle

For Semira Gonseth Nusslé, co-founder and chief medical officer of Genknowme, working with Simone Gibertoni and his team at Clinique La Prairie is a mutually beneficial collaboration, in which cocreation is the main driver of innovation.

Clinique La Prairie partner and Biopôle member

Genknowme’s cutting-edge research into epigenetic signatures meant that the company had a busy year in 2022, as it expanded market access outside Switzerland and England. Several major steps were also taken in the

company’s R&D, as it filed a patent application for its multifactorial biological age assessment and identified a new epigenetic signature for stress. Other highlights include publishing a peerreviewed scientific paper and presenting at a scientific conference.

20 minutes down the road. They make vital introductions.’

Genknowme describes its relationship with Clinique La Prairie as ‘a mutually beneficial arrangement’ focused on cocreation: the company also provides valuable feedback on products and processes, while Genknowme participates in its partner’s development.

Of course, another challenge is helping clients to understand the benefits of new products. Simone explains that it’s all about trust: ‘We have the very important role of translating the value of innovative treatments for our client, to help them understand them. For that to work, you need credibility.’ He gives the example of genetic testing. Clinique La Prairie was the first clinic in the world to perform such tests on all guests as standard, although at first it was an optional extra. Simone clarifies: ‘We were offering this service, but nobody was taking it. They didn’t want to know what was "wrong" with them. We had to make it clear that the tests are not just a way to spot rare diseases or cancer – they can help you live a longer, better life.’ By making it a standard part of its programmes, Clinique La Prairie could help its clients understand the benefits.

Collaborating with Biopôle

We asked Simone why Lausanne is the right

place to look for new technologies. He explains that there are opportunities elsewhere, for example in Asia, but innovation there focuses on volume, scale and price, which doesn’t match Clinique La Prairie's more sophisticated needs. In the USA, there are interesting offerings, but Simone outlines a different issue with scale: ‘There you need a lot of money because as soon as there’s a very interesting innovation, boom, there’s venture capital and hundreds of millions of dollars heading towards this company. In Switzerland there are smaller start-ups, which are not thinking about growth in the same way – they want to work with a smaller company like us.’

According to Simone, it was an easy decision to partner with Biopôle: ‘For me it was a no-brainer. It’s one of the most incredible innovation hubs in the world. They help us understand what is happening in our field and, of course, they introduce us to a lot of companies that we could potentially work with.’ Naturally, there are benefits for Biopôle’s members too. Simone explains one advantage that Clinique La Prairie has to offer: ‘We physically meet clients. That's why a lot of start-ups like to work with us – they see us as a way to test their technologies.’

" I want people to see us as an innovation company."

One of Biopôle’s introductions has led Clinique La Prairie into new territory: direct investment, namely in Volumina Medical, a Biopôlebased company developing breakthrough innovations for regenerative medicine, plastic and reconstructive surgery. Their first product AdiPearl™ is an implantable biomaterial that targets the regeneration of soft tissue of the human body. Why Volumina Medical? Simone describes the situation as ‘quite unique’. Clinique La Prairie had already been collaborating with the company – Volumina Medical won its Innovation Award in spring 2022 – and was impressed with the start-up’s storytelling and vision for its product. Simone is also looking ahead: ‘There are lots of possibilities in the future on the beauty side. There are ways to work together in terms of branding and distribution, especially given the global network that Clinique La Prairie is building.’

Genknowme is another Biopôle member working closely with the company – it performs all the epigenetic testing for Clinique La Prairie's clients. But why was Genknowme selected? It came down to the needs of the clients, who usually attend a week-long residential programme. The tests need to be performed by a doctor at Clinique La Prairie and the results need to be delivered in person before a client’s stay is over to offer them real impact. It’s a challenge, but according to Simone : ‘Genknowme was the only company in the world able to deliver the test in five days, and they’ve been delivering 30 to 50 tests a month to us for almost two years now.’

Clinique La Prairie is also exploring opportunities for collaboration with other companies. But Simone explains that, even when they decide not to partner with a startup, they value the experience of meeting them: ‘Biopôle SA has presented many, many companies to us. We’ve been part of many

assessments and lots of discussions – and we always feel enriched by them.’

Investment: A new strategy

Simone outlined that the company is currently positioned between luxury, medicine and hospitality, but innovation is becoming more and more prevalent: ‘It’s part of our history. Almost 100 years ago we were pioneers in cellular therapy. We want to deliver cuttingedge innovation to our clients now too.’

One way to access the latest technologies and methods is to invest in them, as Clinique La Prairie has done with Volumina Medical, and Simone feels they’re in a strong position to do that more often as they have a number of strengths they can offer. The accumulated knowledge of Simone and his team would benefit an innovative company, plus having a hospital on site and long-standing client relationships (some have returned every year for 40 years), it’s possible to track the effectiveness of its programmes and treatments in a way that most longevity centres can’t. Finally, Clinique La Prairie can leverage financial capacity and knowledge from its clients. Simone explains: ‘They have such trust in us and what we’re doing that many of them would invest with me in tomorrow if I decided to start an investment programme.’ With the life sciences ecosystem around them, Biopôle SA as a partner and Simone’s drive, it’s easy to see how the company's vision could become a reality.

" Biopôle SA has presented many, many companies to us and we always feel enriched by them."

Clinique La Prairie partner and Biopôle member, Volumina Medical specialises in developing innovative biomaterials, and 2022 saw a number of key milestones in its growth.

In spring, Volumina Medical received Clinique La Prairie's Innovation Award, given to the most innovative start-up offering a technology that addresses healthy ageing in the French-speaking area of Switzerland. Later in the year, it placed 15th in the TOP 100 Swiss Startup 2022 ranking – included in the list for the fourth year in a row – and was named in the top three for medtech.

The company closed its Series A funding round in October to further develop its lead product AdiPearl™, which has gone through extensive preclinical studies and is now being tested in patients. The round included existing investors and notable new investors, including Clinique La Prairie and Skyviews Life Science Ltd.

Finally, Volumina Medical was awarded a CHF 500,000 Tech Growth loan by the Foundation for Technological Innovation (FIT) in December, which will enable it to conduct a clinical study in Europe.

Simone Gibertoni is working with Amélie Beduer, CEO of Volumina Medical, a startup developing innovations for regenerative medicine, plastic and reconstructive surgery. He defines trust as the key element when taking such novel products and processes to his clients.

Volumina Medical

Spaces

Bespoke Biopôle:

Building connections, connecting spaces

Spaces

Biopôle is a campus that doesn’t stand still. The first building was inaugurated in 2009 and the site has been growing steadily since. The current total of eight buildings have been in place since 2020 and there are a further five in construction, with the Leucine building due to open its doors in 2023. With this ever-expanding campus, the options for workspaces are abundant – so if you want to move your operations to Biopôle, where do you start? We met Olivier Philippe, Biopôle SA’s Corporate Relations and Business Development Director, to guide us through what the site has to offer in terms of access to the spaces, networks and opportunities that make up Biopôle’s unique ecosystem

Ever-evolving needs

When CEO Nasri Nahas arrived at Biopôle SA in 2015, the campus had only one type of space to offer: a private office and/or lab with a minimum area of 300 m2 – more suited to corporate headquarters than a fledgling start-up or temporary project. Part of the new CEO’s strategy was to really understand the needs of life sciences start-ups and established companies to offer flexible space options that would work for them.

