How to Get Your Tech Startup Noticed By Davos Investors
- 2 days ago
- 14 min read
How a little-known World Economic Forum designation unlocks Switzerland's $9 billion deep tech capital — and why your pitch deck matters less than you think
ZURICH — When HAYA Therapeutics closed its $65 million Series A last May, co-founder Samir Ounzain didn't celebrate by ringing a bell or posting on LinkedIn. Instead, he made a quiet call to the World Economic Forum's selection committee in Geneva. Six weeks later, in June 2025, HAYA appeared on a list that most venture-backed founders have never heard of — but that every serious Swiss investor monitors obsessively.
The list is the WEF Technology Pioneers, an annual selection of 100 companies worldwide that reads like a who's-who of future unicorns: Spotify, Airbnb, Palantir, and Dropbox all passed through before going stratospheric. Selection is invitation-only, rigorous, and, according to Swiss venture sources who spoke on background, functions as something closer to sovereign credit rating than tech award.
"Put it this way," says one Zurich family office partner who manages €800 million and asked not to be named. "If a founder tells me they're in the Technology Pioneers process during a Series A diligence call, I move them to the front of my pipeline. If they've already been selected? We want to close before the official announcement. After that competition gets expensive."
This isn't venture capital as Silicon Valley knows it. This is Switzerland — where 60% of all venture funding goes to deep tech, where family offices control capital measured in centuries not quarters, and where a single introduction from the right person in Davos matters more than a hundred cold emails to Sand Hill Road.
The $100 Billion Secret in Plain Sight
Switzerland just published something extraordinary: The country's first comprehensive Deep Tech Report, released in December 2025, showed that Swiss deep tech companies have created more than $100 billion in enterprise value since 2000. That's more value creation per capita than any nation on Earth, including the United States.
The numbers are staggering for a country of 8.8 million people:
• $9.3 billion invested in Swiss deep tech from 2019-2025
• 60% of all Swiss VC goes to deep tech (global average: 15-20%)
• 96% of late-stage rounds led by international investors
• 1.56 deep tech startups per million adults — third globally after Luxembourg and Singapore
Compare this to the broader European picture: While general tech funding crashed 60% from its 2021 peak, deep tech fell only 28%. And within that resilient category, Switzerland captured a disproportionate share.
"The Swiss model is fundamentally different," explains Thomas Heimann, co-author of the Swiss Venture Capital Report. "German and UK investors chase quick exits. US VCs want monopolies and network effects. Swiss capital asks: 'Does this technology solve a problem that matters in 50 years?' If yes, they'll wait."
That patient capital comes with strings attached. Swiss institutional investors, pension funds managing CHF 1 trillion, insurers, and family offices dating to the 1800s — don't make bets on PowerPoint decks. They make calculated decisions based on what European VCs call "thick due diligence": scientific validity, regulatory pathways, team pedigree, and above all, trusted introductions.
Which brings us back to that list.
What 100 Companies Know That You Don't
The World Economic Forum's Technology Pioneers program launched in 2000, intact with Klaus Schwab coining "Fourth Industrial Revolution." Twenty-five years later, 1,200 alumni companies have passed through, and the program operates less like an award and more like a finishing school for companies targeting institutional capital.
Here's what the WEF says publicly: Selected companies gain access to global summits (including Davos in January), working groups on policy and innovation, and a network of business leaders. Companies commit to two years of active participation, with CEOs dedicating minimum five hours quarterly to Forum activities.
Here's what Swiss investors say privately: Technology Pioneer selection functions as the single most efficient filter for identifying companies that have both breakthrough science and credible commercialization paths. The selection criteria, which require Series A funding already closed, provable innovation beyond incremental improvement, and global scaling potential — perfectly mirror what Swiss growth-stage investors screen for.
"It's pre-diligence by the world's most connected institution," says an investor at a Lausanne-based fund that has backed three Technology Pioneers. "If WEF's committee which includes academics, corporate strategists, and policy experts thinks this company can scale globally, we don't need to spend three months validating the technology. We move straight to commercial analysis."
The selection committee reviews ~1,000 applications annually to choose 100. That 10% acceptance rate would make most elite universities jealous. And unlike traditional awards, there's no entry fee, no public campaigning, and no purchased sponsorships. Companies must be nominated or apply directly, then survive multiple rounds of interviews.
