Inside the Sword Startup Challenge: Meet the winner Jérôme Berthier, CEO of Deeplink

07.07.2025 11:00, Rita Longobardi

500 hours of expert IT consulting and development support, plus a full year of commercial follow-up—that's the prize the Sword Startup Challenge awarded to the final winner. This combination of technical muscle and business guidance offers a serious boost for refining technology and expanding market reach. We spoke with winner Jérôme Berthier, CEO of Deeplink, to learn how he plans to use this opportunity—and what's next for their company.

Venturelab industry partner Sword is a global IT services company known for building and maintaining complex corporate systems. Its Swiss division works closely with startups, offering deep technical expertise and business connections. The Sword Startup Challenge provided the winner with a tailored 500-hour consulting and development package, alongside a 12-month commercial follow-up. Let's see how he plans to capitalize on these resources.


Jérôme Berthier is a computer science engineer specialized in artificial intelligence. His entrepreneurial path is rooted in a strong belief: public institutions and Swiss companies should not depend on foreign technologies. This conviction led him to found Deeplink, a 100% Swiss digital platform that promotes technological sovereignty. Alongside his work at Deeplink, he teaches Innovation and AI in the public sector at HES-SO Geneva.

Beyond technology, he is committed to social and environmental responsibility. Deeplink is the first AI startup in Switzerland to receive BCorp certification. He also serves on the boards of the Empowerment Foundation and the Fédération romande des consommateurs, promoting transparency and fairness in the digital age.



Jérôme, what have been the main takeaways from this selection phase of the Sword Startup Challenge?
As founders, we're always convinced that our product will bring real change, but it’s sometimes difficult to clearly and simply explain what we do and what value we offer. The Sword Challenge was a valuable exercise because we had to pitch in front of people from diverse backgrounds. Being nominated also served as a useful benchmark in our search for the right market fit, since the product’s relevance to the market was part of the evaluation.

You’ve now been named the winner of the first edition of the Sword Startup Challenge—what does this mean for Deeplink at its current stage of development?
Deeplink now has a solid track record and is entering a scale-up phase. This challenge comes at the right time: after six years of establishing ourselves in the market, we’re ready to take things to the next level and pursue substantial growth.

How do you see the collaboration between your startup and Sword creating value for end customers and users?
Sword saw in our solution a strong response to market demand for a complete, sovereign, sustainable, and secure AI suite. Through this partnership, Sword can offer innovative AI solutions across its sectors of operation, backed by the robustness of Deeplink’s technology. For Deeplink, the collaboration serves as a real commercial springboard.

As a startup founder embedded in the Swiss startup ecosystem, how do you view the relationship between startups and corporate players—and how does the Sword Startup Challenge fit into this landscape?
Startups often make headlines with fundraising, but in a market like Switzerland, profitability is the key question. And there’s only one real path to that: paying customers. Startups focused on product development can overlook sales and market access—this is where corporate players like Sword are valuable. They help bring structure and industrialise the commercial side. The Sword Startup Challenge fits well into this context by building those essential bridges.

What is the importance of having partners like Venturelab serving as the interface between startups and corporates such as Sword?
Startups and corporates may operate in the same economic space, but they often speak different languages. For instance, there is a clear disconnect between companies based in Lausanne and startups at EPFL—even though they are located less than five kilometers apart. Without structures like Venturelab, it is difficult to imagine these kinds of bridges forming naturally.