The inner courtyard of the Arginine, Valine and Trypto complex will offer residents a cool, shaded area in which to relax. The buildings, due to be completed by early 2025, offer more than 20,000 m2 of office and laboratory space. The project is going ahead thanks to investment from Edmond de Rothschild Real Estate SICAV.

In late 2022, Biopôle SA began construction work to expand the premises of the StartLab laboratory; this will be completed in March 2023. The development aims to further assist StartLab companies to grow and to meet increasing demand for shared serviced laboratories on site.

Nothing to sell, much to offer Biopôle SA has no spaces to sell – it doesn’t own the buildings so it isn’t hunting for tenants. Instead, Biopôle SA is here to support. It helps people grow their companies, get set up and take advantage of the networks and resources on campus, in the region and beyond. As Olivier points out : ‘We’re rather like an ecosystem builder on a quest to create a major pole of excellence in life sciences.’

What lab space is available?

At Biopôle, a company that needs lab space has three options: StartLab, ‘the serviced coworking lab’, Superlab ‘the serviced private lab’ or a bespoke space.

Besides its vibrant ecosystem, one of the key things the Biopôle campus offers is a space in which to work, and there are plenty of options to choose from, based on the size of the company – from a single desk in a co-working space to several floors of a building. Only one major requirement was set at the creation of the campus: the companies must be active in life sciences.

StartLab is unique in Switzerland: a shared facility suitable for launching a small project, a new start-up or a period of transition. Opened in 2018, it currently offers lab infrastructure and equipment, with 64 benches tailored to wetlab life sciences research, plus accompanying office space and front office management. Olivier describes it as the ‘plug and play’ option. At the end of 2022, StartLab was expanded, in response to raising demand, from 1,000 to 1,500 m2. As well as more space, new equipment and amenities were introduced; for example, a biosafety Level 2 lab, a fab-lab, a bigger cafeteria and more meeting rooms.

" Biopôle SA has no spaces to sell. Biopôle SA is here to support."

CREATIVELY NURTURING RELATIONSHIPS, NEW AND OLD

Being based at Biopôle is not just about having a space in which to work. Alongside the buildings, Biopôle SA shares its valuable network with its members, helping residents to connect with the right people, partners, openings and experts to create synergies, both on and off campus. As a result, Biopôle members benefit from opportunities for funding, business development and collaboration.

Olivier Philippe joined Biopôle SA in 2016, recruited by Nasri Nahas to implement his business expansion strategy. Since then, he has worked to attract new companies to the community. Yet despite the vision of constantly growing the number of companies operating on site, Olivier simultaneously nurtures relationships with community members from across the organisational spectrum, thus remaining in tune with the developing needs of companies that have already chosen to make the Biopôle campus their home. As he puts it : ‘It's very important to keep the connection, the relationship, the trust that we’ve built with these companies.’ That way, when the companies grow, Biopôle SA is by their side for the long haul.

In one example, Olivier remained in close contact with the CEO of a promising start-up that had initially rented 400 m2 on the Biopôle campus. It soon became clear that the start-up’s intention was to grow, but the team liked the space they had already. They just wanted to expand – to remain on the same floor – but with more room. Olivier and his colleagues at Biopôle SA got to work, liaising with the existing residents on that floor, finding them alternative space that would suit them, and even moving the Biopôle SA head office to another building. ‘This is the kind of creative solution we are proud of,’ says Olivier, ‘which was only possible thanks to the existing community spirit at Biopôle.’

Olivier Philippe helps companies setting up their operations at Biopôle and introduces them to the right people to facilitate their growth.

3,000 m2 of serviced laboratories in total (the largest in Switzerland) 17 companies hosted at StartLab 11 companies hosted at Superlab

Spaces

In 2020, Biopôle SA invested in the creation of Superlab, which is managed privately by Superlab Suisse SA and offers more than 1,500 m2 of private serviced lab space, ready to go, with some shared equipment. For some companies outgrowing StartLab, it’s

the obvious next step – in fact, some of the first StartLab members have made the move already. For others, it’s their first choice when looking for private laboratories. Olivier explains the rationale: ‘As a company, you’re growing the team, you also want to have your own space, but without running it, managing it or building it. So that’s what Superlab offers.’

Some companies prefer a third option: to build their own lab within the Biopôle campus. The buildings at Biopôle are designed to house labs, so it isn’t difficult to make any space suitable for R&D or production, according to a company’s requirements. And some companies prefer to build custom-made labs in collaboration with Biopôle SA. There are even companies that joined the campus through StartLab who have then chosen the option of custom-made facilities and Biopôle SA has been there to help with the transition. Olivier explains the move: ‘When you’re in a shared facility, you’re part of a community and it’s very reassuring. But when you start up on your own, it’s a big step. We’re able to help by finding the best location on campus, by supporting on the design side. We love to be able to assist Biopôle companies with their growth.’

Superlab offers private serviced laboratories with a touch of design. The resident companies enjoy shared facilities and a beautiful terrace for their breaks.

Spaces

Digital Health Hub (DH2)

25+ digital health companies on site

15 hosted in the DH2

1,100 m2 of private office and co-working space

Supported by Clinique de La Source and Hôpital de La Tour

What about office space?

The same choices apply to offices too, with desks in shared co-working spaces, private offices to rent and bespoke spaces, either in an existing building or in one of the new developments on the Biopôle site. In 2022, Biopôle SA created more than 25 small and mid-size offices, covering about 2,000 m2 in the Serine building, in response to the increasing demand for such spaces.

Another space that was created in 2019 and extended in 2022 is DH2, a dedicated area for digital and healthcare innovators. It offers desks in a co-working space (with private lockers, Wi-Fi, a shared printer, etc.) as well as private offices. Today, 15 companies with shared and private offices call it their home. However, the number of companies working in digital health is growing and an additional ten companies are currently hosted elsewhere on campus.

Bespoke spaces

Some companies prefer to build their lab and office space from scratch as part of new developments on site, in collaboration with Biopôle SA and the building owners.

Olivier feels that Biopôle SA’s flexibility and understanding of its companies’ needs is what makes it a special place: ‘We are always in contact with the CEOs of the companies. We can plan ahead: what does their growth look like? What might their future needs look like? And we adapt.’

The kitchen at the DH2 is the perfect place to meet digital health experts over lunch.

2015

6 buildings

Surface area

33,000 m2

2020

8 buildings

Surface area

54,000 m2

2025

14 buildings

Surface area

105,000 m2

Spaces

Accommodating the teams of the future

In 2023, the Leucine building will be open and development will start on a further 23,000 m2 due for completion by 2025. Ludwig Cancer Research and the CHUV have also started construction of a major R&D centre on site, due by 2024.

In terms of industries, Olivier notes that, having created the space and ecosystem on campus for R&D and innovative companies, more and more companies focusing on those areas are bringing their research work to Biopôle.

More recently, companies have also been requesting space for their biotech and pharma production projects, indicating a potential future trend towards that part of the industry.

Olivier is also mindful of the effect that new ways of working are having, with workspaces potentially affecting talent acquisition and teamwork. ‘Companies need to understand how the premises can work to best accommodate the teams of the future,’ he says. ‘And, following Covid, that includes remote and hybrid working, which affect the way you design how a space is used.’

The SE-C building, developed by the CHUV in collaboration with Ludwig Cancer Research.

