Academia-Industry Training Nepal
The Academia-Industry Training (AIT) Nepal program empowers researchers from Switzerland and Nepal to transform their scientific discoveries into successful businesses. Whether you are conceptualizing a startup idea or have already launched a venture based on your applied research, AIT Nepal provides the support you need to navigate the innovation ecosystems in both Nepal and Switzerland, bringing your solution closer to market readiness.
As a pioneering initiative, AIT Nepal fosters the development of sciencepreneurs by equipping them with the necessary tools and expertise. The program is generously funded by the Swiss Leading House South Asia and is the result of a collaborative effort with our partners, the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation Nepal (SDC) and STARTUP CAMPUS. Together, we guide participants in unlocking the potential of their innovations in both the Nepali and Swiss markets.
AIT Nepal 2026/27 cohort
Step into the world of our startup founders from Switzerland and Nepal. Read what motivates them, what challenges them, and what keeps their vision alive.
Grace Kagho, UrbanEcho (Switzerland)
“UrbanEcho helps cities make better decisions by bringing together fragmented urban data into a clear, practical picture of how a city functions. We focus on rapidly growing regions where planners often lack the information needed to respond effectively to climate risks, infrastructure pressures, and changing communities.”
Nazanin Taheri, MetAubind (Switzerland)
“MetAubind tackles two connected challenges: the loss of valuable metals in industrial waste and e-waste, and the environmental damage caused by primary mining. Our technology recovers gold and removes toxic metals from wastewater, turning waste into a valuable resource.”
Negin Ghamsarian, SurgExplore (Switzerland)
“Surgical workflows face inefficiencies across training, planning, and documentation. Yet the data needed to improve all three stages already exists: millions of surgical videos and records are captured daily but remain largely unanalyzed and underutilized.”
Noel Frey, Eagleshot (Switzerland)
“Climate change is making natural hazards in mountain regions more frequent and more destructive. Yet most threatened sites are never monitored, because monitoring systems are too expensive to be deployed widely. With Eagleshot, we want to close that gap: affordable, reliable monitoring for every site that needs it – not just the few that can afford it.”
Svitlana Mykolenko, Olexir (Switzerland)
“Nature gives us remarkable botanical oils with nutritious and healing potential, yet many remain underused because they feel greasy, are unstable or deliver bioactives inefficiently. Olexir uses plant proteins to transform them into high-performance biomaterials that are effective and enjoyable.”
Aishana Joshi, CHNN (Nepal)
“My startup addresses the growing health impacts of climate change by integrating real-time environmental data with individual health profiles to provide personalized risk alerts, preventive guidance, emergency navigation and access to telehealth consultations.”
Akshyat Karki, BioBhumi (Nepal)
“Cities everywhere throw away the exact thing their soil is dying for. Composting has existed for centuries, but it has always been slow, open, and left to chance. BioBhumi turns it into an engineered, controlled process.”
Anup Dhakal, Target-aware de novo design of anti-cancer peptides via multi-objective guided flow matching (Nepal)
“My work uses artificial intelligence to design novel and more effective anti-cancer peptides, allowing researchers to identify promising drug candidates much faster and at a significantly lower cost before they enter the laboratory.”
Mitesh Shrestha, StrepUp (Nepal)
“My applied research addresses the gap between scientific discovery and practical agricultural solutions by developing native microbial technologies that improve crop productivity while reducing dependence on imported agricultural inputs.”
Pawan Dhakal, HICS (Nepal)
“Nepal’s air, climate, and seismic hazards are barely measured, though millions of lives depend on them. And Nepali students learn science as theory. Both trace to one gap: few institutions do science from within Nepal, for Nepal. HICS is building one: instruments made locally, schools hosting them as observatories, learning built around real data, everything published openly.”
AIT Nepal 2026/27
The inaugural edition of the program comprises the following elements:
- Application deadline: June 14, 2026
- Jury day: July 6, 2026
5 Swiss-based startups will be selected out of all applications in a competitive virtual pitching session. - Kick-off seminary: September 3, 2026
- Seminary in Switzerland: September 21 to 25, 2026
- Seminary in Nepal: March 8 to 12, 2027
Eligibility Swiss-based applicants
The program is open to Swiss-based researchers (this includes professors, senior scientists, postdocs, and PhD students) or master’s students
- of a Swiss federal or cantonal university, university of applied sciences, university of teacher education, or public research institute across all scientific disciplines and fields of research (please check the eligible institutions in our overview),
- with a startup idea, or
- who have founded or co-founded an early-stage, science-based startup or spin-off.
What’s in it for you?
- Participate in two fully funded weeks in Nepal and in Switzerland
- Compete for CHF 5,000 to take your next step toward international success
- Join a vibrant community of sciencepreneurs
- Build your international network
Application to the program
The application window is now closed.
Are you interested in receiving information on future AIT Nepal program editions? Then join our mailing list for upcoming opportunities.
In short: Academia-Industry Training Nepal
Grant of CHF 5,000: compete for this grant to further develop and scale your innovation
Expenses covered: all expenses including food, accommodation, and transportation during the seminaries
Program destinations: Nepal and Switzerland
Inspiration
- AIT Nepal in Conversation: In this interview, representatives from the Swiss Leading House South Asia and the Embassy of Switzerland in Nepal share their perspectives on the motivation behind AIT Nepal, the design of the pilot, and the value it offers to participating startups.