Founders Day

Join us for a day of inspiration, knowledge exchange, and networking at the Google Campus Europaallee on 9 April 2026! Engage with founders, visionary investors, and industry experts.

Are you ready to take your startup to the next level?

Join us at SSA Founders Day alongside 250+ founders , investors and leading voices from the Swiss startup ecosystem. Gain insights from experienced entrepreneurs, top investors, and industry experts through inspiring keynotes, panels, and deep-dive workshops at our boutique event. There will also be plenty of networking opportunities for you to engage. Scroll down to check out the program in more detail!

  • Date: 9 April 2026
  • Time: 9.30 am – 6:30 pm
  • Location: Google Campus, Europaallee, Zurich
  • Who can join: Startup founders and investors. To keep the discussions relevant and valuable for everyone, participation is limited to startups that fulfill the following criteria.*
  • Price: This event is free of charge but exclusively open to Swiss Startup Association Premium Members. Not a member yet? Join us here

*To ensure an optimal experience and the highest possible quality of the event, we reserve the right to refuse admission if this startup definition is not met.

Supported by

Speakers

Tony Beltramelli
Head of Product for AI Miro
Tobias Rein
Tobias Rein
Co-Founder GetyourGuide
S. Manoj Harasgama
S. Manoj Harasgama
Serial Founder at Treatwell, JOIN.com & Crosstown
Franzika Iselin
Franziska Iselin
COO Bexio
Thomas Dübendorfer
Thomas Dübendorfer
President SICTIC
Cristian Grossmann
Cristian Grossmann
Co-Founder Beekeeper, Managing Director & CRO LumApps
Paulina Grnarova
Paulina Grnarova
Co-Founder & CEO at DeepJudge
Julian Liniger
Julian Liniger
CEO & Co-Founder Relai
Lisa Falco
Lisa Falco
Co-founder & CEO N23 Health
Elias Kleimann
Elias Kleimann
Founder, VP Strategy & Business Development at Wingtra
Felicitas Gartmann
Felicitas Gartmann
Consultant for Starters at Switzerland Global Enterprise
Goeldi Andreas
Andreas Goeldi
Partner b2venture
Stefan Zanetti
Serial Entrepreneur & Founder Pivotal
Katja Baur
Katja Baur
Co-Founder and Managing Partner Emma Ventures
Lukas Reinhardt
Lukas Reinhardt
Head Growth Advisory at UBS
Jan Lederhausen
Jan Lederhausen
Transaction Manager Growth Advisory at UBS
Teddy Amberg
Teddy Amberg
Founding Partner Spicehaus Partners
Pascal Stürchler
Pascal Stürchler
CEO & Co-Founder Bloomhaus Ventures
Simone Riedel Riley
Simone Riedel Riley
Head of Technology Fund, Emerald Technology Ventures AG
Joël L. Capt
Joël Capt
CEO & Founder Peakora
Sascha Horrig
Sascha Horrig
Founding Partner of Equity Pitcher Ventures
Arijana Walcott
Co-Founder & managing partner of DART Ventures
Laurent Decrue
Laurent Decrue
Co-Founder & Co-CEO of Holycode
Jürg Schwarzenbach
Inhaber Marcaro AG, Business Angel, President Aare Ventures, Präsident Jury SVC Region Bern
Alexander Limpert
Alexander Limpert
Co-Founder & CEO Guestready
Tina Willibald
Tina Willibald
Head of Portfolio Development & Partnerships at Swisscom Venture
Heiko Visarius
Dr. Heiko Visarius
Medtech Expert, Coach, Board Member, Moderator
Rico Daehler
Rico Dähler
Platform & Business Development at Swisscom Ventures
Adrian Melliger
Adrian Melliger
CEO of Designwerk Technologies AG
Leandro Davies
Co-Founder and CEO of OOMNIUM
Patrick Kessel
Co-Founder and CEO of PeriVision
Regula Bleuler
CEO Swiss Startup Association

Moderation

Ben Munday
Ben Munday
Owner & Founder of Ben J Munday : Event Host & MC, Speaker & Communication Coach
Hans Tran
Hans Tran
Industry Lead Digital Native at Google Cloud

Session topics

  • AI-First Product Development (Tony Beltramelli & Laurent Decrue)
  • Product–Market Fit and the Team: two crucial factors in building a medtech startup (Heiko Visarius, Lisa Falco)
  • How to hire like crazy and keeping your company healthy (Paulina Grnarova & Thomas Dübendorfer)
  • Pivots: From Stuck to Unfair Advantage (Stefan Zanetti & Cris Grossmann)
  • Building and scaling your company: the GetYourGuide-story – (Tobias Rein & Andreas Punter)
  • Two Investors, Two Perspectives, Unfiltered Views: What Founders Always Wanted to Know (Teddy Amberg & Katja Baur)
  • Sales strategies: team, structure, and how to scale in B2B2C vs B2C s (Franziska Iselin & Julian Liniger)
  • Internationalisation (Felicitas Gartmann, Alexander Limpert, Manoj Harasgama)
  • Why it’s smart to diversify your funding structure (Arijana Walcott, Leandro Davies, Patrick Kessel)
  • How Startups Succeed with the Technology Fund (Simone Riedel-Riley, Adrian Melliger)
  • Business Models in the Age of AI (Andreas Goeldi)
  • Startups in the Growth Stage and Family: The Balancing Act (Paulina Grnarova, Laurent Decrue, Nicole Celakovsky Steiner)
  • How AI-Agents transform modern GTM Strategies (Joël Capt)
  • Why most startups don’t find investors (Jürg Schwarzenbach, Pascal Stürchler, Arijana Walcott)
  • Smart money in action – how can investors add value beyond capital? (Sascha Horrig, Rico Dähler, Tina Willibald)
  • and many more…

What previous participants said about the event

Not sure whether to apply or not? Here’s the video of the Founders Day 2024 edition: Past event highlights

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