Spaces

Co-working spaces for new businesses

Co-working spaces are essential for those setting up activities in a new region or launching a new business. To respond to an increase in demand for such spaces, Biopôle SA created an additional co-working

space in the Serine building in 2022. Today, more than 45 desks are available on site across three different co-working spaces, including StartLab. All spaces are bright, modern and fully furnished,

featuring individual desks (160 cm by 80 cm) with access to private lockers, Wi-Fi and a shared printer, plus shared meeting rooms, a kitchenette and showers.

Small to medium offices (ranging from 30 m2 to 250 m2) are popular on campus: companies enjoy the privacy of their own space while having other like-minded people and companies close by. To meet increasing demand, Biopôle SA has worked extensively in recent years to find the right solution for existing members and newcomers. In 2022, Biopôle SA created, in collaboration with the property owner EPIC Suisse, more than 25 new small private offices in the Serine building. By the end of 2022, more than 60 small offices had been set up across the campus. All spaces benefit from shared meeting rooms, kitchenettes and showers.

Private offices for larger teams

Spaces

BIPED.AI AT SERINE

Biped.ai might be young, but we have big ideas! Bruno and I met and found a shared desire to improve the mobility of blind and visually impaired people using AI. The R&D into self-driving cars piqued our interest and so we created biped.ai. It’s a smart harness, worn on the shoulders, that uses self-driving technology to guide people with short sounds to navigate around space and obstacles. In 2021, we were thrilled to join the Vanguard Accelerator programme, setting up in the DH2 co-working space. In 2022, it was amazing to then be selected for the Biopôle Start-up Fund and receive investment to sponsor our private office in the new Serine building. This open office space is over two floors, with common and shared areas, offering our team opportunities to learn and network. The space is energetic and visionary, so we can all mix and share knowledge freely and enjoy the vibrant community spirit when developing our product.

Mael Fabien, CEO

OPNA BIO SA AT SUPERLAB

Opna Bio is an emerging biotech company focused on the discovery and development of novel cancer treatments. We have a space within Superlab and having access to a private, fully equipped laboratory space means we can accelerate our R&D programme and grow our drug portfolio, focused on targeting immune suppression and other hallmarks of cancer. To be able to work in such an environment, alongside other innovative peers, is a great opportunity to share learning and create added value for our business. Recently, we raised US$38m, allowing us to capitalise on the discovery of a new cancer target –the fragile-X mental retardation protein (FMRP) – and develop a portfolio of cancer drugs acquired from Plexxikon. It’s a new start that allows us, in a way, to reinvent part of our history. This fresh investment allows us to fully utilise the space in Superlab.

Dr Gideon Bollag, CEO and co-founder

LIMULA AT STARTLAB

Limula was established with the mission to make the most personalised cancer treatments more broadly available. We develop a fully automated platform for scalable production of cell and gene therapies. We joined StartLab in January 2022, leveraging three months’ rent gifted by Biopôle as a prize in the IMAGINE IF! competition. We did not need this award to choose Biopôle to establish our company and accelerate the development of our first product, but we are honoured to have been selected amongst the other very exciting start-ups competing in the final. Biopôle’s infrastructure is perfect for the projects we perform with our partners, and the team was provided with invaluable support in the tran sition from R&D to commercial, alongside fresh, non-dilutive funding.

Luc Henry, CEO

VOLV AT DH2

Our digital life sciences company Volv leverages AI to help investigate and flag patients with difficult-to-diagnose diseases, improving healthcare journeys and optimising clinical trials. Since 2019 we’ve been based at the DH2. We’re very proud of the design of our offices and also appreciate the well-appointed facilities provided, which enable us to work at the cutting edge of life sciences in a perfect work environment. How Biopôle was set up, what it offers with programmes like the Biopôle Start-up Fund and what it creates on campus – all that is really useful for companies like ours. Also, to have a vibrant diverse community on the campus, which drives those interactions with others who are also taking a pioneering path at the forefront of science in the DH2, means you don’t feel that you are doing it alone.

Christopher Rudolf, CEO

Why do companies choose Biopôle?

Biopôle SA frequently interviews members of the Biopôle community. We love the opportunity to learn more about what they do and the projects that are important to them. In turn, we publish these interviews as Biopôle Stories on our website and share them on our social media, to share our members’ work with the rest of the campus and beyond. One question that we always ask is, ‘Why did you choose Biopôle for your company?’ and we wanted to take the opportunity to share some of their answers with you here.

Dr Sahar Hosseinian Ehrensberger, Co-Founder and CTO of Novigenix SA

We were one of the very first companies at Biopôle; we’ve been here since 2014. We’ve seen Biopôle grow over this time and become a great hub for life sciences companies. There are lots of options for different collaborations and we’ve built many networks here. Biopôle SA does a phenomenal job of gathering people together through lab sharing and other initiatives. And they have solutions for anyone wanting to join – big companies, small companies and start-ups.

Patrick Perrier, Co-Founder of DermApp Biopôle is the ideal place to grow our business as it’s one of the scientific powerhouses of the country and it’s in an excellent location due to its proximity to academic institutions, its transport links – and the beauty of Lake Geneva and the mountains, of course.

Dr Nicolas Collin, Co-Founder and CEO of VFI (Vaccine Formulation Institute)

As a very strong team, we pursue together our vision without compromising on our ethics. We make decisions based on people. For instance, VFI moved to Geneva but decided to have a second lab at Biopôle so we could retain our original team (mostly based in Lausanne). It works really well for us to have two labs, and it allows us to take advantage of Biopôle’s capabilities and unique ecosystem.

Spaces

The Leucine building will be operational by autumn 2023 and will connect the north and south of the Biopôle campus. In addition to office and laboratory spaces, it will provide shared amenities for the community.

Professional services supporting life sciences

Naturally, the companies driving technological change at Biopôle tend to dominate the spotlight. The campus, however, is home to several expert teams that offer professional services and consultancy, adding another layer to our already diverse community. These companies assist Biopôle members with various aspects of their business, such as HR, regulatory compliance and scientific communications. Some of them specialise wholly in life sciences. We have asked two companies –VirdisGroup and Vivactis Switzerland – to explain their work on campus in 2022.

More than 20 life sciences servicing companies work on campus. Here, the Mhetra team is pictured in their offices located in the Serine building.

Spaces

VirdisGroup: Bringing the right talent and innovation support to community members VirdisGroup helps its partners to identify, engage and hire top talent through its life sciences executive search service. It also offers InvestConnect, using its expertise to provide support to leverage technology and help its clients move to the next level

In 2022, VirdisGroup worked in close collaboration with Biopôle member Legacy Healthcare. Legacy Healthcare aims to develop novel drugs for autoimmune, inflammatory and ageing-related conditions, safe enough for chronic use especially by more fragile individuals, for example children or cancer patients. Its first drug, Coacillium, is currently in phase 2/3 testing for the treatment of alopecia areata. Legacy Healthcare is working with VirdisGroup to find the right talent to add value to the business as it grows.

Meanwhile, Biopôle-based Exogems has been working with VirdisGroup as part of its InvestConnect service. The early-stage Swiss biotech company plans to exploit the therapeutic potential of exosomes, small vesicles found in eukaryotic fluids, aiming to develop yields with proven clinical efficiency against glioblastoma. Dr Carmelo Bisognano, VirdisGroup’s Investor & New Companies Relations Lead, has been elected CEO of Exogems to structure and manage the company in the early preclinical stage phase and create value for the successive financial and clinical steps.