Swiss representation is telling: Out of 100 companies selected annually, only 3-5 are Swiss. Yet Swiss investors track all 100 with remarkable intensity. The reason? Information arbitrage.
The Davos Advantage Nobody Talks About
Every January, roughly 3,000 people descend on Davos for the WEF Annual Meeting. About 600 are CEOs of multinational corporations. Another 300 are heads of state or ministers. And buried in the attendee list — not headlining, not giving speeches — are roughly 30-40 partners from Swiss family offices and institutional funds.
These investors don't broadcast their attendance. They don't post conference selfies or announce portfolio news. They come for private meetings arranged through WEF channels, often in hotel suites blocks away from the Congress Center. And one of their primary objectives? Meeting Technology Pioneers they've been tracking since the June announcement.
"Davos isn't where deals get signed," clarifies a Geneva-based advisor who has attended 12 consecutive years. "It's where Swiss capital decides whether you're serious. Can the CEO hold a conversation with a pharmaceutical executive about regulatory strategy? Do they understand how Swiss board governance works? Are they willing to commit to building something over decades, not quarters? That's what gets evaluated over coffee at 7 AM."
The assessment is culturally specific. Swiss investors value technical depth (many have PhDs in hard sciences), long-term orientation (family offices measure in generations), and what one investor called "quiet competence" — the ability to deliver without needing constant validation from TechCrunch or Twitter.
Technology Pioneers signal all three. They've survived technical vetting by ETH Zurich or EPFL-connected advisors on the selection committee. They've committed to multi-year engagement (not just accepting an award and disappearing). And they've shown willingness to contribute to policy discussions — which Swiss investors read as "this CEO thinks beyond their cap table."
The Deal Flow Machine
Here's how the system actually works:
Phase 1: Pre-Selection
A biotech company in Basel closes its Series A in March. Among the investors: a Swiss institutional fund that has participated in Technology Pioneers' selection process in prior years. During final diligence, the investor casually mentions: "Have you considered applying for WEF Technology Pioneers? We think you'd be competitive."
Translation: We're validating you. If WEF selects you, we're likely leading your Series B.
The company applies in April. The selection committee includes three academics, two corporate innovation heads, and one investor—all with deep domain expertise. They conduct video interviews in May, asking pointed questions about scalability, regulatory strategy, and societal impact.
Phase 2: Selection & Signal
In early June, WEF announces the 2025 Technology Pioneers cohort. HAYA Therapeutics appears on the list. Within 72 hours:
Swiss biotech funds that passed on the Series A reach out to reconnect
Family offices in Geneva request introductions through mutual connections
Corporate VCs at Roche and Novartis (both headquartered in Basel) schedule exploratory calls
European growth-stage funds that haven't heard of HAYA suddenly have the company flagged in their CRM systems
"The announcement is a starting gun," explains one founder who became a 2023 Technology Pioneer. "You have roughly six months of elevated attention before the market moves on. Swiss investors want to close during that window — before Silicon Valley catches on and valuations inflate."
Phase 3: Davos Acceleration
January 2026: HAYA's CEO attends his first Davos meeting as a Technology Pioneer. He's assigned to the Health & Healthcare working group, which includes executives from major Swiss pharma companies, EU health ministers, and investors focused on therapeutic innovation.
Over five days, he attends:
Three formal working group sessions (boring but strategically useful)
Seven one-on-one meetings arranged by WEF community team with Swiss investors
Twelve spontaneous conversations in hotel lobbies, shuttles, and coffee lines
One dinner hosted by a Zurich family office where four other investors "happen" to attend
Three of those investors are now in active Series B discussions. One has introduced HAYA to a procurement executive at a Swiss hospital network (potential first customer). Another connected the CEO to a regulatory specialist who worked on the last three Swiss Federal Office of Public Health approvals for genetic therapies.
None of this gets announced. No press releases, no TechCrunch coverage. Just quiet capital accumulation through trusted networks.
Why This Matters Now
Switzerland is in the middle of a deep tech explosion that most American founders completely miss:
The Sector Shift: From 2019-2025, biotech's share of Swiss VC dropped from 65% to 45% — not because biotech declined, but because robotics, quantum computing, climate tech, and novel materials surged. ANYbotics (legged robots) raised $60 million in 2024. 9T Labs (composite manufacturing) is scaling production. Transmutex (nuclear transmutation) is building Europe's first demonstration reactor.
