"It was the best business activity organized by external partner we have ever participated in."
Grzegorz Gonciarz Resistell COO and Co-founder2022 Life-Sciences Roadshow
This year's Life-Sciences participants' experience at the Innosuisse Japan Camp
In 2022, we had the pleasure of welcoming the first participants to the Japan edition of the Innosuisse Camps.
Among them, five startups in the Life-Sciences industry were taken on 2 week-long, networking-intensive roadshow by our Innovation & Startups Manager, Carlos Correa. This tailor-made program brought them to Tokyo and to the Kansai area for a series of conferences and events in which they met with Japanese Life-Science industry heavyweights such as Takeda, Sumitomo Pharma or Shionogi.
It was an exceptional opportunity for our campers to acclimate to the Japanese market and gain insight on how to best enter it. They came back home with an exponentially increased contact network, as well as a clear vision of the work ahead of them before moving on to phase II of the Innosuisse Japan Camp.
Tokyo
BioJapan Conference
During the initial week of their journey, the startups had the opportunity to attend the Bio-Japan 2022 Conference. With more than 730 companies present from 23 countries and an attendance of more than 15’000 people, Bio-Japan is the country’s largest platform for corporations, universities, startups, and key opinion leaders to gather and showcase their latest cutting edge in Life-Science Technology.
Kobe
Matchmaking with the Foundation for Bio-Medical Research Kobe
After this initial stage in Tokyo, the startups could pursue their learning journey in Kobe with an event done in collaboration with the Foundation for Bio-Medical Research and Innovation. With no less than 9 hospitals, a world’s fastest supercomputer RIKEN Fugaku and top-class research-oriented universities, the Kobe location offers an extremely dense ecosystem of high-quality clusters in the fields of Medical, Bio-Sciences and Computation. The match-making was hosted and greatly supported by I2.JP by AstraZeneca and the Foundation for Bio-Medical Research Kobe.
Osaka
Presentations at the National Center of Competency for Cardiovascular Science
As a follow up the next day in the city of Osaka, the campers had the chance to present in front of an amazing audience composed of attending physicians at NCVC, the National Center of Competency for Cardiovascular Science. They currently are ranked as the no. 1 hospital in Asia in their areas of specialisation. This was a grand opportunity to discuss trends and cutting edge research on medicine and care, especially relevant when related to aging, a dire topic in both Japan and Switzerland.
Kyoto
Visit of the Kyoto Research Park, first privately operated Research Park in Japan
The last day of the roadshow brought our startups to the beautiful city of Kyoto at the Kyoto Research Park (KRP), the first privately operated Research Park in Japan. The Kyoto Research Park hosts 500 tenant companies and institutions in the field of ICT, Healthcare and Biotech and fosters new innovation and collaboration between industry, academia and government. This was a prime occasion for the startups to further discover the strength and opportunities in Kyoto Prefecture.
Wrap-up in Osaka
Live-streamed webinar with Kinki Bio-Industry Development Organization
Finally the startups had the chance to finish their tour in the afternoon back in Osaka with a live-streamed webinar organized by Kinki Bio-Industry Development Organization, LINK-J West and Kansai Pharmaceutical Industries Association where they could present their innovation to a broad audience active in the areas of Healthcare, Biotech and Life-Science.
Testimonials
"I really appreciated the opportunity given to my company to participate in the SwissNex Japan camp. Swissnex organised a series of highly relevant events that allowed me to meet leads from both the academic and private sectors, as well as being approached by potential distributors. It also provided me with a better understanding of the Japanese market and how to approach it. I also got great support from the Swissnex staff which proved very helpful."
Axel Martinelli BigOmics Analytics CSO
"Fantastic support and organization."
John Klepper PIPRA AG CEO and Co-Founder
"Swissnex Japan is strategically located in one of the hottest biotech hubs in the world. The team in Osaka is extremely committed with an outstanding network to industry and academia in Japan. The Swissnex Japan roadshow is a must for Swiss biotech startups looking to develop strategic partnerships in Japan."
Duncan Sutherland TwentyGreen Founder and CTO