Vivactis Switzerland: Experts in the life sciences market

Vivactis Switzerland is a marketing and communication agency exclusively focused on healthcare and life sciences. It offers services to companies, clinics, hospitals, research centres and NGOs, covering pharma, biotech, medtech, diagnostics, nutrition and digital health. It supports its clients with market access and marketing strategies; medical marketing and communications, education and writing; clinical studies; and direct-to-patient information and patient coaching programmes.

In 2022, Vivactis supported biped.ai to prepare the launch of its device, a smart harness worn on shoulders that uses self-driving technology to guide visually impaired individuals. Vivactis helped with medical and target analysis, leading to a prelaunch positioning statement, a full corporate communication plan and a marketing strategy.

Genknowme works on developing an innovative blood test that identifies key epigenetic markers. In the context of a grant submission, Vivactis provided the company with support for market analysis (market identification, medical context analysis and business opportunities) and a marketing plan.

Vivactis also conducted a complete literature review and edited a report summarising scientific articles, which Distalmotion, a medical devices company specialising in robotic surgery, can include in its clinical study activities.

Outlook

The past, the present and the future

Eighteen years have passed since Biopôle SA was founded by the public authorities of the canton of Vaud. What was initially planned to be a life sciences hub has become a dynamic community, in which collaboration – the raison d’être of Biopôle – is not just a consequence but a reason for members to join. We met Nouria Hernandez, the President of Biopôle SA’s Board, and Nasri Nahas, Biopôle SA’s CEO, two figures who have provided the impetus for this change, to understand the past, the present and what we can expect from 2023.

Distinguished molecular biology researcher and former Rector of UNIL Nouria Hernandez joined the Biopôle SA Board in 2016 and has been the elected President of the Board since 2020. Nasri Nahas joined Biopôle SA as CEO in late 2015. After leading life sciences companies in France and Switzerland for more than two decades, he built an entire new team to build his vision of a life sciences community.

Nouria, having worked abroad for several years, why do you think life sciences companies seek to become established in Switzerland? There are many reasons why a life sciences company might want to base itself here. Switzerland has many strong universities and the best university hospital in the country, the CHUV, is right here in Lausanne – it was ranked 9th in the world in 2021 and 11th in 2022. That echoes the result of our survey of the Biopôle community this year, where our CEOs stated that talent acquisition is among their top priorities. I also think that the cantonal authorities in Vaud have a strong desire to support life sciences in general and innovation in particular and therefore invest in organisations that encourage them. Our region also has a huge diversity of institutions dedicated to life sciences, and they all collaborate with each other. That is an unbelievable strength. Not to mention the beauty of the place – it’s exceptionally pretty on the shores of Lake Geneva.

authorities in

have a strong desire to support life sciences in general and innovation in particular."

What role does Biopôle SA play in life sciences here?

Biopôle SA has created a campus where you have academic institutions and companies side by side. But they don't just coexist; they also collaborate and interact – because Biopôle SA devises events that favour interaction, which is very important because that’s often how ideas are born. Biopôle SA also does a lot to help very young companies launch and survive. One example is StartLab, which is entirely equipped to do experiments and thus suited to encouraging young entrepreneurs to make the move from academia to entrepreneurship.

It also gives a lot to the academic world. Biopôle SA helps create links with business because it understands the needs of both companies and academic institutions, and what they mutually have to offer to each other. Biopôle SA is therefore in a unique position to identify

" The cantonal

Vaud

opportunities for collaboration and then act as an intermediary. For example, Biopôle arranged for companies to have access to UNIL’s technological platforms. And of course, the campus also provides jobs for the universities’ graduates.

Biopôle brings to the region a unique place for companies to thrive. It offers an ecosystem rich in diversity, home to experts in medtech, digital health, diagnostics, pharma and biotech. It’s a place where academic, clinical and industry research converge, and big companies and SMEs meet young start-ups and scale-ups.

What is Biopôle SA’s role on campus and how has it changed?

We’re here to listen and facilitate. We’re here for our members – we make sure they can focus on their innovation, which I believe is about taking a brilliant idea to market. That is where Biopôle SA and our networks come into play. We help them find the right partners, connect with the right clinics and raise the funds they need. And that was one of the surprises we had along the way; I never thought the need for networking and for innovation – in the sense of putting people together and connecting the dots –would be so great.

much practical experience. Alongside that, people who are in a relationship often look for jobs in the same place, which can be tough. Luckily, we have a lot of opportunities here in Vaud, which makes it easier for couples who are researchers to find work.

Once you’ve got that first job, the trick is to stay on top of your field because knowledge advances really quickly these days. You also need to balance your professional and private lives and give time to both to avoid burning out.

What is the greatest challenge for an entrepreneur working in life sciences today, and how do you help?

It’s very difficult to differentiate yourself today. The life sciences are booming and investors have a lot of choices. So entrepreneurs need an idea that will make an impact and one that will really make sense to the patient or end users. Through our network, we try to help our young companies focus and understand where they are, where they can be and what is missing to make an impact and differentiate. What are the next steps? Not for their innovation or their technological challenge per se, but for their market challenge – their business challenge. What is needed for their brilliant idea to make an impact?

What challenges do young life sciences researchers face today?

Initially, the challenge is to find your first job because, coming from the academic world, you know a huge number of things but you don't have

We help them to work with the right people, to find the right investors. Sometimes our companies spend a lot of time searching for money, just not in the right spot. Occasionally, we have to tell them they’re not ready to speak to investors yet. We try to connect them with political or academic partners that could help them.

" We’re here to listen and facilitate."

In your opinion, what is the future of life sciences?

I feel that digitalisation is going to play a key role. It will keep patients at home and out of hospitals. People will be treated as trusted citizens, real actors in their own health, so we’ll move away from the traditional top-down approach. Also, since one size doesn’t fit all, I think there will be more and more personalised medicines.

We can do more for patients. On the one hand, we have personalised, precision medicine, but on the other, we risk the healthcare system becoming more and more impersonal. We have to be careful because patients need to be listened to. Because of this, I believe that patient groups and organisations are going to grow and acquire more influence.

Patients also know more than ever about their diseases and medicine in general because they have access to a huge amount of information that wasn’t always readily available before. I think we have to take that into account.

Finally, a lot could be done to help develop drugs that are useful to only a small proportion of the population. Companies don’t develop them because they’re not commercially viable, but I think there is space here for some kind of system to develop drugs that could change those people’s lives.

What are your ambitions for Biopôle SA in 2023?

In 2023, we will offer more of the same progress, with the launch of new infrastructures and programmes and a special focus on our corporate partners and their networking with our

community. On the other hand, we will initiate a new focus on investors. Also, we will be taking time to consider our corporate social responsibility compliance, reflecting not only on Biopôle SA, but also on the campus and shared infrastructure, so we can lead the way for our members and support them. Our health is directly linked to the environments in which we live and work – you cannot be a life sciences community and claim not to care about the wider picture.

In your opinion, what is the future of Biopôle?

As Nasri points out, our society faces another challenge linked to health: the climate. Biopôle SA is well aware of that, so any new venture that is developed will have to benefit society in general while also being compatible with Switzerland’s climate-related goals. If things continue to go as well as they are going now, Biopôle SA will have opportunities to invest in new ventures. It will be an exciting challenge to come up with ideas on how to best serve health in a very broad sense!

In September 2000, a project called le Biopôle de Vennes is presented to the State Council of the canton of Vaud for the first time.

The original site plan with its surroundings, including the existing Centre des laboratoires d’Épalinges, Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV) and the University of Lausanne’s (UNIL) joint international centre for immunology, infectious diseases and vaccine research.

