Swisscom has announced the ten startups selected to pitch on August 16, 2016 as part of its StartUp Challenge 2016.
Each year, the Swisscom StartUp Challenge, a business accelerator program organized in cooperation with venturelab, rewards five startups that are trying to get their ideas off the ground. These startups get a trip to Silicon Valley for a tailor-made acceleration program, mentoring with Swisscom Venture, investors and business angels, and get evaluated for an investment by Swisscom Ventures.
The ten startups, selected among over 200 applications from ventures tackling IT and telecommunication, fintech, e-commerce, adtech, big data, Internet of Things, among many other areas, will have to prove themselves in August during a pitch day at the campus of the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne.
The five best startups will be selected out of the ten teams and will fly to Silicon Valley in September/October 2016 to continue their journey in the program.
Previous winners of the Swisscom StartUp Challenge include Monetas, CashSentinel, among many others.
This year’s ten selected startups are:
Advanon (Fintech)
Launched by three former Google employees, Advanon allows SMEs to prefinance their outstanding invoices easily, quickly and transparently.
Based in Zurich, Advanon is the leading invoice financing platform in Switzerland.
Lykke (Fintech)
Lykke is building a global marketplace for all asset classes and instruments. Powered by blockchain technology, the online marketplace offers immediate settlement of transactions and much lower transaction costs.
Qumram (Fintech)
Qumram provides a solution that allows for every digital interaction (web, social and mobile) to be recorded, providing a digital audit trail for financial services organizations.
Qumram has created a single source of truth, recording indisputable proof of every keystroke, button click or mouse movement.
Xorlab
Xorlab is a cybersecurity company that develops and provides dynamic IT security products and services for businesses.
Xorlab has developed software for the early detection and prevention of client-side attacks, including spear phishing and drive-by infections.
Qipp (Fintech?)
Qipp is a web application that enables property managers and owners to bundle digital services and enhance the relationships between owners, managers and tenants.
The app allows for interaction between all involved parties, allowing for efficiency, value-added services, smart services and community-oriented micro-apps.
Xsensio
Xsensio has developed a wearable that uses biochemical information on the surface of our skin to provide real-time information about our state of health and well-being.
Xsensio is based on nanotechnology that exploits information from proteins, molecules and electrolytes on the skin surface.
Biowatch (Fintech)
Biowatch has developed a vein reading biometric wristwatch that recognizes its wearer from the pattern of their veins and therefore provides clear, secure authentication.
Through bluetooth and NFC, the watch enables users to make online payments, unlock their car, automatically log into their accounts or access buildings.
CatchEye
CatchEye has developed a video conferencing add-on that enhances video chat picture quality on Skype, Hangouts, Vidyo, Zoom and others, and enables participants to make eye contact. CatchEye works with Intel RealSense 3D camera.
Fashwell
Fashwell is a fashion-tech startup that has developed an app that allows users to find and buy fashion products online thanks to an image analysis algorithm based on machine learning. The app identifies fashion items and provides a dynamic linking of these items to online shops.
Fashwell has already raised over US$1 million in equity funding.
Nanolive
Nanolive is a new type of technology that enables scientists to conduct 3D microscope-based exploration of living cells without damaging them.
The 3D Cell Explorer is a high-speed, high resolution and non-invasive tool that can look deep inside biological systems.
Featured image via Swisscom.ch.
