"If not you, then who?" — Interview with Maria Luisa Fuchs of Startup@HSG at the University of St. Gallen
During the summer months, we ask people who stimulate the Swiss startup ecosystem to provide the Venturelab community with food for thought, inspiration, and recommendations. For this year's Summer Series, we’ll be interviewing personnel from the country's leading higher education institutions about the diverse and unique programs available to support rising entrepreneurs across Switzerland. This week, we speak to Maria Luisa Fuchs of Startup@HSG at the University of St. Gallen.
Name: Maria Luisa FuchsJob title: Startup Coach and Project Manager at Startup@HSG
City: St. Gallen
What I do: I support founders and founders-to-be on their entrepreneurial journey by sharing knowledge and experience, challenging ideas, connecting people, and encouraging funding.
How would you summarize the mission of Startup@HSG?
Startup@HSG is the first point of contact for startups and entrepreneurship at the University of St.Gallen. It supports students and all other HSG members on their entrepreneurial path at all levels (Ideation, Prototype, Go to market) including free coaching and knowledge transfer from experienced experts from our startup ecosystem, financing, and networking.
What are the main programs/resources offered by Startup@HSG?The Startup@HSG offers a series of initiatives around entrepreneurship and founding to all students, alums, and HSG affiliates. The HSG Entrepreneurial Talents is our flagship accelerator program, that supports around 20 startups a year. In this program, the talents validate and accelerate their projects to the next level. Coaching and networking are part of the main activities, connecting the students and affiliates through the Founders' Garage events with key people and knowledge to develop their venture further. The MakerSpace on Campus and TheHub in the city center are ideal infrastructures to promote the exchange. With the “spin-off” label, HSG recognizes the efforts and passion behind all these ideas.
Who are the people behind Startup@HSG? What makes you all excited about supporting entrepreneurs? A multidisciplinary and diverse team formed by doctorate students, professors, and industry experts working in groups in the different initiatives. It is a very rewarding job to see that ideas take off and are creating value in the market.
How can startup founders best benefit from the support of Startup@HSG?
Startup@HSG supports founders at the different stages of development. At a very early stage by idea validation, at an early stage with a business model and go-to-market strategies challenge, or at a later stage by funding facilitation.
Could you please share two or three success stories from HSG that you are especially proud of?
OnlineDoctor, a platform that digitally connects patients with skin problems with dermatologists; SmartBreed, an insect breeding solution for circular and sustainable agriculture; and Kaspar&, a financial platform for managing your savings and investment solutions in a smart and automatic way.
What are the key strengths of HSG that make it a great place for entrepreneurs?
With the Startup@HSG Talent programs, the infrastructure of the MakerSpace and TheHub, the Founder Garage, the HSG spin-off label, and additional support possibilities of the Startup Lab, we have created a fruitful environment to foster innovation on campus. The ever-increasing numbers of visitors at our events and applicants for our programs show that we are on the right track. Moreover, the HSG spin-off label illustrates the entrepreneurial strength of our alumni and binds them to the University of St.Gallen. This gives us the opportunity to strengthen the ties with existing startups and create a visible impact both regionally and around the globe. For example, the TOP 100 Swiss Startups in 2017 featured eight HSG spin-offs. In the number one spot was Ava, a fertility-tracking company founded by Lea von Bidder. Lea's company recently exited and Ava was sold to an American healthcare group. As an HSG alum, she also received the HSG Founder of the Year award in March 2017 and now lives in Silicon Valley. Which fields of technology are the startups from HSG especially strong in?
The largest share of active HSG startups is in the technology and media sectors, reflecting a generally prevailing trend in the startup scene. Financial services stands out as the second most represented sector among the spin-offs. Additionally, more and more startups have been popping up in the foodtech sector (or in the food industry more broadly) with impressive ideas for solving major societal challenges.
Can you share a surprising moment observed during your work at Startup@HSG and what you learned from it? I am always amazed by the passion and creativity of the new generation. It is very inspiring.
Which book would you recommend as a must-read for any aspiring entrepreneur?St. Galler Startup Navigator to grow your idea.
What is a piece of key advice that you’d like to share with every new founder?
Switzerland is a great country to found a company. There are plenty of resources available (knowledge, people, network, financing) to support entrepreneurs. Ask around and get acquainted with it. Use those resources and take the step.
Finally, what is your vision/prediction for the startup community in Switzerland?We have challenging times in front of us with a post-pandemic phase, economic constraints, and the scarcity of natural resources, among others. We need to use our creativity, knowledge, and passion to create solutions to the grand challenges of our society.
Anything else you’d like our readers to know?
If not now, then when? If not you, then who?