In autumn 2003, Vaud’s Grand Council approves the Vennes-Biopole development. It will specialise in the health sector, particularly in highvalue-added activities in the medical sector.

In December 2004, Biopôle SA is founded by the canton of Vaud public authorities. The shareholders are the canton of Vaud (97.5%), the city of Lausanne (1.25%) and the municipality of Épalinges (1.25%).

The first two buildings on the campus – Metio and Lysine, developed by EPIC Suisse – are inaugurated.

The first biotech and diagnostics companies set up their operations at Biopôle, including Xigen, Anergis, Legacy Healthcare, Mymetics, Unilabs and Adipogen.

The M2 metro line is completed. It is now possible to reach the city centre in less than ten minutes.

The canton of Vaud centralises biomedical research fromUNIL, CHUV and Ludwig Cancer Research on campus.

Today, Metio hosts several corporations and services, including a blood donation centre.

Glycine is one of the iconic buildings on campus and hosts a medical centre, including an emergency room.

Phenyl – a new building developed by OROX Asset Management SA, part of Edmond de Rothschild REIM – is inaugurated.

New multinationals join Biopôle: Nestlé Health Science, ADC Therapeutics and ARIAD Pharmaceuticals (now Incyte).

October 2015, Biopôle SA’s board of directors appoints the current CEO, Nasri Nahas, to oversee a major reorganisation of the campus.

Biopôle hosts 20 life sciences companies.

Three more buildings, developed by various investors – Glycine (La Vaudoise), SE-D (OROX –now part of Edmond de Rothschild REIM) and Proline (EPIC Suisse) – are inaugurated.

The Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine, Unisanté, joins the campus.

Innovaud is created by the public authorities of the canton of Vaud. Its life sciences adviser finds a home at Biopôle.

In July 2016, Biopôle appoints a new board of directors: a key step in the validation of its new strategy and its repositioning as a leading life sciences community.

CHUV’s Cellular Manufacturing Facility, dedicated to immunotherapy treatments, is inaugurated.

Biologist and engineer by training, Nasri Nahas has extensive experience in biotech and a deep understanding of the start-up scene.

In March 2019, the Digital Health Hub (DH2) is launched to welcome companies working on digital health solutions.

The Alanine building developed by Retraites Populaires is completed. ADC Therapeutics raises US$200m and becomes one of the few unicorn private biotech startups in Europe, with a company valuation of US $ 1.3 billion.

The Biopôle Start-up Fund, with a total of CHF 500k per annum, is launched by Biopôle SA. Novostia and Genknowme are the first companies to enter the programme.

Biopôle SA supports the launch of Superlab Suisse’s first branch on campus. This partnership strengthens the support that Biopôle SA can offer its companies.

Ferring Pharmaceuticals opens the Ferring Biologics Innovation Centre at Biopôle.

StartLab, a fully equipped shared and serviced lab space, is launched by Biopôle SA. It can host up to 12 companies.

Glenmark Pharmaceuticals, now Ichnos Sciences, opens a major translational research and discovery centre at Biopôle.

The Serine building, developed by EPIC Suisse, is completed, bringing Biopôle SA’s total constructed surface to 54,000 m2

ADC Therapeutics joins NASDAQ.

Biopôle SA forms its first corporate partnerships, with CSL Behring and Clinique La Prairie. The aim of the programme is to connect corporates to the startup world.

The current President of Biopôle SA’s board of directors, Nouria Hernandez, is appointed in October 2020.

With the completion of the Serine building, the campus now hosts eight buildings with a total floor space of 54,000 m2

HAYA Therapeutics, Gnubiotics Sciences and Volumina Medical are the first tenants of StartLab.

Bristol Myers Squibb and the Swiss Medical Network become Biopôle SA corporate partners.

Biopôle SA launches the Vanguard Accelerator. Biped, Impli and Gabi SmartCare are among the first start-ups supported.

The campus includes more than 90 life sciences companies and 15 service-oriented companies, with a total of 2,200 residents.

In September 2023, the Leucine building (developed by CPEV) is due to be inaugurated, offering an additional 9,500 m2.

Both StartLab and DH2 move to bigger spaces. StartLab can now host up to 20 companies.

Roche Diagnostics sets up a collaboration hub for their teams at Biopôle.

Ichnos joins Biopôle SA’s corporate partners.

Three new buildings, developed by Edmond de Rothschild ERRES, are due to be completed, providing a further 23,000 m2 of office and laboratory space.

The SE-C building is due to be inaugurated. It will host laboratory and GMP (good manufacturing practice) facilities for CHUV, UNIL and Ludwig Cancer Research.

The Biopôle site should reach a total area of 100,000 m2, the equivalent of 19 football pitches, all dedicated to life sciences.

Arginine, Valine and Trypto will be the largest development at Biopôle.

Superlab’s first tenants are HAYA Therapeutics, Cellestia and Opna Bio. The first two move from StartLab.

Leucine will host both office and laboratory space, alongside services, such a restaurant.

Directory

This directory lists the companies and services on the Biopôle campus. Please be aware that it is not complete as some companies have chosen not to be included.

Abionic

abionic.com

Diagnostics

Abionic is developing and manufacturing rapid in vitro diagnostic solutions using its proprietary nanofluidic technology.

AC Bioscience

ac-bioscience.com

Biotech

AC Bioscience is a clinical-stage biotech company developing personalised molecular therapies for solid tumour cancer patients, with a clinical focus on colorectal cancer and metastatic pancreatic cancer.

Adaptyv Biosystems

adaptyvbio.com

Biotech

Adaptyv Biosystems is building a next-generation protein engineering platform by coupling computational prediction and experimental validation with cell-free synthetic biology and high-throughput nanofluidics.

ADC Therapeutics

adctherapeutics.com

Biotech

ADC Therapeutics is a commercial-stage biotech company developing nextgeneration assets for targeted antibody-drug conjugates, with a pipeline on hematologic and solid tumour cancers.

Adipogen adipogen.com

Biotech

Adipogen develops and manufactures innovative reagents for the life sciences research market with a special focus on inflammation and immune response.

Aerium Therapeutics aeriumtx.com

Biotech

Aerium Therapeutics is a biotech company that works on the discovery and development of antibodies and small molecule antivirals against SARS-CoV-2 and other epidemic and pandemic threats.

AKYmed akymed.com

Biotech

AKYmed works in the field of reproductive technology, developing next-generation male fertility analysis solutions for doctors, laboratories, clinics, hospitals, breeding studs and research institutes.

Alcimed

alcimed.com

Consulting

Alcimed is a consultancy firm focused on new business and innovation in healthcare and other strong science- or technologydriven industries.

Alithea Genomics

alitheagenomics.com

Biotech

Alithea Genomics is a biotech developing high-throughput transcriptomics solutions for research and biomarker discovery, using large-scale RNA sequencing.

Alliance Consulting

alliance-consulting.ch

Consulting

Alliance Consulting is active in talent hunting and strategic networking to identify and exploit new business opportunities. The agency is particularly active in the fields of health, nutrition and cosmetics.

arcoris bio

Biotech

arcoris bio enables nextgeneration multiplex spatial biomarker detection for research and diagnostics through its multiomics signal enhancement nanotechnology, MUSE.

Argá Medtech

argamedtech.com

Medical devices

Argá Medtech is developing a next-generation non-thermal cardiac ablation system for treating patients with atrial fibrillation and cardiac arrhythmias.

