PeriVision, Bioscibex and Carewell receive support from FIT
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Perivision and its software combining artificial intelligence and complex algorithms to carry out vision examinations, Bioscibex and its innovative bioreactor for drug production, and Carewell and its platform connecting the needs of health and care facilities with available qualified personnel. All three received support from FIT via a Tech Growth loan of CHF 300,000, a Tech Seed loan of CHF 100,000 and a Digital Seed loan of CHF 50,000 respectively.
PeriVision and its innovative headset for eye examinations
Faced with the prevalence of eye diseases and their increase due to demographic change, healthcare systems are short of ophthalmologists and optometrists. Most of the problem stems from the vision tests currently in use: multiple tests that require a lot of time (around 15–30 minutes per test) and resources (1 assistant and a dedicated room), are expensive and unreliable, with a margin of error of 10-30%. These inefficiencies result in bottlenecks, with patients losing their ocular vision due to inadequate testing and treatment.
The software developed by PeriVision incorporates complex algorithms based on artificial intelligence, making it possible to obtain extremely accurate test results and even to predict future developments. This software is integrated into a virtual reality headset. Thanks to its speed of analysis, ease of use and automated instructions, the PeriVision system is helping to increase the flow of optometry and ophthalmology patients by 30%.
The CHF 300,000 Tech Growth loan granted by FIT will be used by PeriVision to win more customer contracts, as well as to develop and integrate new functionalities into its system (new tests, diagnostics and prognoses algorithms).
Bioscibex and its bioreactor, transforming the way drugs are produced
Biomedicines have been shown to be effective in treating many diseases, including autoimmune diseases and cancer. However, their high cost, due to high production costs, is a major barrier to access for many patients. In order to reduce the cost of these treatments, the production process needs to be simplified.
At present, this process is based on seven consecutive stages that are complex, costly and subject to contamination risks. With its innovative bioreactor, Bioscibex reduces these steps to just two, minimising costs, contamination risks and time. Thanks to a unique combination of two-axis movements, the bioreactor developed by Bioscibex offers the widest volume range on the market, enabling cell expansion from 30 mL to 30 L in a single step.
With the CHF 100,000 Tech Seed loan received from FIT, Bioscibex will continue to invest in the research and development of its beta prototype for customer testing. This prototype will be ready by mid-2025.
Carewell and its platform for connecting healthcare establishments with available qualified staff
Switzerland, like many other countries, is facing a shortage of healthcare staff, with almost 12,000 qualified people missing from hospitals and other institutions, and absence rates of around 20%. The good news is that there is a potential untapped reserve: the more than 60,000 people who have left their jobs in healthcare. The problem is that they have no easy way of finding temporary work, because when it comes to replacing people who are absent, establishments often don’t have an efficient tool for managing the pool of internal replacements, and services such as temporary employment agencies don’t work to their satisfaction. As a result, there is no match between the needs of care structures and the people who can potentially be mobilised to cover them.
In light of this observation, Carewell has developed a platform that brings these two areas together and enables their respective needs to converge: managing replacements for healthcare establishments and, for health professionals, to find flexible jobs in the healthcare sector that match their expectations. The innovation rests on three pillars: a digital platform (to post job advertisements, manage files, etc.), an algorithm based on artificial intelligence that matches employers’ needs with available profiles, and support activities to retain talent. These three modules will remove the friction from the recruitment process and help to resolve the shortage.
After awarding a Digital Grant of CHF 20,000 in 2024, FIT is reiterating its support for Carewell via a Digital Seed loan of CHF 50,000, which will support the next stages in the development of the platform and the costs associated with marketing and recruiting additional freelancers.