Available support for HSG spin-offs:
Startup@HSG
HSG Global Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation
The Chair of Entrepreneurship at the University of St. Gallen
Venture Kick
Innosuisse Start-up Trainings
Connect with and follow HSG:
Connect with and follow Venturelab:
Notable startups founded by HSG alumni:
Adello AG: Our mission is to quantify the drivers of physical business.
We believe Mobile Marketing can be exceptional when it is tied to human behavior. We make marketing matter again, by understanding the who, when, where and how. We have been innovating (several pat... Read more
AgriCircle AG: Making Regenerative Agriculture actionable at Scale
AgriCircle is offering DORA (Dashboard for outcomes of Regenerative Agriculture) as a service to agribusinesses. AgriCircle offers unprecedented technologies to understand farm performance and the in... Read more
AI Retailer Systems AG: Visual AI to automate checkout and prevent loss
We are an award winning ETH Zurich & Uni. St. Gallen Spin Off on the mission to enable brick & mortar retailers deliver the in-store shopping experience of the future with Computer Vision tech solutio... Read more
alao AG: the online platform for telecom products
alao provides the first fully digital telecom ecosystem, connecting Telco providers, suppliers, and customers to digitize the distribution. We started as a comparison platform in 2018 and, within a fe... Read more
Altoida AG: Join us on our noble mission to better brain health
As a predictive digital biomarker company, Altoida, Inc. has developed technology using smart device sensors to measure cognition, function and motor skills. The innovation is based on three major pil... Read more
bexio AG : Business software for SMEs
bexio is a leading provider of cloud based business software for SMB's, self employed and Startups in Switzerland. bexio`s Award winning tool covers the entire administrative workflows of an SMB on a ... Read more
BLP Digital AG: Automatic information extraction from documents using AI
Die BLP Digital AG ist ein Spin-off von ETH Zürich und HSG St. Gallen im Bereich der künstlichen Intelligenz. Das mehrfach ausgezeichnete Unternehmen ist auf die Automatisierung von ERP-Prozessen spez... Read more
BOOKBRIDGE FOUNDATION: BookBridge establishes libraries in countries in need
We train teachers and supply schools with books. Thereby we strive for a worldwide balanced access to education. Our books originate from private and public donations. After a successful pilot project... Read more
CareerLunch AG: Matching talents with employees for informal lunch exchanges
Traditional recruitment doesn't make it easy to assess a candidate's cultural fit or give prospective hires much insight into their possible future work and colleagues. Our platform pairs potential hi... Read more
Carvolution AG: Car Subscription Model for Switzerland
At Carvolution we re-imagine the rules of having a car. As Switzerland's pioneer in car subscription we offer you a simple, flexible and affordable alternative to buying and leasing a car. Customer... Read more
collectID AG: collectID connects physical and digital
collectID combines physical with digital by combining encrypted NFC tags with secure, immutable NFTs. Together, they create a unique ecosystem and communication channel for brands, products, and custo... Read more
ComfyLight AG: Breaking the walls of deficient home security
ELEVATOR PITCH: ComfyLight is a new and innovative home security solution built within an LED lamp, which protects your home actively from burglary. Mission is to make people feel safe and secure abo... Read more
connex.io AG: Smart address book solution reducing the hassle of managing contact information
connex.io keeps your personal address book clean, complete and up-to-date. We merge the data from your mobile phone, email and social networks to create a unified address book that you can access anyt... Read more
contactify AG: B2B SaaS Platform for personalized customer engagement.
With Contactify, we envision a world where B2B companies can easily and effectively engage with their customers. Our product will revolutionize the way companies interact with their clients by providi... Read more
dq technologies AG : Data clean rooms powered by confidential computing
Decentriq is an enterprise SaaS platform providing data clean rooms - allowing users to leverage data previously not possible. By enforcing compliance and control with advanced privacy technologies... Read more
Embotech AG: Empowering Autonomous Systems to Make Better Decisions
Embotech is a leading provider of decision-making software for autonomous driving systems for private grounds and smart factories. The company’s embeddable software empowers autonomous systems to make... Read more
Equippo AG: Next-generation, full-service marketplace for equipment
Equippo was founded on the belief that buying heavy equipment on the global market can and should be simple. We'll bring together select manufacturers, dealers, leasing companies and other trusted sel... Read more
Faitron AG: Solutions in the smart mobile food industry
Faitron Ltd. is a Swiss company specializing in innovative and mobile food warming solutions. We enable users to enjoy an active and sustainable lifestyle while eating healthier food. Our high quality... Read more
Gamaya SA: Digital agronomy solutions for large farming businesses
Gamaya provides the crop specialists with an automated agronomic crop insights based on the combination of Remote Sensing and Artificial Intelligence. Unlike many of the competitors we are able to dia... Read more
Gastros Switzerland AG: Innovative system induction based in order to keep food warm at a buffet
With «InductWarm®» based on the most modern induction technology Gastros Switzerland redefines the way of how food can be kept warm. We offer a genuine alternative for professionals from the catering ... Read more
GuestReady AG: Airbnb management services for short-term rentals
GuestReady is a globally leading tech-enabled short-term rental management company. The company helps property owners to rent their properties on platforms such as Airbnb, Booking.com or HomeAway. Gue... Read more
HypoPlus AG: Internet-platform to connect clients over convenient real-time offers with financial institutions
iRewind SA : Unique video memories on the spot, on your mobile
IREWIND® is an integrated tech solution that allows sport enthusiasts and entertainment consumers to capture their experiences. It provides them with multi angle movies directly on their mobile device... Read more
Kasparund AG: We democratize saving and investing for everyone!