Atinary Technologies

atinary.com

Digital health

Atinary is a deep tech start-up that uses AI, machine learning, robotics and cloud computing to accelerate R&D and optimise processes for breakthrough in several industries, including pharma, biotech and materials.

Avec

avec.ch

Food and beverages

Avec is a kiosk offering snacks and beverages all day long from the ground floor of Biopôle’s Metio building.

BakerHicks

Bakerhicks.ch

Consulting

BakerHicks is a design, engineering and project delivery company specialising in complex infrastructure, process and built environments across the full project life cycle, with extended experience in the pharma, biotech, medtech, fine chemicals and manufacturing sectors.

BDO

bdo.ch

Finance

BDO is an audit, accounting and consultancy firm working with industrial and service sector organisations, including SMEs, listed companies, public authorities and non-profit organisations.

BDVerse

bdverse.com

Consulting

BDVerse provides companies with unique expertise in the healthcare market, along with services and products to save time and reduce costs for digital transformation.

BENU Pharmacy

benu.ch

Healthcare

The pharmacy is part of the BENU Group pharmacy network and sells traditional medicines and a large assortment of phytotherapy and homeopathy products.

BioAlps

bioalps.org

Government administration

BioAlps represents western Switzerland’s biotech, medtech, pharma, nutrition and ehealth companies and offers access to a dynamic network of Swiss and international life sciences experts.

Biomapas

biomapas.com

CRO

Biomapas works with the global life sciences industry, using its clinical research capabilities to provide tailored outsourcing solutions to clients on their path to commercialisation.

Biopôle Dental Clinic

centredentairebiopole.ch

Healthcare

Biopôle Dental Clinic offers a range of dental services, including paediatric dental care, orthodontics and oral surgery.

Biped.aI

biped.ai

Medical devices

Biped AI is developing a smart shoulder harness that uses AI and self-driving technology to guide blind and visually impaired people.

CARA

cara.ch

Digital health

CARA is an association that aims to give access to electronic health records in five Swiss cantons, providing the public and healthcare providers with a secure platform for exchanging healthrelated information.

Cellestia Biotech

cellestia.com

Biotech

Cellestia is a clinical-stage R&D company developing first-in-class gene transcription factor inhibitors to control and modulate pathogenic gene expression in multiple areas, like oncology, autoimmune and inflammatory disorders.

Centre André Henzelin (cAH)

cah.ch

Healthcare

cAH’s mission is to train health professionals in naturopathy, carry out applied research and educate the general public about alternative and complementary medicines.

CILE/CRIC groupe3r.ch

Healthcare

CILE and CRIC are two centres located at Biopôle that provide radiographic and cardiovascular imaging services to patients.

Combioxin

combioxin.com

Biotech

Combioxin is a clinical-stage biotech company developing innovative drugs for treating severe bacterial or viral infections and fighting antibiotic resistance. Its pipeline includes a first-in-class anti-virulence agent for the treatment of severe pneumonia.

Consultants in Science

consultantsinscience.com

Consulting

Consultants in Science provides resourcing services to life sciences companies, including support with recruitment, writing, reviews and assessments.

Consulto

consulto.care

Digital health

Consulto is a start-up building the world’s first virtual clinic to serve patients whose conditions require interaction between different health professionals.

Cube Labs

cube-labs.com

Finance

Cube Labs builds companies from promising early-stage R&D and provides entrepreneurial and operational support at all the stages of their life cycle to transform pioneering science into healthcare solutions.

CXIO Foundation

cxiofoundation.ch

Healthcare

CXIO is a non-profit foundation that integrates classical and contemporary medicines in a holistic approach.

Department of Agriculture, Viticulture and Veterinary Affairs (DGAV)

vd.ch

Government administration

The DGAV is responsible for implementing agricultural policy, securing training, providing support for rural families and applying legislation relating to animal health, animal well-being and the policing of dogs.

Department of the Industrial, Urban and Rural Environment (DGE-DIREV)

vd.ch

Government administration

The DGE-DIREV is in charge of protecting people and property against damage and pollution caused by human activity and preparing a regional climate plan to deal with the challenges of climate change.

Department of Biochemistry (UNIL)

unil.ch

Research institute

The Department of Biochemistry performs cutting-edge research on a variety of fundamental immunological processes, including immune responses, inflammatory processes and cell death pathways.

Department of Oncology (UNIL-CHUV)

unil.ch

Research institute

The Department of Oncology comprises clinical and research teams dedicated to excellence in cancer care, research and innovation.

DermApp

dermapp.ch

Digital health

DermApp has devised a web platform that offers patients with skin conditions online consultations with certified dermatologists who give a personalised answer within 48 hours.

Distalmotion

distalmotion.com

Medical devices

Distalmotion has developed Dexter, a hybrid surgical robot offering laparoscopic surgeons the option to switch between laparoscopic and robotic surgery at any time during a procedure.

Edificom

edificom.ch

Information technology and services

Edificom is an IT solutions, services and network infrastructure provider that offers innovative and secure technology solutions through its certified tier 4 data centre.

Epiterna epiterna.com

Biotech

Epiterna is developing products and technologies aiming at quantifying and manipulating the process of ageing.

Exogems

Biotech

Exogems is an early-stage biotech company exploiting the therapeutic potential of exosomes that arise from a revolutionary platform built around a regenerative medical device called Lipogems.

Faculty of Biology and Medicine (UNIL)

unil.ch

Research institute

At the Faculty of Biology and Medicine, research and teaching cover the three distinct but complementary disciplines of biology, medicine and nursing science.

Ferring Pharmaceuticals

ferring.com

Pharmaceuticals

Ferring is a research-driven biopharmaceutical group focusing on the development of medicines in the field of reproductive medicine and maternal health, urology and uro-oncology, gastroenterology and immunology.

Flexdental Services

fdservices.ch

Medical devices

Flexdental Services is a dental equipment specialist that provides planning, installation, supply and maintenance services to individual dentists and group practices.

Genknowme

genknowme.com

Diagnostics

Genknowme works on developing an innovative blood test that identifies key epigenetic markers, to help adults track, maintain and improve their well-being and potential longevity.

GetSet Surgical

getsetsurgical.com

Medical devices

GetSet Surgical aims to improve patient outcomes, reduce risk and create value in surgical procedures by providing sterile good-to-go instruments that facilitate pre-operative planning, on-demand surgery and efficiency.

Gnubiotics Sciences

gnubiotics.com

Biotech

Gnubiotics Sciences develops solutions to diagnose and restore microbiome health in humans and pets through the use of glycans.

Gondola Medical Technologies

gondola-medical.com

Medical devices

Gondola Medical Technologies has developed a neurorehabilitation device to improve quality of life for patients affected by gait disorders and balance impairments caused by stroke, Parkinson’s or ataxia.

GRIFFON Pharmaceuticals

griffonpharma.com

Pharma

GRIFFON Pharmaceuticals is developing a bifunctional peptide that combines the properties of the growth hormone releasing factor (GRF) with the benefits of the vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) to treat the symptoms of LD-HIV.

Groupe Mutuel

groupemutuel.ch

Insurance

Groupe Mutuel provides personal insurance and health insurance to more than 1.3 million private customers and almost 25,500 companies.

HAYA Therapeutics

hayatx.com

Biotech

HAYA Therapeutics is a precision medicines company developing therapeutics targeting long non-coding RNA to treat and potentially reverse fibrosis and other serious medical conditions related to ageing.

