Transforming healthcare through open innovation
The Innovation Catalyst, powered by DayOne, accelerates healthcare transformation by fostering collaboration and innovation across Switzerland.
Through Open Innovation Challenges, we unite experts, patients and entrepreneurs to address critical healthcare needs and co-create impactful solutions.
Our mission is to empower ideas that deliver tangible value to patients, clinicians and the healthcare system. By providing mentorship and a collaborative ecosystem, we support innovators in turning bold concepts into ready-to-implement solutions.
Express interest and stay updated on upcoming challenges to shape the future of healthcare together.
How we help
Adapted from the UK Design Council
Original image available here
From problem to idea
Through carefully designed events, culminating in a Challenge-driven onsite Open Innovation Day, we foster collaboration and knowledge exchange, creating a shared understanding of the problems being addressed and generating innovative solutions. These events are grounded in the principles of open innovation, enabling diverse perspectives to shape impactful ideas.
Our structured approach emphasizes building strong partnerships early on, ensuring that the proposed solutions are co-created with input from all key stakeholders. This stage sets the foundation for actionable ideas that address real-world challenges in healthcare.
From idea to MVP
This phase is focused on validating feasibility, desirability and viability to ensure solutions are practical, meet user needs, and have the potential for sustainable implementation.
With tailored support selected teams are equipped to create and validate minimum viable products (MVPs). By leveraging partnerships and real-world insights, this stage ensures that solutions are tested and prepared for integration into the Swiss healthcare ecosystem.
Open Innovation Challenge: openEHR for clinical innovation
In 2026, the focus is on co-developing interoperable, openEHR-based digital health solutions that streamline clinical workflows, enhance data quality, and ultimately improve patient outcomes. We invite startups, research teams, and established companies to collaborate on digital health solutions addressing real-world clinical needs using the openEHR® technology platform as the standard.
Interested in taking part? Complete the online registration form to join the open public phase of the Challenge, explore the topic in depth, connect with other participants, develop ideas, and stay informed about all activities related to the Challenge.
(NB: Clicking this button will take you to a separate form.)
The Challenge is brought by Personalized Health Basel and University Hospital Basel, a leading healthcare institution renowned for its innovative approach to clinical care and research. Following this public phase, five proposals will be selected to receive targeted support during the Idea Stage starting in July 2026. Proposed solutions should address the hospital’s specific needs and use cases presented during the Challenge, align with existing clinical processes, and demonstrate strong potential for implementation and scalability.
Main steps
1. Sign up
Complete the registration form to join the Challenge community, stay informed about all activities, and get access to supporting materials and be the first one to be invited to dedicated events.
2. Explore
Use our events and webinars to explore the Challenge, deep-dive into use-cases, refine your proposals and connect with collaborators.
3. Submit your proposal
Attend the Open Innovation Day in Basel on 1 June 2026, then finalize and submit your proposal by 19 June 2026.
4. Validate
The Top 5 teams will be selected and invited to a structured validation stage at University Hospital Basel working directly with clinical champions to test the feasibility, desirability, and viability of the solution.
Key dates
Exploration phase:
April-June 2026
Open Innovation Call for sign-ups and supporting activities
1 June 2026
Open Innovation Day, full-day, Basel
19 June 2026
Application deadline
24 June 2026
Selection day (virtual). Up to 10 pre-selected projects will be invited to pitch to the selection committee.
Validation phase:
July-October 2026
Hybrid-format program for selected Top 5 teams:
– Access to clinical expertise and a research data environment at University Hospital Basel
– A collaborative development process and mentorship to accelerate your idea
October 2026
Demo day: Top 5 teams pitch their solutions to showcase the results of the ‘Idea to MVP’ stage, CHF 10,000 award for the winning project selected at the Demo Day. Date tbd.
During the Challenge stage we will be exploring three real-world use cases where University Hospital Basel has an identified clinical need:
Hospital at Home
Extending hospital-grade monitoring and care coordination to patients recovering at home, including cross-hospital visibility.
SOP & Clinical Decision Support
Operationalizing clinical guidelines into active, real-time decision support embedded in clinical workflows, built on openEHR.
Molecular Tumor Board
Integrating advanced molecular diagnostic data into the clinical record to support treatment decisions for complex cancer cases, with a focus on data traceability and clinician trust.
Use our webinars and the Open Innovation Day to explore each use case in depth, connect directly with the clinical experts behind them, and shape your proposal before the application window closes.
(NB: Clicking this button will take you to a separate form.)
Partners
Upcoming events
07.05. 26
Thursday
Ask Me Anything: DayOne Accelerator 2026 Call for ApplicationsEnglish
16:00 - 17:00
11.05. 26
Novartis Pavillon, St. Johanns-Hafen-Weg, 5, 4056 Basel
Monday
Open Mic: Next in Health seriesEnglish
16:30 - 17:45
Novartis Pavillon, St. Johanns-Hafen-Weg, 5, 4056 Basel
Our next event is coming soon! Stay in the loop and be the first to know by signing up for our newsletter.
Past Open Innovation Challenges
“AI for code quality and completeness validation under TARDOC and outpatient flat rates“
Challenge brought by:
May – October, 2025: As Swiss hospitals are transitioning to TARDOC 2026, ensuring the accuracy and completeness of clinical coding is critical to avoid revenue loss, reduce manual overhead, and maintain regulatory compliance.
“Streamlining clinical workflows and elevating standards of care with openEHR-powered, rapidly deployable digital health solutions”
Challenge brought by:
February – June, 2025: Focus on solutions to simplify and standardize clinical data capturing using openEHR as the standard with a goal of improving data quality, reducing system fragmentation, and supporting better healthcare workflows at the University Hospital Basel.
Learn more about the Open Innovation Challenge “Improving clinical data capture for better healthcare outcomes” (February – Jun 2, 2025)
Project voices
Innovation Catalyst builds on the legacy of the Digital Health Nation Innovation Booster (2022–2025), applying the same open innovation and co-creation principles to a new generation of healthcare challenges.
Kevin Hof
Mavenhealth
Maren Schinz
Beyond Diagnostics
Perrine Lhuillier
neurodAIgnostics
Latest program news
Four years of innovation: Celebrating healthcare breakthroughs powered by Innosuisse
Four years of innovation: Celebrating healthcare breakthroughs powered by Innosuisse
Supporting Swiss hospitals in the transition to TARDOC and outpatient flat rates: AI for Coding Validation
Supporting Swiss hospitals in the transition to TARDOC and outpatient flat rates: AI for Coding Validation
Using openEHR to improve clinical data capture
Using openEHR to improve clinical data capture
