End of the first Innovation Booster: fully fledged springboards for collaborative innovation in Switzerland
The very first generation of thematic Innovation Booster initiatives supported by Innosuisse was concluded at the end of 2024. These initiatives mark a turning point in promoting a co-creation culture in Switzerland, as they emphasise collaboration and open innovation as catalysts for transformation.
Innovation Booster are thematic initiatives driven by alliances within innovation ecosystems. They run on a four-year cycle. Funding from Innosuisse helps Innovation Booster to organise their activities and support the best ideas generated within their communities. Innosuisse regularly launches calls for applications around new themes.
The following Innovation Booster undertook their activities from 2021 to 2024:
- Additive Manufacturing
- Applied Circular Sustainability
- Blockchain Nation Switzerland
- Databooster
- Energy Lab
- Living Labs for Decarbonisation
- Microtech
- Photonics
- Swiss Food Ecosystems
- Sport & Physical Activity
- Technology & Special Needs
Four years of enthusiasm for collaborative innovation
Launched in 2021, these eleven thematic initiatives have made a significant contribution to redefining the approach to innovation in the country. 20,000 people have taken part in them over the last four years. More than 340 events have been held, giving more than 60% of the participants a platform to develop new ideas. 600 of them have been tested as a result. These events have also enabled 78% of participants to start working with people from outside their network.
These initiatives have laid the foundations for a sustainable culture change, in particular by strengthening the innovation capacity of Swiss SMEs. All participants stressed the importance of being connected with the right partners, having the necessary time and resources to develop and test their ideas, and receiving targeted support for the early phases of the innovation process. «We tested an innovation idea as part of the Photonics Innovation Booster, in collaboration with experts in this field, various partners and end-users. This gave us the opportunity to test our idea and confirm its market acceptance in a completely new area for us, and to fine-tune our understanding of the requirements of the main potential users,» said Philippe Morel, CEO of Xenlux.
Challenges and lessons learned
The main challenge during the Innovation Booster was guiding the participants towards an understanding and acceptance of open innovation. In ecosystems where secrecy is often favoured, some Innovation Booster, such as Microtech, have worked to build trust through clear legal frameworks and charters. These efforts have even enabled competitors to work together effectively.
Therefore, the participants developed a better understanding of each other and joined forces to collaborate on shared issues, paving the way for innovative solutions being co-created.
A variety of formats to meet all needs
The Innovation Booster experimented with various formats in order to stimulate co-creation. For example, the Applied Circular Sustainability initiative combined ideation marathons and workshops to solve specific problems, while the «Meet the Pioneers» format promoted experience sharing between current participants and earlier trailblazers.
Other Innovation Booster also developed formats that involve end-users early in the innovation process with a view to rapidly pinpointing the desirability of their ideas. «As part of a workshop for the Technology & Special Needs Innovation Booster, we set up working groups made up of people with dyslexia and people with visual impairments. This helped us to understand the shared needs and the differences between these two groups in terms of reading preferences. We were then able to set up a standard configuration that works best for both groups,» explained Céline Witschard, co-founder of the Plein Accès Suisse association.
Momentum beyond Innosuisse support
Even though Innosuisse funding stops after four years, a number of initiatives are continuing beyond this, such as:
- Applied Circular Sustainability: proposes open innovation workshops and supports the development of ideas to promote the circular economy.
- Databooster: continues to operate as part of the new «Artificial Intelligence» Innovation Booster.
- Microtech: maintains its R&D challenge platform to connect SMEs and research institutions with the right partners and to support selected projects through crowdfunding.
- Photonics: extends efforts to promote collaborative innovation and ideation workshops.
- Sport & Physical Activity: extends efforts to promote collaborative innovation and organises ideation workshops.
- Swiss Food Ecosystems: continues to operate as part of the new «Future Food Farming» Innovation Booster.
First sustainable impacts and prospects
Innosuisse is seeing the first signs of a long-term impact. Local projects such as «ParticipoNs» in Neuchâtel and the «E4citizens» serious game are testament to the democratisation of open innovation in a number of sectors. In addition, programmes such as the diversity-focused «Women's in Energy Lab & Life (WELL)» are demonstrating their ability to address societal challenges, such as the underrepresentation of women in technical fields.
With this first generation of Innovation Booster, Innosuisse has planted the seeds of sustainable, collaborative innovation, enriching the Swiss ecosystem and paving the way for future transformations. Other initiatives are currently under way, exploring and developing new ideas around future themes, such as carbon removal, health, the urban society of tomorrow and the mobility of the future.