Hedera Dx

hederadx.com

Diagnostics

Hedera Dx is developing liquid biopsy solutions to be used by clinicians for early detection, therapy selection and recurrence monitoring of cancer, to offer patients better outcome with minimally invasive tests.

HeX Group

hex-group.eu

Diagnostics

HeX Group provides services in the fields of environmental quality and contamination control in critical environments like hospitals or laboratories.

Ichnos Sciences

ichnossciences.com

Pharmaceuticals

Ichnos Sciences is developing treatments in oncology and autoimmune disease through the use of a proprietary platform designed to enable more efficient production of bispecific and multispecific antibodies.

Incepto Medical

incepto-medical.com

Digital health

Incepto is a digital health company developing an AI-enhanced platform to help with detection and diagnosis in medical imaging.

Incito

incito.ch

Communication

Incito is a communications agency that provides PR, stakeholder and crisis management services to a range of customers, from individuals to multinational companies.

Innovaud innovaud.ch

Government administration

Innovaud is the innovation and investment promotion agency for the canton of Vaud that helps tech-oriented companies develop their businesses and carry out innovation projects.

Interregional Blood Transfusion SRC

itransfusion.ch

Healthcare

The service focuses on procuring, processing, testing and providing blood products to the cantons of Bern, Vaud and Valais, as well as providing advice and pursuing research in the field of transfusion medicine.

LASCCO lascco.com

Biotech

LASCCO is a biomedical technology company that specialises in developing discovery-stage pharmaceuticals and diagnostics.

Le Café @biopôle

biopolecafe.ch

Restaurant

Le Café @biopôle provides guests with fresh and healthy snacks and meals throughout the morning and at lunchtime.

Legacy Healthcare

legacyhealthcare.ch

Biotech

Legacy Healthcare aims to develop novel drugs for autoimmune, inflammatory and ageing-related conditions that are safe enough for chronic use, especially by fragile populations.

Leman Biotech

Biotech

Leman Biotech is a start-up that aims to develop and commercialise new metabolic cancer immunotherapies.

Limula limula.ch

Biotech

Limula is working to develop technology that can perform every step of the cell therapy manufacturing process in a single device, directly at the point of care.

Ludwig Cancer Research

ludwigcancerresearch.org Research institute

The Lausanne branch of Ludwig Cancer Research is primarily dedicated to studying tumour immunology and designing and developing novel immunotherapies.

Med Discovery

med-discovery.com

Biotech

Med Discovery is a biopharmaceutical company discovering and developing highly specific treatments by using a proprietary technology platform producing protease inhibitors to treat urogenital cancers or other diseases.

MediCrops

medicrops.ch

Biotech

MediCrops is a pharmaceutical company specialising in the production and processing of medicinal cannabis preparations containing tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).

Medilsys medilsys.com

Digital health

Medilsys provides hospitals with innovative clinical information systems and solutions to enhance care quality and financial performance and facilitate clinical research.

Medistri medistri.swiss

Medical devices

Medistri provides sterilisation, laboratory analysis and logistics/ distribution services to professionals in the medical and pharmaceutical industries.

Mhetra mhetra.com

Consulting

Mhetra is a global agency that provides operations management services to life sciences, medtech or pharma companies that want to accelerate their scale-up process or access new markets.

Mosaic NeuroSciences predict.net (parent company)

Biotech

Mosaic NeuroSciences develops new therapeutic solutions in the fields of neurology and neurodegenerative disorders, such as frontotemporal dementia (FTD) and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

Mymetics mymetics.com

Biotech

Mymetics is a biotech company focusing on developing nextgeneration preventative vaccines for infectious diseases, such as HIV-1/AIDS, malaria and herpes simplex virus.

ND Biosciences

nd-biosciences.com

Biotech

ND Biosciences develops next-generation diagnostics and therapeutics to prevent or reverse the pathological protein aggregation observed in neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease.

Next Cut

Barber's shop

Next Cut is a unisex hairdresser located at Biopôle.

Novassay

novassay.com

Biotech

Novassay is a biotech company that offers R&D discovery services and pursues drug development programmes in neuropathic pain and oncology where ion channels seem to play a pivotal role.

Novigenix

novigenix.com

Biotech

Novigenix specialises in immuno-transcriptomic solutions for cancer detection, therapy optimisation and cancer recurrence monitoring to improve disease management and patient outcomes.

Novostia

novostia.com

Medical devices

Novostia is a privately held medical device company developing an innovative lifelong artificial heart valve that does not require anticoagulation medication and that fits patients of any age, including children.

NOW* agence-now.ch

Communication

NOW* is a communications agency that works on creative, sustainable and responsible projects in a range of fields, from retail to NGOs.

OCT Global

oct-clinicaltrials.com

CRO

OCT is a contract research organisation that provides a full range of high-quality clinical trial services for phase 1–4 and bioequivalence studies.

Office de la Consommation (OFCO)

vd.ch (OFCO page)

Government administration OFCO oversees consumer protection, supervises regulated economic activities and focuses on ensuring optimal drinking water supplies, compliance with hygiene regulation and fairness in commercial transactions.

Online Control

onlinecontrol.ch

Digital health

Online Control develops software system products with partners for real-time optimisation and advanced automatic control of industrial processes and machines.

Onward Therapeutics

onward-therapeutics.com

Biotech

Onward Therapeutics is a development-stage oncology company focusing on identifying innovative technologies and developing breakthrough medicines for treating cancer.

Opna Bio

opnabio.com

Pharmaceuticals

Opna Bio is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing first-in-class therapies to disrupt immunosuppressive barriers in cancer cells.

Orbis Medicines

orbismedicines.com

Biotech

Orbis Medicines is developing the future of drug discovery with a platform for discovering, developing and delivering drug candidates for challenging targets.

Otten Life Sciences Consulting

olsc.ch

Consulting

Otten Life Sciences Consulting offers tailored services in the finance and healthcare industries for investors, shareholders and life sciences companies.

PACTT Technology Transfer

pactt.ch

Government administration

PACTT is the technology transfer office of UNIL and CHUV, which manages all aspects of research commercialisation, partnership and collaboration and intellectual property.

Pan Therapeutics

Biotech

Pan Therapeutics develops novel virus-based anti-cancer drugs for the treatment of cancer patients and domestic pets.

Parithera

parithera.com

Diagnostics

Parithera leverages liquid biopsy to provide a minimally invasive diagnostic that analyses cancer treatment resistance and allows clinicians to adjust the treatment regimen.

PDC Therapeutics

pdcbio.com

Pharmaceuticals

PDC Therapeutics is a clinicalstage biotech company developing smart nanomedicines for targeted therapies, using polymer-drug conjugate technology, that seek to provide cancer patients with an optimal therapeutic index.

PeriVision

perivision.io

Medical devices

PeriVision is developing a novel approach to glaucoma diagnosis and monitoring by combining AI and VR technology to provide patient-friendly, cost-efficient and faster visual field testing.

Phi Pharma

phi-pharma.com

Biotech

Phi Pharma specialises in discovery and early clinical development of peptide-drug conjugates to improve treatment of diseases with high medical need, with a focus on oncology and infectious diseases.

Physio Home Care

physiohomecare.ch

Biotech

Physio Home Care is a physiotherapy organisation working in rehabilitation/ functional rehabilitation at home, developing innovative solutions to help patients access services.

Pilatus Biosciences

Biotech

Pilatus Biosciences develops anticancer antibody therapeutics and works in the fields of oncology, immunotherapy and neurodegenerative diseases.

