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Deepened innovation cooperation between Sweden and Switzerland
On Thursday, April 10, Vinnova's director general Darja Isaksson signed a new cooperation agreement with the Swiss innovation authority Innosuisse. The agreement runs for three years and is a deepening of a collaboration that has been ongoing since 2012 to promote innovation and exchange between Swedish and Swiss companies and researchers.
Dominique Gruhl-Begin CEO at Innosuisse and Darja Isaksson, director general, Vinnova.
“Strong international partnerships are the foundation for successful innovation. The agreement with Innosuisse gives us the opportunity to build on our long-term relationship and jointly drive development forward,” says Darja Isaksson, Director General at Vinnova.
– This is an important and successful collaboration for us, driven by both researchers and industry. We can utilize each other's strengths and we are both pragmatic actors who are good at identifying areas where we can work together, for example life science, materials development and AI use in industry, says Dominique Gruhl-Begin CEO at Innosuisse.
A success factor in collaboration is shared challenges and abilities.
– In Sweden and Switzerland, our high-tech industrial companies and small and medium-sized enterprises have similar challenges. We compete by constantly improving function and quality through innovation, but not with a low price, says Peter Lindberg, national contact person for the Eureka program and country manager for Switzerland at Vinnova.
Both Sweden and Switzerland are strong actors in life science. They conduct research on the dementia disease Alzheimer's disease.
Life Science and advanced manufacturing
Focus areas for Vinnova's collaboration with Switzerland are life science and advanced manufacturing. Both countries have strong research and leading companies in these areas.
– By collaborating with Swiss companies and researchers who have high expertise in, for example, advanced manufacturing, pharmaceutical development and biomedical engineering, Swedish actors can elevate themselves further, says Peter Lindberg.
Success factors are access to world-leading research environments, strong industrial actors, joint funding via Vinnova and Innosuisse, and long-term research in both countries.
Switzerland participates in Eurostars
Switzerland is now in an active process of joining Horisont Europa and there are hopes that Switzerland will become a full member of the programme in 2025. EU funding will then have an even greater role in the cooperation with Switzerland. Innosuisse already participates in the Eurostars programme which is co-financed by the European Commission.
– Genom Eurostars-programmet – a programme for small and medium-sized companies that supports project in all technological areas – allows Swedish and Swiss actors to build joint research and innovation projects, especially in areas where the countries complement each other, explains Kim Silvasti, programme manager for Eurostars at Vinnova.
With matchmaking, advice and funding through Eurostars and the Eureka network, both cooperation and the companies' innovative power are strengthened.
Eurostars is the world's largest programme for SMEs and 37 countries participate. Swedish SMEs receive support in the application process through EU SME-supportkontoret (eusme.se), and Vinnova offers guidance on the interpretation of national funding rules via Eurostars | Vinnova.
– When working with the EU, it is important to be aware of the formal rules for applications and reports. Get support from experts in authorities in Sweden and locally, advises Kim Silvasti.
Caption: With support from Vinnova, Business Sweden and the Swiss innovation authority Innosuisse, Swedish manufacturing companies can participate in conferences in Switzerland.
How we support companies that want to work with Switzerland
Vinnova grants travel grants to Swedish SMEs for selected conferences in Switzerland. Trips there are arranged by Business Sweden and the Swiss innovation authority Innosuisse. Vinnova participates in the conferences with information about Swedish project funding and advice on international R&D project.
Through on-site matchmaking in Switzerland, international project consortia are created for research, development and innovation projects. The consortia can then apply for funding via the Eureka network.
“The Eurostars program has been particularly popular, but we also co-finance project with Switzerland within Eureka network projects and Eureka cluster projects,” says Peter Lindberg. Enterprise Europe Network (EEN) and the EU SME support function also have an important role in advising Swedish applicant SMEs.
Innosuisse finances the Swiss participants and Vinnova the Swedish participants in joint research and innovation projects.
Since 2012, when the bilateral work with Switzerland started, Vinnova and Innosuisse have jointly funded 65 joint project. A strength is that both Vinnova and Innosuisse can finance all types of actors in funded project: SMEs, large companies and universities as well as research institutes.
Vinnova's international collaborations
Sweden has established itself as a leading innovation nation. In an increasingly interconnected world, international cooperation is no longer an option but a necessity for continued success and global impact. By engaging internationally, Swedish actors can gain access to a broader pool of knowledge, expertise and potential partners, which in turn accelerates innovation processes and opens doors to new markets and business opportunities. Swedish innovation has the potential to contribute to solutions to global challenges such as climate change, pandemics and resource scarcity, but this requires cooperation and the exchange of ideas across borders.
– International collaboration in research and innovation is an important lever for Swedish competitiveness and is of utmost importance for the transition to a sustainable world, says Karin Rydén, head of department for International Cooperation at Vinnova.
Vinnova works to build strong international networks and facilitate and stimulate international innovation collaborations for Swedish actors. We establish and maintain contacts with innovation authorities, research institutes, companies and cluster organizations in strategically important countries and regions. Through bilateral agreements and participation in international networks, we create platforms for knowledge exchange and potential collaborations.
More about Vinnova's international collaborations
Last updated 11 April 2025