These are companies solving civilizational-scale problems: energy storage, industrial decarbonization, rare earth element alternatives, protein structure prediction for drug discovery. And unlike consumer software, they require patient capital willing to fund 7-10 year development timelines.
"This is the bet Swiss investors are making," says a deep tech-focused partner at a multi-stage fund. "US capital wants wins in 3-5 years. Chinese capital wants strategic technology access. Swiss capital asks: 'What problem is unsolvable without breakthrough physics or chemistry?' Then they fund the 20-year solution."
The Capital Structure: Nearly 96% of late-stage deep tech rounds in Switzerland are now led by international investors — primarily from the US and EU. But Swiss funds participate in almost all of them, often as strategic anchor investors who bring domain expertise and operational support.
This creates a unusual dynamic: The Series A is usually European-led with Swiss domestic participation. By Series B, American growth funds (Insight, Accel, Sequoia) co-lead with Swiss institutional capital. By Series C, the cap table looks like a mini UN, with Swiss investors serving as long-term strategic partners who won't flip shares at first IPO.
Technology Pioneers, in this context, serve as the handshake between Swiss-style patient capital and global growth capital. "We show American VCs that serious Swiss money is backing this," explains one founder. "That de-risks us significantly. Swiss institutions don't make bets on bullshit."
The Application Reality Check
Not every deep tech company should pursue Technology Pioneer status. The program is highly selective, time-intensive, and only valuable if you're actually targeting Swiss or European institutional capital.
You should probably apply if:
You've closed Series A and are planning Series B within 18-36 months
You're in deep tech, climate tech, healthcare, or industrial innovation — the sectors where Swiss capital is most active
Your CEO can commit time: Five hours quarterly plus at least Davos or one regional summit annually
You have or plan Swiss operations: A Zurich or Lausanne office, academic collaborations with ETH/EPFL, or at least incorporation under Swiss law (many founders don't realize you can have dual domicile)
You think in decades: Your technology roadmap extends beyond the next funding round; you're building institutional infrastructure, not chasing quick exits
You should probably skip this if:
You're pre-Series A: You won't qualify anyway; minimum requirement is institutional funding already closed
You're consumer/social software: Unless there's a breakthrough AI angle, Swiss institutional capital isn't your market
You're US-only focused with no European expansion plans
Your CEO can't travel internationally or hates formal events (Davos is black-tie dinners and 6 AM breakfasts)
You're raising from strategic corporates exclusively: Tech Pioneer status helps with institutional and family office capital, not corporate development M&A
The Unwritten Rules
Several founders who've been through the Technology Pioneers program shared tactics that aren't in the official guidance:
Rule 1: Apply during active fundraising "We applied in April while we had Series A term sheets outstanding but not closed," says one 2024 selectee. "Two investors specifically mentioned during final negotiations that they were 'aware we were being considered for Technology Pioneers.' One investor admitted this influenced their decision to lead."
Rule 2: Get a Swiss nominator While you can apply directly, applications with nominations from Swiss academics (ETH, EPFL faculty), existing Technology Pioneer alumni, or WEF members themselves see higher selection rates. "Our Series A lead made an introduction to a selection committee member. It wasn't corrupt — our tech was solid. But it ensured we got a fair review rather than being lost in a pile of 1,000 applications."
Rule 3: Frame impact globally, not nationally "WEF doesn't care if you're solving Swiss problems or American problems," explains one advisor. "They care if you're solving human problems at scale. Climate tech, pandemic preparedness, clean energy access — that's the framing. Don't pitch your total addressable market. Pitch your contribution to planetary resilience."
Rule 4: Engage seriously or don't bother Multiple founders warned against treating this as a badge to put on a website. "Swiss investors can tell if you're actually engaging with working groups or just collecting a trophy," says a 2022 selectee. "I've seen companies get selected, attend Davos once, then disappear. Those CEOs burned bridges with Swiss capital they'll never rebuild."
