Meet hemotune co-founder Lukas Langenegger and find out how he develops breakthrough blood purification technology

03.08.2021 07:30, Isabelle Mitchell

Lukas Langenegger co-founded hemotune, a Venture Leader Medtech that has designed a multi-target precision-medicine blood purification treatment to restore immune balance in patients with septic shock. hemotune’s HemoSystem uses magnetic beads to provide multi-target precision medicine blood purification at ultra-high efficiency and selectivity. Learn more about Lukas’s expectations for the Venture Leaders Medtech experience, and discover the talent he wished he had.

To boost the innovative power of the Swiss medtech industry, medtech startups now have their own Venture Leaders roadshow to Boston, one of the world’s major life sciences hubs and the ideal springboard for ambitious startups on their way to global expansion. Our profile series features the 10 Venture Leaders Medtech 2021, and we will introduce you to the inaugural graduates of the program. To learn more about the startups, we asked each entrepreneur to complete a short profile and choose at least six questions from a questionnaire about their personal and professional life.

Name: Lukas Langenegger
Location: Zurich
Nationality: Swiss
Graduated from: ETH Zurich, in 2015, with a master’s degree in chemical and bionengineering
Your job title: CEO and co-founder of hemotune 
Number of employees: 18
First touchpoint with Venturelab: In 2016, during the Venture Kick program How and where did you come up with the idea for your startup?
In 2014, I did my master’s thesis in Boston and got to know many founders. There, I realized that I want to work on something with a similar passion. When I returned to Switzerland, I looked for a PhD program solving a real-life problem with the potential to build a startup. In the Functional Materials Laboratory at ETH Zurich, I got to know Carlos Mora, and we started hemotune based on research findings of several generations of PhD students. So, there are many contributors to the basic idea behind hemotune. 

What do you expect from the Venture Leaders program, and how will it help you achieve your vision?
Until now, we were mostly focusing on our presence in Switzerland and Europe, which will be our first market. Additionally, through our investors from South Korea, we already have some presence in Asia. However, the US is the largest medical device market: It is very open to disruptive innovation and offers a lot of venture capital. Because sepsis is a leading health issue in the US, it comes naturally to strengthen our footprint there. It is our goal to build relationships with hospitals and physicians but also VC investors in the US. The Venture Leaders program will help us get privileged access to these players and offers a very effective way for the first steps in the US. 

What is the one talent you wish you had?
I would like to be a gifted painter. I really like art, and it would be nice to contribute to it by more than just gazing at it in wonder. 

What is your favorite movie or TV show?
I really liked Westworld a lot. The TV series confronts us with fundamental questions about consciousness and the secret of life while visualizing a potential future with artificial intelligence. 

What is your favorite podcast? 
The Daily by The New York Times. It offers excellent background reports and lets you reflect on current topics from a different point of view. 

What is always in your fridge? 
Milk for my cappuccino.

What are your three favorite apps? 
Outlook, Word, and Excel. They let you draft and adapt your business idea and reach out to all your stakeholders.

How and where do you clear your mind? 
I like commuting to work by bicycle. The roughly 30-minute ride allows me to reflect and get a healthy distance from work after a long day.

What is the most challenging aspect of being a founder? 
Building a disruptive product takes time and is usually not straightforward. You need a lot of stamina and a strong vision.

What is the most rewarding aspect of being a founder? 
Finding something that you are truly passionate about and trying to make it a reality.

Last but not least, could you show us your workspace? 



For more information and updates on hemotune a and the Venture Leaders Medtech, follow the Venture Leaders Medtech 2021 team with #VleadersMedtech on social media or subscribe to our newsletter. 
 
Venture Leaders Medtech 2021 is organized by Venturelab and supported by EPF Lausanne, ETH Zurich, Hansjörg Wyss, Kellerhals Carrard, Paul Scherrer Institut, Swissnex Boston, University Zurich, Canton of Vaud, and Canton of Zurich.