The Future of Health Grant unveils its Pilot Factory, 3 hospital pilots and 6 new start-ups selected from 606 applicants

With support from CSS and the EPFL Innovation Park, the Future of Health Grant (FoHG) is launching its first three pilot projects in a hospital environment through its new Pilot Factory. These pilots are designed to test digital health solutions in real-world conditions and to measure their impact using a unique protocol in Switzerland, thus enabling hospitals, insurers, the cantonal authorities and investors to decide which innovations are worth deploying on a large scale. The FoHG is also welcoming 6 new start-ups to its programme, chosen from more than 600 submissions.

Demonstrating an innovation’s impact prior to rollout

After four years of helping young start-ups to gain a foothold in the market, the FoHG has recognised that the main barrier to market entry is no longer technology, but evidence: without objective data, promising solutions fail to move beyond the project stage. It is this gap that the FoHG aims to fill.
Before being rolled out, a solution needs to demonstrate its real-life impact: on the quality of care delivered to the patient, on the work of the caregivers adopting it and on costs. These three dimensions are rarely measured together. The Pilot Factory tests each mature solution on a small scale and in a real-word healthcare environment, before extrapolating the results obtained to a system-wide level.

Comparable impact scores across solutions

Looking beyond the specifics of each pilot, the Pilot Factory has created a standard evaluation matrix in which the same criteria are measured for all the solutions being tested. The resulting impact score enables individual solutions to see where they stand in comparison to others.
The benefits are twofold: it provides start-ups with a neutral, credible framework for demonstrating the actual value of their solution, while also giving healthcare providers, cantonal authorities, insurers and investors the objective data they need to weigh up offers that were previously difficult to compare. In time, this approach will establish the Pilot Factory as an efficiency tool that can be used throughout the entire healthcare system.

First three hospital pilot projects

Each pilot involves a start-up, one or more healthcare providers and CSS. Three pilot projects have been launched to date:

  • BeWe × CSS: a digital neuro-coaching tool grounded in neuroscience and video gaming that reduces food cravings and builds healthier habits.
  • DigeHealth × CHUV × CSS: a solution that monitors the sounds of gut activity to detect post-surgical bowel obstructions at an early stage and so reduce the patient’s stay in hospital; this pilot is co-funded by the Canton of Vaud (SyNNergy programme).
  • Bonescreen × Ensemble Hospitalier de la Côte (EHC) × CSS: a tool that analyses medical images with AI to improve the early detection and diagnosis of bone-related diseases.

These pilot projects can draw on a growing network of healthcare providers, such as the University Hospital of Lausanne (CHUV) and the Ensemble Hospitalier de la Côte, based in French- and German-speaking Switzerland.

Six new start-ups to join the programme from mid-September 

Level 1:

  • Entrelacs is a personalised mental-health measurement platform that models how each individual’s symptoms and drivers evolve and interact over time, replacing one-size-fits-all questionnaire scores with earlier, tailored and preventive support – France
  • Kodia is the AI verification layer for Swiss outpatient billing: built directly on Tardoc, the outpatient flat rates and ICD-10-GM, it cites the exact codes and rules behind every answer so that users can open and check them – Rolle
  • NeuroTreasure Solutions turns the two most effective non-pharmacological therapies for cancer-related cognitive impairment, physical activity and cognitive training into a single mobile game that helps breast cancer survivors recover cognitively and return to work – Lausanne

Level 2:

  • Healium is developing Medicase, an automated medication management device that dispenses the right dose at the right time and logs every event, giving home-care teams and family caregivers objective evidence of what was actually delivered rather than an assumption. Healium is an alumnus of Level 1 of the programme – Lausanne

Level 3:

  • DeepPsy helps psychiatrists identify the most promising treatment for depression before it starts, turning validated EEG and ECG biomarkers into a clear report across antidepressants, rTMS, ECT and ketamine, reducing trial and error and improving treatment response by up to 24%. DeepPsy is an alumnus of Level 2 of the programme – Zollikon
  • Prevision Medicine, an ETH Zurich spin-off, tests a patient’s own living cancer cells against more than 100 drugs and combinations. Its PrevisionOne platform returns an actionable report within 72 hours, replacing trial-and-error prescribing with evidence of what actually works for that patient. Prevision Medicine is an alumnus of Level 2 of the programme – Zurich

    Imagining a more integrated healthcare system 

    The Future of Health Grant (FoHG) announced these advances that attest to its pioneering spirit at its annual conference reflecting on the future of health: “One Body, One System”, held today in Lausanne at the Fondation ISREC. This year’s edition, which attracted 250 participants from around the world, explored the benefits of a more holistic approach to the human body – with a more integrated understanding of the multiple factors that influence our health and the different disciplines involved. The University Hospital of Lausanne’s Centre for Integrative & Complementary Medicine (CEMIC) made a notable contribution. 

    Future of Health Grant, in brief 

    Launched in 2022 by CSS and the EPFL Innovation Park, the FoGH has established itself as a key programme for identifying and supporting digital health start-ups and for integrating their solutions in a way that creates synergies with the healthcare system.

    The results achieved over the past four years speak for themselves: over 700 applications a year, 50 start-ups supported, 4 solutions reimbursed under basic insurance or included in a supplementary insurance solution, several pilot projects and more than CHF 76 million in funding raised from investors. Beyond these figures, the FoHG is distinguished by its practical approach, based on tailored coaching and monitoring designed to accelerate growth while optimising resources. It offers up to CHF 90,000 in non-dilutive financial support. The FoHG has built up a collaborative ecosystem to which more than 20 strategic partners contribute their expertise: Barcelona & Madrid Health Hub, Confinis, CSEM, Elca, Ensemble Hospitalier de la Côte (EHC), Future4Care, Haute École de Santé Vaud (HESAV), HE-Arc, Hôpital de la Tour, Hôpital du Jura, Institut et Haute École de la Santé La Source, Kellerhals Carrard, Medkap Investors, Microsoft, Pfizer, Réseau Delta, Swiss Foundation for Innovation and Training in Surgery (SFITS), Takeda, Unisanté, Vaudoise Assurances, Vi Partners

    CSS Group, in brief 

    The CSS Group, headquartered in Lucerne, was founded in 1899. This long-standing company insures around 1.73 million people and, with a premium volume of around CHF 7.83 billion, is one of the country’s leading health and property insurers. CSS has earned the trust of 1.56 million people and is always close to the clients it insures thanks to around 100 agencies covering the whole of Switzerland and some 3,000 employees. As a health partner, CSS accompanies its clients on their journey to staying healthy, actively taking steps to improve their health or learning to live with illness.   

    EPFL Innovation Park, in brief 

    At the heart of the Swiss innovation ecosystem, one of the world’s most successful, the EPFL Innovation Park is home to more than 300 start-ups and 70 established companies with a focus on cutting-edge deep tech. Based on the EPFL campus in Lausanne and the Unlimitrust campus, the EPFL Innovation Park’s dedicated programmes provide concrete support to innovators at every stage of their development – from idea to commercial success. With its strong bias towards execution, it brings together an international community of experts, entrepreneurs, and decision-makers, united in their commitment to creating a lasting societal impact.