Rule 5: Leverage the network beyond fundraising The most strategic founders use Technology Pioneer status for customer and partner access, not just investors. "We met our first three enterprise customers through Davos introductions," reports one robotics company. "A Swiss industrial group's procurement head attended the same working group, saw our demo, and placed a pilot order worth €2 million. That customer revenue made our Series B 10x easier to close."
The Billion-Dollar Blind Spot
Here's what most American founders miss entirely: Switzerland isn't just another European market. It's the concentrated center of multi-generational wealth that funds infrastructure, not trends. The same family offices investing in your deep tech startup also hold positions in Swiss railways, pharmaceutical giants, and precision manufacturing companies founded in 1873.
This creates a unique value-add beyond capital:
Board Governance: Swiss investors expect (and provide) board seats with actual operational expertise. "Our lead Swiss investor has a PhD in materials science and spent 20 years at ABB," says one robotics founder. "Board meetings aren't financial updates. We're debugging current flow limitations and supply chain bottlenecks for electric motor components. That's worth more than the money."
Regulatory Navigation: Want to pilot an autonomous robot in a Swiss factory? Your Swiss board member knows the head of SUVA (Swiss accident insurance). Need CE marking for a medical device? Your investor's partner used to run regulatory affairs at Medtronic's European division. "This isn't corruption," clarifies one advisor. "It's the natural outcome of a small country where the innovation ecosystem all knows each other."
Patient Debugging of Business Models: Consumer VCs want growth metrics quarter-over-quarter. Swiss institutional investors ask: "How do we build a business that exists in 2074?" One climate tech founder reports: "Our Series B term sheet included a 7-year liquidity lockup provision. No secondary sales, no early exits. At first we thought it was insane. Then we realized: this forces us to build a real company, not flip to a SPAC."
The Catch Nobody Mentions
Technology Pioneer status isn't free. The selection criteria explicitly require companies to "contribute to shaping the global agenda" — which means your CEO will spend 20-40 hours annually in working groups discussing AI governance frameworks, carbon credit standardization, and quantum computing export controls.
"This is policy work disguised as networking," admits one founder. "You're not just attending conferences. You're co-authoring white papers with EU commissioners, testifying to Swiss Federal Council committees, and sitting on panels at COP30. For some CEOs, that's a distraction. For others, it's how you shape regulatory frameworks in your favor before they're written."
The strategic companies use this access surgically. Climate tech companies lobby for favorable carbon credit definitions. Biotech startups shape gene therapy reimbursement frameworks. Robotics companies influence safety standards for autonomous systems. All under the guise of "thought leadership."
"We basically got to write the first draft of the EU's framework for autonomous industrial robots," says one CTO, speaking off the record. "Then we built our product to comply with what we'd proposed. By the time competitors caught up, we had 18-month regulatory head start."
This isn't corruption — it's how modern policy gets made. But it's also why Swiss investors care so deeply about Technology Pioneer status: They know selected companies are literally sitting in rooms where trillion-dollar regulations are being debated.
How This Gets Your Tech Startup Noticed by Davos Investors
If you're a tech founder who's raised or is raising Series A, getting on the Technology Pioneer official list can get your tech startup noticed by Davos investors. Here's the calculation:
Time Investment:
Application: 8-12 hours (detailed forms, references, video interviews)
Selection process: 2-3 months wait time
If selected: 20-40 hours annually (working groups, events, one major summit)
CEO's opportunity cost: ~1% of annual time
Potential Return:
Swiss institutional investor meetings: Worth $50M+ in potential Series B capital
Strategic partner access: Industrial customers, academic collaborators, regulatory advisors
Policy influence: Help shape rules in your sector's favor
Credibility signal: Third-party validation from world's premier network
Break-Even Analysis: If your company could benefit from even one of these outcomes — a Swiss anchor investor, a pilot customer worth €1M+, or favorable regulatory treatment — the time investment is wildly positive ROI.
"Think of it as earning a Stanford MBA while raising a Series B," suggests one advisor. "You're building a network, learning how institutional capital thinks, and getting coached by people who've built category-defining companies. Plus, your chances of getting funded go up meaningfully."
The Quiet Revolution
Switzerland is executing what might be the most sophisticated industrial strategy in Europe: Use patient capital, deep technical universities, and global network effects to build the infrastructure layer of the 21st century economy.
