Connecting the Dutch and Swiss Biomedical Ecosystems

Are you developing or manufacturing innovative therapies or human-based model systems, such as Organ-on-a-Chip or organoids?

Are you a researcher, entrepreneur, clinician, investor, or policy maker looking to connect with Swiss and Dutch experts, exchange knowledge, and explore opportunities for collaboration?

Then we invite you to join us and register for the platform!

This online platform offers a marketplace and matchmaking facilities where project ideas, cooperation offers, and requests can be shared, with the aim of identifying synergies, forming clusters, and selecting and integrating promising initiatives. The interactive platform serves as the starting point for collaboration. