October 31, 2023 | Boston & New York

It’s a new beginning for Swissnex in New York. Ten years after launching its presence in the city, Swissnex is relocating to NeueHouse Madison Square, a vibrant workspace at the interface of creativity, innovation, and commerce in the heart of the iconic Flatiron district. The move follows the recent hiring of a NYC-based Head of Arts and Creative Industries, Marc Streit, redoubling Swissnex’s commitment to creativity as a cornerstone of its culture and strategy.

“There is so much going on in New York; you need to be creative to stand out,” says Benjamin Bollmann, CEO of Swissnex in Boston and New York. “For us, this creative turn is simultaneously about innovating new formats to support and promote Swiss science and technology, and offering a new platform for Swiss arts, design, and creative industries.”

Swissnex will inaugurate its NeueHouse office on November 13, 2023, with the immersive dinner experience Creative Climate: Where Do We Go From Here. A plant-based meal by Swiss chef Regine Bigler from NeueHouse Madison Square will set the stage for discussions on creativity and climate action with speakers from MoMA, the Swiss Institute, and the Climate Group, the organization behind Climate Week NYC. The evening will also feature a musical performance by Swiss-born Tibetan singer YESHE.

Beyond Marc Streit, NeueHouse will host Swissnex’s Innovation Lead Joséphine Erni and a fixed-term associate position open to students from Swiss universities. The office will function as the hub for Swissnex’s activities to support Swiss startups in New York, including Climate Collider, a climate-focused program run by Swissnex and Innosuisse, as well as the sector-agnostic Innosuisse Internationalization Camps. Examples of companies enrolled in Swissnex’s programs in New York this year include Dimpora, which develops a sustainable Gore-Tex-like material for outdoor fashion, the AI-assisted filmmaking platform Largo.ai, and Cultivated Biosciences, which makes animal-free dairy alternatives.

Creativity has always been a core value for Swissnex, which relies on an open and entrepreneurial team to carry out its mission to connect Switzerland and the world in education, research, innovation, and the arts. It is in this spirit of experimentation that Swissnex first opened a Manhattan office in 2013, as an outpost of its Boston location in collaboration with the Consulate General of Switzerland in New York.

With initial backing from Switzerland’s Commission for Technology and Innovation (CTI) – now Innosuisse – and the ETH Board, as well as key partners and residents like Greater Zurich Area, Swissnex in New York has since evolved into a focal point for Swiss startups, academic institutions, and creative minds looking to establish partnerships and cultivate their ideas in one of the world’s most innovative city.