Saving and investing has never been easier: Download the app, connect an existing bank account plus payment card (or create a new one) and open infinite individual saving plans with just a few clicks.... Read more
kinastic AG: kinastic - the AI powered virtual personal fitness coach
Kinastic provides everybody with a Virtual Personal Coach (VPC) in your pocket! The VPC from kinastic enables people to reach their targets in the most effective way by providing them with the best... Read more
Komed Health AG: Slack for Hospitals. Fully Secured. Easy to integrate.
Komed Health is redefining hospital communication with its AI-powered, patient-centric SaaS platform that enables real-time, cross-functional collaboration. Accessible on any device, it connects docto... Read more
Lightly AG: Your Data. At Its Full Potential.
Lightly is a data curation platform for machine learning. It helps machine learning teams to analyze and curate their data before model training. That way companies can achieve an up to 20% higher mod... Read more
Locatee AG: Workplace Analytics Solution
Locatee is the leading workplace analytics solution that transforms complex data into space utilisation insight. Developed with a strong focus and a deep understanding of the corporate real estate... Read more
modum.io AG: Digital Supply Chain Monitoring, Automation and Optimization
Modum offers digital supply chain monitoring and analytics solutions that are simple to use and easy to integrate for a wide range of applications, including pharma. We leverage proven IoT and blockch... Read more
mySwissChocolate AG : Send a personalized gift around the world
chocogreets - attention, engagement, enjoyment chocogreets is a new on-/offline marketing instrument which creates 100% attention for any message or offer with sensationel prooved conversion rates up... Read more
Octotronic AG: Smart IIoT error diagnosis solution for industrial machines
Octotronic is a vision-based error diagnosis solution that provides you with real-time insights into industrial machine errors. It leverages camera equipment as well as data analytics, allowing you to... Read more
OnlineDoctor AG: Telemedicine platform connecting patients and dermatologists
OnlineDoctor is the leading provider of teledermatology in Europe. The company was founded in 2016 in Switzerland by dermatologist Dr. Paul Scheidegger and the two health business experts Dr. Tobias W... Read more
Palisis AG: Portable ticketing solution
Founded in 2008 and offices in four countries, Palisis considers itsef a technology pacemaker in the tours and activities sector. By acquiring TourCMS in 2015, Palisis consolidated the best-in-class t... Read more
Piavita AG: Daily assistant for equine veterinarians
Piavita AG is a Zurich-based medtech start-up aiming at transforming the veterinary industry. The Piavet System provides veterinarians an easy, comprehensive and high-precision vital sign monitoring ... Read more
RoomPriceGenie AG: The most intuitive revenue management solution for hotels.
RoomPriceGenie is the easiest way to ensure that your rooms are priced right, every night. Purpose-built for the independent hotelier, RoomPriceGenie is fast to implement, intuitive to use, simple to ... Read more
rready AG: AI-native solutions to convert ideas into financial impact
ready offers AI-native innovation management solutions that help organizations turn ideas into measurable business impact. Our suite includes Idea Management for operational excellence and KICKBOX to ... Read more
Scope Content AG: The new generation of news aggregator a unique semantic text analysis engine
Scope makes software for communication. We help companies to reach their target groups with a minimum of time and resources. We make sure they always have enough content for their website, that the... Read more
ShoeSize.Me AG: Boost your footwear sales with innovative, guided-selling AI
Insecurity to select the right shoe size is the #1 reason why ready-to-buy online shoppers do not buy - or worse they guess their size and return the shoe. ShoeSize.Me provides the most trusted Size-... Read more
SmartBreed GmbH: We offer insect breeders a complete breeding solution.