Pollux Scientific

pollux-sci.ch

Biotech

Pollux Scientific applies cuttingedge technology in molecular and applied biocatalysis and synthetic biology research.

Purple Biotech

purple-biotech.com

Biotech

Purple Biotech is a clinicalstage company focusing on developing first-in-class therapies to overcome tumour immune evasion and drug resistance.

Qarad

qarad.com

Consulting

Qarad offers expert regulatory consultancy services for in vitro diagnostics (IVD) and supports businesses with their efforts to implement quality management systems and organise performance studies.

Rachis Clinic

rachis.clinic Healthcare

The Rachis Clinic consists of an interdisciplinary team that takes an approach based on individual occupational therapy and physiotherapy treatment and, if necessary, group postural reconditioning.

Radar RP

radar-pr.ch

Communication

Radar RP provides healthcare and life sciences researchers with PR and communications services to get their messages across to a wide range of audiences: stakeholders, the general public and financial or business partners.

Resistell

resistell.com

Diagnostics

Resistell offers a rapid antibiotic susceptibility testing method based on first-in-class nanomotion technology, for clinicians to find the right antibiotic on time and reduce the development of antibiotic resistance.

Roche Diagnostics

Switzerland

roche.ch

Diagnostics

Roche Diagnostics develops diagnostic tests, instruments and digital solutions, focusing on specific areas that include cancer immunotherapy, haemophilia and multiple sclerosis.

Santorio Foundation

santorio.org

Nutrition

The Santorio Foundation is a non-profit organisation that supports the implementation of innovations and technology in the fields of food, nutrition and health.

SEED Biosciences

seedbiosciences.com

Medical devices

SEED Biosciences provides innovative solutions for single-cell assays, including the DISPENCELL automated laboratory instrument designed for fast, easy and gentle single-cell isolation.

SeedIMPULSE

seedimpulse.ch

Digital health

SeedIMPULSE works in orthopaedics and medical software, providing innovative solutions such as the EZplan software platform to support orthopaedic surgeons as they plan joint-replacement surgeries.

Siftlink

siftlink.com

Digital health

Siftlink is a business intelligence platform combining AI and human experts to help their clients to get the insights and IP needed to accelerate their innovation processes and succeed in highly competitive markets.

SP Groups

spgroups.ch

Consulting

SP Groups is an engineering consultancy firm that provides simple, pragmatic solutions and a comprehensive service to clients in the fine chemicals, biotech and pharmaceuticals sectors.

Superlab Suisse

superlabsuisse.com

Real estate

Superlab Suisse provides ready-tomove-in serviced laboratories to companies working in the biotech, pharmaceuticals and medtech industries that need private facilities.

Swiss Biobanking Platform

swissbiobanking.ch

Digital health

SBP provides a coordination platform for biobanking in Switzerland, contributes to developing common biobanking practices and promotes access to and sharing of samples and data for research purposes.

Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics

sib.swiss

Research institute

SIB is a non-profit organisation that focuses on biological and biomedical data science, delivering its expertise to academic groups, clinicians and private companies.

Swiss Nutrition and Health

nutritionhealthfoundation.ch

Nutrition

SNHf is a non-profit organisation that focuses on all nutrients, micronutrients and natural bioactives, developing and deploying high-quality testing and research capabilities in the domains of nutrition, health and cosmetics.

Swiss Post post.ch

Digital health

Swiss Post is a trusted, singlesource supplier in the healthcare sector that provides digital solutions and managed services to connect all parties of the healthcare sector.

Sylex

sylextech.com

Digital health

Sylex operates in the enterprise automation solutions market, working with the healthcare and insurance industries to offer turnkey cloud-based nationwide eHealth management systems.

Testmate Health

testmatehealth.com

Diagnostics

Testmate Health is a medtech startup developing a rapid at-home self-testing kit: a simple urine test for four common sexually transmitted diseases that provides results in minutes.

Tigen Pharma

tigenpharma.com

Biotech

Tigen Pharma bridges the gap between academia and commercially ready therapies in the field of cell and gene therapy by combining novel T cell therapies and an innovative manufacturing platform to fight solid tumours.

Unilabs

unilabs.ch

Diagnostics

Unilabs supplies clinical laboratory testing and medical diagnostic imaging services to private and public healthcare providers, local governments, insurance and pharmaceutical companies and the general public.

Unisanté – DESS

unisante.ch

Healthcare

Unisanté – DESS specialises in public health research in the fields of epidemiology, health systems and services, and statistics, among others.

Unisanté – DSTE

unisante.ch

Healthcare

Unisanté – DSTE provides services to companies to support them in their health management projects in the fields of occupational medicine, occupational and environmental hygiene, ergonomics and health promotion.

URBAGESTION

urbagestion.ch

Facility management

URBAGESTION specialises in real estate administration, facility management and urban governance, working with a large network of partners to obtain a rapid and comprehensive overview of the market.

Vaccine

Formulation Institute

vaccineformulationinstitute.org

Pharmaceuticals

VFI is a non-profit organisation that provides adjuvants, vaccine formulations, expertise and technologies on an open-access basis to prevent diseases across the globe.

Vanarix

vanarix-cartilage-regeneration.ch

Biotech

Vanarix is a clinical-stage start-up specialising in regenerative medicine, which aims to develop innovative and effective cellbased therapies, such as Cartibeads for treating articular cartilage damage.

Vaud BioMed Association

vaudbiomed.ch

Consulting

Vaud BioMed is a non-profit association that supports the development of companies from the life sciences and healthcare industries and participates in regional activities to further the development of those sectors.

Vaudoise Assurances

vaudoise.ch

Insurance

Vaudoise Assurances Holding provides life and non-life insurance services, mainly working with individuals, SMEs and the public sector.

Vidy Med

vidymed.ch

Healthcare

Vidy Med group comprises three medical centres that are open seven days a week at the service of the population of Lausanne.

VirdisGroup

virdisgroup.com

Consulting

VirdisGroup provides executive search, talent acquisition and recruitment services for the life sciences industry.

Vitruvian Shield

vitruvianshield.com

Digital health

Vitruvian Shield is working to provide a multipurpose digital health platform for collecting biometric datasets to analyse, detect and prevent epileptic seizures.

Vivactis Switzerland

vivactis.ch

Communication

Vivactis Switzerland specialises in life sciences and healthcare communication, combining medical, scientific, marketing and communications skills to support customers with their local and international projects.

Volumina Medical

volumina-medical.ch

Medical devices

Volumina Medical is developing a platform of highly innovative biomaterials for regenerative medicine based on rigorous research performed at EPFL, with applications for reconstructive and plastic surgery.

Volv Global

volv.global

Digital health

Volv Global is a digital health and life sciences company that applies AI to healthcare to help clinicians to characterise and diagnose rare diseases.

Xana

xanastim.com

Digital health

Xana is a neurotechnological company developing smart and non-invasive neurostimulation systems to cover medical indications and wellness-related matters, including stress and chronic pain.

XPND Medical

xpndmedical.com

Consulting

XPND Medical is a consulting firm that works with medtech and pharmaceutical companies on transformation projects such as geographic expansion, M&A and strategy execution.

Visit us !

Stay in touch

Discover our community stories on our website...

... or get them delivered to your inbox once a month.

The best way to find out more about Biopôle is to come to Lausanne and see it for yourself. If you are interested in relocating your business here, we offer private tours of our campus. You’ll get a first-hand look at our stunning facilities, experience the life of our community and feel the entrepreneurial spirit. To organise a visit, please get in touch with our team.