Microcaps wins ZKB Pionierpreis Technopark

Microcaps AG from Zurich has won this year’s ZKB Pionierpreis Technopark. Zürcher Kantonalbank and the Technopark Zürich foundation use the award worth 100,000 Swiss francs to honor innovative start-ups.

The spin-off from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich (ETH) convinced the jury with their new procedure for manufacturing microcapsules. Microencapsulation involves surrounding small amounts of a substance in a shell. The microcapsules created in this way can then directly transport drugs, aromas or fragrances to the target location.

Up until now, the issue has been that it was not possible to precisely control the capsule size during manufacture. Microcaps has been able to solve this with its new procedure. If capsules are manufactured at an identical size, this means with regard to medication that they will act in a more controlled way and side effects will be decreased. Additionally, the start-up’s manufacturing method is 1,000 times faster than previous production processes.

Along with Microcaps, the two finalists Eldico Scientific from Villigen AG and PharmaBiome from Zurich also won prize money of almost 10,000 Swiss francs each.

The ceremonial awards ceremony has been called off this year due to coronavirus. However, according to Jörg Müller-Ganz, President of the Bank Council of Zürcher Kantonalbank, it is important not to postpone awarding the prize. This aims to also be a call for investment in Swiss start-ups that are already suffering particularly from the pandemic.