Artificial Intelligence Greater Zurich Area

Artificial intelligence in the Greater Zurich Area

Tap into Europe's leading AI talent base

Switzerland and the Greater Zurich Area have occupied top positions in renowned worldwide rankings on innovative strength and talent availability. Switzerland boasts the highest number of AI companies per citizen, according to ASGARD, a Venture Capital firm for Artificial Intelligence. Greater Zurich’s various research institutes, such as ETH Zurich and its AI Center as well as the Swiss AI Lab IDSIA, continue to rank as some of the leading technical institutes in the world and attract the best talents and companies including Google, IBM, Microsoft, Facebook, Oracle and many others.

Whether it's the development of a human-like intelligence or the programming of independent problem-solving solutions: in the Greater Zurich Area, the world's best talents work to decode the principles that govern intelligence. In many industries, established companies and emerging startups are pushing forward projects and business ideas that focus on all facets of artificial intelligence such as machine learning, natural language processing, neural networks or computer vision. 

The Greater Zurich AI ecosystem uniquely combines access to world-class research, top talent, and flexible spin-off policies, creating a fertile ground for the emergence of globally successful deep-tech companies.
Petar Tsankov, CEO at Lattice Flow
Petar Tsankov - Co-founder and CEO Lattice Flow

R&D in Greater Zurich

R&D in Greater Zurich

Researchers in Greater Zurich want to make machines not only more capable but also better learners. For instance, the ETH AI Center with over 93 professorships focuses on AI foundations and applications across all departments and promotes trustworthy AI. The mission of the Robotics and Perception Group of the University of Zurich is to develop autonomous machines that can navigate all by themselves using only onboard cameras, without relying on external infrastructures, such as GPS or motion capture systems. In Lugano, the work of the Swiss AI Lab IDSIA focuses on machine learning (deep neural networks, reinforcement learning), operations research, data mining, and robotics. In addition, the universities of Southern Swizterland USI and SUPSI offer AI degree programs, thereby strengthening Greater Zurich's pool of talents even more. 

Looking at the peers

Looking at the peers

Google has been strongly investing in its Zurich location (the company’s largest R&D hub outside the U.S.) by increasing its workforce of roughly 3,000 by adding AI and machine learning specialists and with plans to increase its total workforce in the region to 5,000. From cutting edge startups like Teralytics, Starmind and Squiro to multinationals such as Apple, Disney, Facebook, Google, Huawei, IBM, Magic Leap, Microsoft, Oracle, Samsung and Sony a growing number of companies have R&D labs in the Greater Zurich Area, many of them in collaboration with Swiss universities and institutions.

Pioneering AI

Pioneering AI

Greater Zurich has been one of the first movers when it comes to AI adaption. In the late 80s, two pioneering researchers laid the ground for modern-day AI. Jürgen Schmiedhuber, professor at IDSIA, pioneered the deep learning method with his groundbreaking neural network research. At the same time, Dr. Rolf Pfeifer, professor emeritus at the University of Zurich and former head of its AI research lab was among the very few with an interest in humanoid robots and artificial intelligence. After a series of unfruitful trials of experimenting with an algorithm, he made a mid-career shift from algorithm research to robotics in the 90s. He came to the conclusion that artificial intelligence has to be a stand-alone organism. Today, Pfeifer proposes that realistic communications and employing the concepts of embodiment are key in coping with the “AI hype”. 

Information Technology in the Greater Zurich Area

Information Technology in the Greater Zurich Area

Companies that locate information technology operations in the Greater Zurich Area benefit from wide availability of skilled talent, opportunity for cooperative efforts with top universities and innovative start-ups, and a stable, business friendly atmosphere.

Meet with an expert

Let us connect you with the right person to learn more about how the Greater Zurich Area Ltd can support your business needs. 

Our services are free of charge and include: 

  • Introductions to key contacts in industry, academia and government
  • Advice on regulatory framework, taxes, labor market and setting up a company
  • Custom-made fact-finding visits including office and co-working space

 

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Rolf Bühler Potrait
Rolf Bühler
Director Europe
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Beryl Kern
Beryl Kern
Senior Project Manager

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