Innosuisse approved funding totalling 341 million Swiss francs in 2024. The recently published annual magazine Discover and the funding data portal show where the money has been allocated to and what the respective approval rates were. In addition, data and information on startup coaching and entrepreneurship training are provided.
The annual magazine Discover contains articles on topics and funding examples as well as data on Innosuisse activities in 2024, which provide a comprehensive insight into its work. The focus of Innosuisse’s funding are innovation projects between research and implementation partners. The largest sum, CHF 144.3 million, was allocated for these projects (including innovation cheques). CHF 48.9 million went to start-up innovation projects.
Compared to the previous year, funding approvals for most funding instruments decreased slightly. By contrast, more money was invested in the area of start-ups and entrepreneurship, i.e. in training and coaching.
Newly approved funding contributions in 2024 for selected instruments in CHF m
Approved funding totalled CHF 341 million, significantly less than in 2023 when it amounted to CHF492 million. However, in a multi-year comparison, the total amount was still high. In 2021 CHF 329.7 million and in 2022 CHF 245.4 million were invested.
The decrease of 151 million Swiss francs compared to the exceptional 2023 figure is mainly due to the fact that no new contributions were approved for the Flagship Initiative or Innovation Booster last year. In addition, in 2024 the available budget of 65 million Swiss francs for new Swiss Accelerator projects from the 2023 call for projects was lower than in the previous year. Innosuisse also did not launch a new call for projects for the Swiss Accelerator in 2024. Instead, Swiss startups regained the opportunity to apply for the EIC Accelerator in January 2025.
Growing demand
Demand increased for most funding instruments. 802 applications were submitted for regular innovation projects (+6.5%), while 225 (+ 8%) were submitted for startup innovation projects. In 2024, the approval rate was 41% for for Innossuisse Innovation Projects, and 18% for Startup Innovation Projects.
Exceptionally high demand for international projects
In the case of international innovation projects, the revised RIPA has enabled Innosuisse to adapt its funding conditions to international standards and eliminate competitive disadvantages for Swiss companies, in particular through direct partial funding for Swiss implementation partners in these projects. Demand rose sharply, reaching an exceptionally and unexpectedly high level with more than 500 applications. This represents an increase of 45% compared to the already strong previous year.
Switzerland’s prominent participation in the European Partnership on Innovative SMEs is particularly noteworthy: Innosuisse supported 38 Eurostars projects with a total approved funding contribution of 12.7 million Swiss francs. Demand in the area of international bilateral cooperation was also exceptionally high last year. For example, a record number of 108 applications were submitted in response to the call for projects with Innovate UK. Despite the high standard of applications overall, only 11 projects could be approved due to the limited budget for this call. It is worth mentioning in this context that the evaluations for funding instruments with direct contributions to companies are subject to strict financial due diligence processes in addition to innovation-related assessments to ensure responsible use of resources.
Record year for Start-up Coaching
Advice and support for start-ups again saw significant growth, with a new record of 552 coaching applications received in 2024. The approval rate in 2024 was 76%, slightly higher than in previous years. By the end of the year, more than 640 start-ups were being supported by Innosuisse in this programme.
Entrepreneurship Training revamped
Demand for the various modules of the Entrepreneurship Training programme increased slightly in 2024. Innosuisse successfully completed the public tender based on a new concept for the 2025-2028 training modules. The new Entrepreneurship Training programme builds on the existing one. It also aims to strengthen networking between participants and the industry, promote diversity in science-based start-ups and increase the proportion of start-ups contributing to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In addition, a new digital module is being introduced in 2025 to provide information about entrepreneurship to interested parties earlier on in the process.
(Stefan Kyora)
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The new Swiss Venture Capital Report was published on 26 January. It analyses 304 financing rounds closed in 2020 and includes further article such as an interview with Michael Hengartner, President of the ETH Board, and a list of Swiss "soonicorns". 
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