Through a series of high-level events, from the global stage of Expo 2025 Osaka to the prestigious STS forum in Kyoto and Asia’s largest biotech expo, BioJapan 2025, the roadshow enabled the startups to forge strategic connections, gain market insights, and strengthen collaborations between the Swiss and Japanese innovation ecosystems.

The journey began on a world-stage platform at Expo 2025 Osaka, where the Swiss HealthTech Pitch Night officially kicked off the roadshow at the Swiss Pavilion. Held under the Expo theme “Beyond Future Society for Life,” the event brought together Swiss innovators and Japanese partners for a full-capacity evening dedicated to health and life science innovation. Co-organized with Holistik and supported by Inversed, the event opened with remarks by Felix Moesner (Swissnex in Japan), Trang Fernandez-Leenknecht (Holistik), and Mark Conway-Greenslade (Inversed), followed by a dynamic pitch session from the participating startups.

A brief visit to the Swiss Pavilion exhibition was followed by an extended networking session. Bringing together an audience from Switzerland and Japan, the networking created an ideal setting for focused business discussions and new collaborations. These exchanges were complemented by a medical-themed art installation curated by Holistik and Inversed, featuring works by life science professionals reflecting on what “Life Science” means. The strong alignment between founders, partners, and stakeholders resulted in an exceptionally engaged audience, making the event a very successful pitch night.

From Osaka, the delegation headed to Kyoto for the internationally renowned STS forum (October 6–8), joined by the two additional startups, MobyFly and NovoViz. The opening ceremony welcomed distinguished guests, Their Majesties the Emperor and Empress of Japan. The event gathers a worldwide audience from Nobel laureates, leading scientists, policymakers, to CEOs shaping the future of science and technology.

Switzerland was the only country to host a dedicated pitch event during the forum. The session opened with high-level presentations by Michael Hengartner (President, ETH Board) and André Kudelski (President, Innosuisse), followed by lightning pitches from the seven Swiss startups. Attended by an audience of around 40 high-level participants, including multiple Nobel laureates, the session reaffirmed Switzerland’s strong presence and credibility within the global deeptech landscape.

The final stop was at BioJapan 2025 (October 8–10), the world’s longest-running biotech expo and Asia’s largest partnering event. At the Swiss Pavilion, organized by the Swiss Business Hub Japan in collaboration with Switzerland Global Enterprise (S-GE), the Embassy of Switzerland in Japan, and the Consulate of Switzerland, Swissnex in Japan, the startups showcased their technologies to an international audience of researchers, corporates, and investors.

BioJapan welcomed 22,000+ visitors, and Swiss startups conducted around 100 business meetings through the automated matchmaking system. Switzerland’s presence at BioJapan 2025 underscored the country’s ongoing commitment to science diplomacy, innovation exchange, and deepening Swiss–Japanese collaboration in the life sciences. (Find the full report here: https://www.jba.or.jp/BioJapan2025_Report.pdf).

The night before the expo kick-off, the startups also pitched at a networking event organized by the Swiss Business Hub Japan and hosted at the Ambassador’s residency. The warm atmosphere brought together nearly 80 industry guests and set a collaborative tone for the days to come.

The Swiss Deeptech Roadshow 2025 once again demonstrated the power of connecting Swiss innovators with Japan’s dynamic life science ecosystem.
Across three major cities, startups gained:

• Direct exposure to corporates, researchers, and policymakers
• High-level networking opportunities with Nobel laureates, industry leaders, and investors
• First-hand insights into regulatory pathways, market needs, and partnership opportunities
• A deeper understanding of how to position and expand their solutions in Japan

The roadshow highlighted Switzerland’s strengths in AI-driven diagnostics, microfluidics, genomics, microbiome technology, MedTech, while strengthening long-term ties between the two innovation ecosystems.