>>venture>> 2012 winner Sophia Genetics has been hailed as a potential "unicorn", or startup worth more than a billion dollars. The medtech company uses AI and big data to provide genomic analysis to hundreds of hospitals worldwide, helping doctors quickly and accurately diagnose their patients. Winning the >>venture>> award was very important, says CEO Jurgi Camblong, as it confirmed that Sophia Genetics was heading in the right direction. The company, which has raised $140 million in funding, recently announced it will be setting up a location in Boston to meet growing demand in the US.

ETH spinoff Sensirion was the winner of the inaugural edition of >>venture>> in 1998. The company has gone on to become a leading producer of innovative digital microsensors, supplying customers in the medical, industrial, automotive and consumer goods industries. Headquartered near Zurich, Sensirion now employs over 600 staff across multiple branches in Europe, Asia and the United States. In 2018 Sensirion became a publicly traded company, offering its shares on SIX Swiss Exchange for the first time.

Big data meets big agriculture: EPFL spinoff and 2015 >>venture>> winner Gamaya uses farmland analytics to contribute to sustainable agriculture and global food security. The company’s drone-mounted sensors survey farmland and translate the data into actionable information for farmers. These insights help farmers target their use of water, fuel and agrochemicals and manage growing season risks such as extreme weather, pests, weeds and disease. The agtech company, which currently offers solutions for soy and sugarcane cultivation, has raised CHF 7.4 million in funding to date.

Biotech startup Glycart was a >>venture>> competition winner in 2000. Founded as a spinoff of the ETH, the company is an innovator in glycoengineering, or adding sugar chains to antibodies to make them more effective in fighting cancer and other diseases. The life-saving potential of this technology was recognized early on, prompting pharma giant Roche to acquire the startup for $235 million in 2005. A leukemia drug based on Glycart’s research received breakthrough therapy designation from the US Food and Drug Administration in 2013.

>>venture>> 2017 winner and ETH spinoff Haelixa harnesses the power of DNA in a way that could prove disruptive to the energy industry – and beyond. The company's “smart tracers” have the potential to replace the expensive, unreliable and toxic methods currently used to assess and monitor oil and geothermal reserves. Haelixa's unique DNA tracers can also be used as product identifiers to fight counterfeiting and increase supply chain transparency – a potential game-changer for the luxury goods industry.

More tech, less cutting: This is the future of surgery – and the mission of 2018 >>venture>> winner EBA-Med. The Geneva-based medtech startup has developed a promising automated treatment for heart arrhythmias, which impact millions of sufferers around the world. EBA-Med's non-invasive surgical innovation, which is based on proton beam technology, has the potential to replace risky and complex manual interventions with a streamlined treatment that is five times faster and three times cheaper than currently used methods.