Signals, in order.

State Secretary Alexandre Fasel met with German Federal Foreign Office counterpart Géza Andreas von Geyr in Bern to discuss Switzerland’s close relations with its largest trading partner, Germany, focusing on competitiveness, security, and research collaboration. They highlighted the opening of the ETH Zurich campus in Heilbronn, a new memorandum of understanding on research, and Switzerland’s commitment to support Ukraine while exploring a security and defence partnership with the EU. The meeting also covered infrastructure for supply chains, rail electrification, and climate‑resilient logis…

Source: Swiss Federal Government

On 30 September 2026, the 17th bilateral meeting between Switzerland’s State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation and Germany’s Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space was held in Bern. State Secretaries Martina Hirayama and Marcus Pleyer signed a letter of intent to deepen cooperation in research and innovation, with a focus on digitalisation, artificial intelligence, sustainability and robotics. The agreement builds on a long history of joint projects—over 1,300 funded under Horizon Europe and more than 4,600 supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation—streng…

Source: Swiss Federal Government

La neuchâteloise Vito New Energies Solutions SA, filiale de Vitogaz Switzerland AG, a annoncé l’acquisition d’une participation de 60 % dans le capital d’Helvetiqua SA, acteur reconnu de la rénovation énergétique en Suisse romande. Cette prise de participation marque un tournant dans la stratégie de croissance de VITO Energies, qui proposera désormais un accompagnement complet, du conseil à la réalisation, grâce à la complémentarité des outils de diagnostic énergétique de VITO et des services de rénovation d’Helvetiqua. La nouvelle entité opérera sous la marque VITO Energies à partir de 2027,…

Source: Startupticker

Medtech startup CC Cardio and its partner received €160,000 from the Tech Europe Foundation to develop a single‑ventricle pump, while Besfort Biljali, co‑founder of lighting tech company Lumvin, was awarded the swissalbs Entrepreneur Award. In Helsinki, four Swiss startups are competing for a €500,000 prize in the Slush Top100 competition.

Source: Startupticker

RheoCarti, a Zurich-based startup, received CHF 150,000 from Venture Kick to develop titanium–hydrogel resurfacing joint implants that mimic natural cartilage properties. The company aims to reduce implant complications in younger, active patients and plans to first enter the veterinary market before expanding to human applications. The funding will support team strengthening, manufacturing readiness, and market development.

Source: Startupticker

Quantum phase transitions are difficult to identify without prior knowledge of order parameters. This work introduces a method that constructs phase diagrams using the vector field of the reduced fidelity susceptibility (RFS) and demonstrates how this vector field can be used to discover observables corresponding to order parameters. The approach is applied to the ANNNI model, a cluster state model, and a chain of Rydberg atoms, with validation via eigendecomposition and finite-size scaling confirming expected universality classes.

Source: OpenAlex

Researchers at EPFL discovered that the drug OM-89 (Uro‑Vaxom®) activates lysosomal pathways in bladder epithelial cells, enhancing the clearance of intracellular Escherichia coli and increasing antibiotic uptake. The study, published in PLOS Pathogens, showed that OM‑89’s effect reduces bacterial regrowth after antibiotic treatment in both mouse and human bladder models. These findings suggest a host‑directed strategy to improve outcomes for recurrent urinary tract infections.

Source: EPFL News

On 28 and 29 September, Switzerland’s delegate for Ukraine, Jacques Gerber, represented the country at the Pathways to Peace conference in Toronto, focusing on the return of forcibly transferred Ukrainian children, detained civilians and prisoners of war. The conference aims to strengthen international coordination on the human dimension of the war and discuss long‑term support and reintegration for affected individuals. Switzerland’s participation underscores its commitment to protecting those impacted by the war and upholding international law.

Source: Swiss Federal Government

On 25 September 2026 the Federal Council instructed the Federal Department of Defence, Civil Protection and Sport to draft a new standalone Federal Act on Cybersecurity by June 2027. The Act will consolidate three parliamentary motions—cyber resilience of products, protection of important digital data, and responsibilities of hosting and cloud providers—into a single piece of legislation, replacing the current reporting obligations in the Information Security Act. It will set binding requirements for manufacturers, importers, distributors, and service providers, and will align with the EU’s C…

Source: Swiss Federal Government

Digital currencies, including stablecoins and tokenised bank deposits, are gaining importance and could reshape the financial system. Researchers at the KOF Swiss Economic Institute at ETH Zurich argue that to keep the Swiss franc relevant, Switzerland needs attractive digital franc solutions and a clear legal framework for stablecoins. The United States is actively supporting dollar‑backed stablecoins to strengthen the dollar’s global role.

Source: ETH Zurich News