San Francisco – March 18, 2026

By Monica Scott, Deputy CEO & Head of Programs

Switzerland is known as one of the world’s most innovative countries. Silicon Valley is known as the place where innovation scales. The most interesting insights, however, don’t sit neatly in either place: they emerge in the space between them.

In my role as Head of Programs and Deputy CEO at Swissnex in San Francisco, much of my job is navigating that “in-between” space. Between Switzerland and Silicon Valley, but also between the different verticals at Swissnex spanning across startups, creative industries, academia, and AI & tech foresight. At first glance, these worlds seem separate. In reality, they are closely connected. They are shaped by the same questions: how new technologies are adopted, how new approaches are tested, and how new ways of working take hold. The outcomes, successful or not, inform how societies evolve, and how we choose to move forward.

That connecting thread, and how seemingly disparate fields influence and inform one another is what we want to make visible. Today, we’re launching The Red Thread, a series of articles published monthly from Swissnex in San Francisco.

Swissnex in San Francisco is Switzerland’s innovation outpost in the Bay Area. We connect Swiss startups, researchers, creatives, and corporations with partners here, and we translate what is happening in Silicon Valley back to Switzerland.

We operate at the intersection of two different innovation cultures: one optimized for long-term quality and systems thinking, the other for speed and scale. When those logics meet, friction happens. And when that friction is navigated well, it creates clarity.

The Red Thread is our way of sharing the human stories that emerge from that intersection and that friction.

Each month, one of our Program Managers will contribute an article, sharing their perspective from their vantage point in the ecosystem and from their conversations with people in our network.

You’ll hear from Lucas on how designers, artists, journalists, curators and filmmakers are shaping the tools they work with, and what that means for creative industries navigating technology on their own terms. From Sarah on the role of academic exchanges in strengthening national excellence, and on Swiss researchers working on the next big thing. From Ben on what it really takes for Swiss startups to enter the US market, and insights from Silicon Valley’s venture capital ecosystem. And from Maulde on how AI and emerging technologies are reshaping industries faster than many organizations are prepared for.

Together, these perspectives reflect something we see every day: innovation is not a silo. It is cultural, economic, political – and deeply human.

If you’re reading from Switzerland, we hope this series offers a view of the Bay Area ecosystem beyond the hype: where capital is flowing, how regulation is shifting, how AI is being operationalized, and where there is genuine opportunity for collaboration.

If you’re reading from the U.S., we hope you discover why Switzerland consistently outperforms its size, and how a small, highly networked country approaches innovation differently. There are lessons in that model, especially at a time when resilience, governance, and trust are becoming competitive advantages.

Above all, The Red Thread is about perspective. About stepping back and looking at your own work, whether in policy, research, business, or culture, from a new angle. About listening to voices you might not otherwise encounter, and picking up insights that are practical, not abstract.

I’m excited to begin this conversation, and I genuinely hope it becomes one. If there are questions you’d like explored, voices we should feature, or themes you think deserve deeper attention, we’d love to hear from you.

The most interesting innovations rarely happen in isolation. They happen where worlds overlap, when communities are built, and when individuals have their eyes wide open.

Welcome to The Red Thread.

Why “The Red Thread”?

The phrase comes from the German “der rote Faden” and the French “le fil rouge” — the thread that runs through a story and gives it coherence. It’s not widely used in English, but it often appears when multilingual Europeans speak with one another. We like that. It reflects Switzerland’s linguistic DNA and Swissnex’s role at the intersection of cultures. A red line connecting ideas, people, and systems across borders — and, fittingly, it’s our national color.

Swissnex in San Francisco is an initiative of the Swiss State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI). Our vision at Swissnex in San Francisco is to connect tomorrow by empowering the next generation of innovators to collaborate and create futures where the planet and society thrive.

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