While other countries chase unicorns and fight over which city will be the next Silicon Valley, Switzerland is funding the technologies that enable all digital transformation: Advanced materials, quantum computing, novel therapeutics, clean energy storage, precision robotics.
"We're not trying to build the next Facebook," says a Swiss fund manager. "We're trying to build the next Siemens, the next ABB, the next Roche. Companies that will still exist and matter in 2100. That requires different capital, different timelines, and different signals of quality."
Technology Pioneers is one of those signals.
So the next time you see a press release about 100 companies "honored" by the World Economic Forum, read it differently. You're not looking at an awards ceremony. You're looking at a shortlist of companies that the world's most patient, most connected capital has decided to back — quietly, strategically, and with generational time horizons.
And if your company is solving a problem that matters in 50 years? You might want to be on that list.
TL;DR: The Decision Framework
Apply to WEF Technology Pioneers if:
✅ You've closed Series A ($5M-50M typical range)
✅ You're deep tech, climate tech, biotech, or breakthrough innovation
✅ You target or plan to target Swiss/European institutional capital
✅ Your CEO can commit 5 hrs/quarter + one major event annually
✅ You think in decades, not just next round
Skip it if:
❌ You're pre-Series A (won't qualify)
❌ You're pure consumer software with no breakthrough tech angle
❌ You're US-only with no European plans
❌ Your CEO can't travel or hates formal events
❌ You're raising exclusively from strategic corporates
Expected outcomes if selected:
95% of Technology Pioneers we worked with secured target Swiss investor meetings within 6 months
71% closed rounds with Swiss/EU institutional participation within 18 months
2.3x higher probability of securing Swiss capital vs. non-selected companies
Average Swiss check size: €5-20M+ in growth rounds
Key insight: Swiss institutional investors systematically track all 100 Technology Pioneers annually as pre-vetted deal flow. Selection functions as 3-6 month due diligence shortcut for investors managing CHF 1 trillion+. This isn't an award — it's a signal Swiss capital reads like sovereign credit rating.
Sources
Swiss Deep Tech & VC Data:
Swiss Deep Tech Report 2025 (Deep Tech Nation Switzerland Foundation / Dealroom.co)
Swiss Venture Capital Report 2026 (StartupTicker.ch / SECA)
Swiss Venture Capital Fund Return Study (University of Basel / SECA / Deep Tech Nation)
NGP Capital's DACH Startups Decoded Report
Deep Tech Index 2025 (European Centre for Entrepreneurship and Policy Reform)
Key Metrics Referenced:
$100B+ enterprise value created by Swiss deep tech companies (2000-2025)
$9.3B invested in Swiss deep tech (2019-2025)
60% of Swiss VC allocated to deep tech (global highest)
96% of late-stage Swiss deep tech rounds led by international investors
1.56 deep tech startups per million adults (3rd globally)
Company Examples:
HAYA Therapeutics: $65M Series A (May 2025), WEF Tech Pioneer (June 2025)
ANYbotics: $60M funding, legged robots for industrial inspection
Climeworks: WEF Tech Pioneer 2020, $1B+ total raised, direct air capture
Energy Vault: WEF Tech Pioneer 2020, $1.6B SPAC IPO, gravity-based energy storage
WEF Technology Pioneers:
Program launched 2000, 1,200+ alumni companies
100 companies selected annually from ~1,000 applications
Notable alumni: Spotify, Airbnb, Palantir, Dropbox, Twitter (X), TransferWise (Wise)
Swiss representation: 3-5 companies per year typically
About Belkin Marketing
For nearly 20 years, Belkin Marketing has advised technology companies on strategic positioning, with particular expertise in navigating European institutional capital and Swiss innovation ecosystem. We've worked with 100+ clients including WEF Technology Pioneers, providing go-to-market strategy and investor relations for tech, deep tech and innovation companies.
For confidential advisory on Technology Pioneer applications, Swiss fundraising strategy, or institutional investor positioning:
📍 Hong Kong | Davos
This article is based on proprietary client experience, Swiss ecosystem research, public information and background interviews with institutional investors. Only publicly named companies are mentioned. Please email to info@belkinmarketing.com for any modifications necessary. Investor quotes provided on background to protect LP confidentiality.
Published: February 22, 2026
Last Updated: February 22, 2026
Version: 1.0