We offer insect breeders a local and complete breeding solution. We want to make the advantages of insects industrially usable and accessible for everyone. Therefore we offer stackable, fully automate... Read more
SNAQ AG: Reveal and manage impact of food on health
Today the carb count of every third meal is estimated incorrectly by diabetes patients, causing emergency room visits and long-term diabetes complications. SNAQ is a top rated diabetes app that uses A... Read more
Squirro AG: AI Engine with a focus on unstructured data to drive top and
Squirro is an AI Engine that delivers actionable recommendations for better business outcomes. SquirroGPT is the first enterprise ready GPT solution. Squirro delivers the right insights at the right t... Read more
SUSI Partners AG: Financing the future energy infrastructure
SUSI supports qualified investors with investments in solar and wind parks in Europe, energy efficiency retrofits of existing infrastructure and energy storage capacity. The SUSI advised funds are gui... Read more
TOM Medications AG: Mobile solution for hassle free medication intake
TOM Medications is a digital health engagement solution for patients with chronic diseases. The TOM app, with nearly three million in-app interactions per month, increases compliance and adherence ... Read more
Tomplay: Tomplay invents the Interactive Sheet Music
Tomplay, the inventor of Interactive Sheet Music, has revolutionized music playing. Through its unique platform, it offers all musicians the opportunity to play their instruments along with high-quali... Read more
TrekkSoft AG: SaaS solution for tour and activity companies
TrekkSoft is a leading online booking software provider that is transforming the tour and activity market with its constantly-evolving booking and payment solutions. A Swiss start-up founded in 2010,... Read more
UMAMI AG: Microgreens made in an urban and natural ecosystem
Umami is a true pioneer in agritechnology and is leading the way into a new era of farming with a consumer facing brand. We design bio-natural ecosystems and combine them with state of the art tec... Read more
VAY AG: Making computers understand human motion
VAY created an artificial coaching intelligence to help people work out like pros, with a focus on real-time coaching through motion analysis based on computer vision. VAY was started in 2018 and ... Read more
VIU VENTURES AG: Challenging the established rules in the eyewear industry
VIU prescription glasses and sunglasses unite brilliant design with a transparent manufacturing process and fair prices. The collections are designed in Switzerland by Fabrice Aeberhard, VIU’s Crea... Read more
WormUp GmbH: The fine art of composting.
WormUp has set itself the ambitious goal of preventing any biogenic household waste from ending up in the traditional garbage, where valuable nutrients are lost in incineration plants or can cause met... Read more
Z22 Technologies AG: Financial research and quantitative asset company
Z22 Technologies is a financial research and quantitative asset management company founded by a team of ETH and HSG almunis, combining analytical skills with business sense. When and how should I h... Read more
Zynnon AG: Pathogen detection and identification via gas biomarkers
Sepsis kills 11 million people yearly, with each hour of delayed treatment raising mortality risk by nearly 8%. Yet today’s gold standard diagnostic—blood culture—can take up to 48 hours, while sepsis... Read more
Related articles
Build your startup alongside industry leaders: An interview with Lukas Böni, Co-Founder of Planted
read more
Build your startup alongside industry leaders: An interview with Melanie Aregger, CEO and Co-Founder of Avelo
read more
Build your startup alongside industry leaders: An interview with Olivier Kofler, CEO of Carvolution
read more
Build your startup alongside industry leaders: An interview with Levent Künzi, CEO and Co-Founder of Properti
read more
Build your startup alongside industry leaders: An interview with Juan Mario Michan, Founder and CEO of Daphne Technology
read more
From brainstorm to breakout: Building your startup alongside industry leaders
read more
Guardians of Tomorrow: securing a sustainable future — Interview with Christoph Gebald, CEO and founder of Climeworks
read more
Innovation unleashed: inspiring entrepreneurs in the technological era — Interview with Christian Peterhans, Head of Development at Helbling Technik
read more
Green Visions: inspiring entrepreneurs in the cleantech era — Interview with Margaux Peltier, Co-founder and CEO of Enerdrape
read more
International Women's Day 2023: Resources for innovators and aspiring entrepreneurs
read more
Interview: Thierry Mauvernay on his new book, the importance of listening to advice, and bridging the public and private sector
read more
"You cannot do it alone" — Interview with Christian Elias Schneider of the Innovation Office at the University of Basel
read more
"Innovation needs diversity" — Interview with Maria Olivares of the Innovation Hub at the University of Zürich
read more
"Innovation is a people’s business" — Interview with Sebastien Hug of the Innovation Office at UNIBE
read more
"Linger on the idea" — Interview with Valeria Mozzetti Rohrseitz of the Knowledge and Technology Transfer at UNIFR
read more
"Find a problem to solve and get passionate about it" — Interview with Emanuele Laurenzi of ImpactLab FHNW
read more
"No matter what happens ... learn as much as possible" — Interview with Caroline Widmer of -Pulse at HES-SO Geneva
read more
"Don’t hesitate to pivot and adapt your idea" — Interview with Christian Hohmann of Smart-up HSLU
read more