Venture Leaders Cleantech: Swiss cleantech startups make an impression in Munich

The Venture Leaders—members of the Swiss National Startup Team—have a clear objective: envisioning themselves as global players, they want to assert and expand their presence on the international stage. The Venture Leaders Cleantech 2022 roadshow brought ten Swiss entrepreneurs to Munich, where they benefitted from an accelerated learning curve in all matters of innovation and business development. Pitch sessions with investors and market experts, as well as exchanges with their peers, provided these founders with a unique opportunity to bolster their network.

Venturelab has organized international roadshows for the Swiss National Startup Teams for 18 years. The ambitious entrepreneurs are introduced to investors and potential customers in leading technology hubs such as Silicon Valley, Boston, China, Hong Kong, Barcelona, London, and Munich.

Swiss cleantech startups impress Munich investors

This year's Venture Leaders Cleantech were selected from 90 applications by a jury of investors and experts. Joining the Swiss National Startup Team, they embarked on a roadshow that offered a one-week deep dive into Munich's startup ecosystem. The participants not only built a strong network in the Bavarian region but were also part of a team of entrepreneurs who shared the same objectives and challenges. The roadshow included an investor pitch event organized by Occident Group and individual pitch sessions with deeptech investors from Germany, Digital+ Partners, Earlybird, and UVC Partners.

Benjamin Erhart from UVC Partners shared his impression of the Venture Leaders startups, pointing out that it is "absolutely incredible to see how mature they are even though most of them were founded just a couple of years ago. They have clear growth metrics, clear investment goals, and a transparent strategy to face the current cleantech challenges."

"The most important thing we get out of this week is the support and collaboration from all the startups, partners, and stakeholders we have engaged with," said Saurabh Tembhurne, CEO of SoHHytec and captain of the Venture Leaders Cleantech. "One of the best things about the roadshow is really seeing how essential partnerships can be to us; not only because we receive different perspectives and gather different opinions but also as we develop those present and future relationships."


The Venture Leaders Cleantech 2022 meet with investors and experts in Munich

Aside from these investor sessions, the Swiss Startups had the chance to increase their network of contacts by engaging with potential clients and business partners at an event organized by the Swiss Consulate in Munich and the Export-Club Bayern e.V..

The startups also participated in three tailored-made workshop sessions: one delivered by Swiss Business Hub, which provided an overview of the challenges and opportunities when entering the German market; one with Jodi Johnson, who supported the startups in designing a clear HR strategy in such a competitive market; and another workshop with our partner Helbling Technik, which gave the startups the chance to understand how their technical knowledge can help address the challenges the startups are currently facing or may face in the future.

"Having had the opportunity to pitch so many times for different audiences was a great experience for me as a founder and for my company as well," Anselma Woerner, CEO and founder of Exnaton said. "Also, it was great to see how supportive the partners and the startups were all week. I'm sure I can count on each of them to reach out in the future when I have some questions to debate."
 

Venture Leaders Cleantech is organized by Venturelab and supported by Alpian, AMAG, EPF Lausanne, ETH Zurich, EY, Helbling Technik, Romande Energie, Canton Vaud, VISCHER and Venture Leaders alumn Patrick Maillard

Alumni of the program include high-flying startups such as Climeworks, BComp, greenTEG, Insolight, L.E.S.S., and many more.

 

Learn more about the Venture Leaders Cleantech 2022: