Venture Leaders Mobile 2026 connects Swiss startups with global investors

10.03.2026 15:00, Rita Longobardi

Organized by Venturelab and supported by Huawei, Swisscom Ventures, and VISCHER, the Venture Leaders Mobile 2026 roadshow brought ten Swiss startups to the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona, one of the world's largest and most influential connectivity events, from March 1 to 5. Selected in December from over 115 applicants by a jury of professional investors and industry experts, the Swiss National Mobile Startup Team introduced high-tech innovations across battery technology, space, cybersecurity, and wireless tech to autonomous driving, mobile security, wildlife monitoring, and robotics. Their participation at MWC and the 4YFN exhibition, the premier startup event within MWC, provided unique opportunities for exposure and networking on the global stage.

Over the past 20 years, Venturelab has selected the Swiss National Startup Teams. The Venture Leaders, the members of the Swiss National Startup Team, have traveled to Silicon Valley, Barcelona, Boston, New York, Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Hong Kong to dive into the exciting entrepreneurial scene of such high-level entrepreneurial hubs, helping oeurs to build their vision and achieve success. They have a clear-cut goal, envision themselves as global players, and want to take the first step towards their global expansion.

This year's Venture Leaders Mobile participants join an impressive group of alumni, including startups such as greenteg, Corintis, technis, ecorobotix, RealTyme, Almer Technologies (acquired by RealWear), and many more.

Opening the roadshow with a highlight of the week, the Venturelab Sailing Trophy and investor pitching at the historic Real Club Náutico de Barcelona, the program began with an informal session that combined competition on the water with direct founder to VC conversations. Then the roadshow's focus moved to 4YFN/MWC for the rest of the week.

Once the exhibition opened, the ten Venture Leaders engaged in a full schedule of meetings, pitches, and spontaneous networking across the global startup community, allowing them to pursue business development, seek funding opportunities, establish partnerships, and gain market exposure.



Several additional pitching opportunities further strengthened the startups’ visibility among investors and industry leaders. These included the International Mobile Pitchfest, co-organized with Red.es and ICEX, featuring six Swiss and four Spanish startups and highlighting the cross-border nature of innovation within the mobile ecosystem. The startups also had the opportunity to present their solutions to a selected group of investors during the Demo Brunch. In addition, two Venture Leaders Mobile startups, Tethys and BTRY, took the stage at the 4YFN Tech & Planet Award by EAE at the MWC Hub, showcasing their innovations to an international audience.

Further exchanges followed at the Telco X Investment Cocktail, hosted by T.Capital and Swisscom Ventures, which brought together corporate and financial investors for strategic discussions.



The startups were also joined at 4YFN by the Swiss Ambassador to Spain and Andorra, Heinrich Schellenberg, and the Swiss Consul General in Barcelona, Othmar Hardegger, who visited the Swiss delegation to learn more about the projects and meet the founders.

An exclusive booth visit with Huawei offered the founders direct exposure to current technology trends and insights into the company’s latest innovation priorities.

The Venture Leaders Mobile is organized by Venturelab and supported by Huawei, Swisscom Ventures, and VISCHER.