InSphero Named #1 Swiss Startup for 2014
Schlieren, Switzerland, September 25, 2014 – Leading supplier of 3D microtissues for in vitro toxicity and efficacy testing earns top honors in the annual Swiss startup competition.
InSphero AG, the leading provider of assay-ready 3D microtissues and 3D-focused contract research services, was recognized as the #1 company in the Top 100 Swiss Startups Rankings for 2014, per results published in Switzerland on September 18th. The honor marks the fourth consecutive year that InSphero has made the Top 10 in the rankings but it is the first time the company has been awarded the #1 overall startup designation across all industries. Founded in 2009 in Zurich, Switzerland, InSphero now has commercial offices in Germany and the United States, and counts the world’s top 15 pharmaceutical and cosmetics companies amongst its customers. Already in 2014 the company has added novel 3D pancreatic microislets to its 3D InSight™ microtissue line, along with a spheroid imager, and 3D-optimized cytotoxicity assay kit that incorporates technology from Promega, the industry’s leading provider of cell-based assays.
Dr. Jan Lichtenberg, Chief Executive Officer and co-founder of InSphero says the award is an affirmation that the company‘s effort to expand the reach of their customer base along with the breadth of their product portfolio are paying off. “We started with the mission to make 3D cell culture a robust and easy-to-use tool for more predictive drug testing. Today, all major pharma companies have InSphero products in-house. We are proud that the panel has recognized this success.”
InSphero, a spin-off of the ETH Zurich and the University of Zurich, placed fifth overall in the competition in 2013. The Swiss Startups Rankings are determined by a panel of 100 Swiss startup experts, each of whom individually names and ranks ten promising startup companies. Ten points are awarded to the top nominee on each list, down to one point for the tenth, and the startups with the highest combined points enter the Top 100 rankings.
