DePoly, a cleantech startup, is the most promising startup in Switzerland

04.09.2024 22:00, Rita Longobardi

For the 14th time, a jury of 100 investors and technology experts has selected the 100 most promising startups in Switzerland. The TOP 100 Swiss Startup Award will be presented tonight in Lausanne.

Switzerland produces 800,000 tons of plastic waste each year. Only a fraction of it is recycled. The startup company DePoly is building an industrial demonstration plant in Valais that will break down plastic waste and make it available again as a raw material for the plastics processing industry. The startup company, founded in 2020 by EPFL researchers, was classified first in the ranking of the 100 most promising Swiss startups in 2024.

The jury for the 14th TOP 100 Swiss Startup Award comprises experts with deep knowledge of the Swiss startup ecosystem: Investors, successful startup founders, and technology experts. They select the most promising startups, which must be no more than five years old, thanks to their market insights.

The award is organized by Venturelab, the national startup support platform, in collaboration with UBS as the main sponsor. This is the second time since 2015 that the award night has been held in Lausanne. This evening, 350 guests from the worlds of business, science, and politics will gather at the Palais de Beaulieu.

Since the first TOP 100 Swiss Startup Award 14 years ago, Venturelab has honored nearly 600 startups with the TOP 100 Award. "Together, these companies have attracted CHF 14 billion in venture capital and created 20,000 new jobs," says Co-Managing Director Stefan Steiner. Many former startups are now Swiss unicorns, including Climeworks, GetYourGuide, MindMaze, On, Scandit, and Sophia Genetics.

Depoly is one of 16 cleantech startups among the 100 best startups in Switzerland. Fifteen startups each come from the biotech and engineering sectors; there are also 14 from ICT and 13 medtech startups.
 

Immensely proud to present: the winner of the TOP 100 Swiss Startup Award 2024 is Depoly! ??
Patrick Forte of @UBSschweiz hands over the trophy to founders Samantha Anderson and Christopher Ireland - world-class innovators in cleantech!!!https://t.co/EB13DmQsQ0#TOP100SSU pic.twitter.com/A3lEEnQKWK

— Venturelab (@venturelab_ch) September 4, 2024

About TOP 100 Swiss Startup Award
Venturelab has organized the TOP 100 Swiss Startup Award every year since 2011. A jury of 100 leading investors and startup experts selects the 100 most innovative and promising Swiss startups. Each jury member nominates 10 Swiss startups that are less than five years old, awarding ten points for first place down to one point for tenth place. The companies with the most points are included in the TOP 100 Startup Ranking. 

The TOP 100 Swiss Startup Award 2024 is supported by Presenting Partner UBS and Gold Partners SIX and SVC. The TOP 100 Event Partners are the Canton of Vaud, the Gebert Rüf Foundation, Walder Wyss, Handelszeitung, PME, startupticker.ch, startup.ch, Venturelab, Venture Kick, and IFJ.

The TOP 100 Swiss Startup Award website at www.top100startups.swiss features the German, French, English, Chinese, and Japanese editions of the TOP 100 Swiss Startups magazine, the complete ranking, and the jury members.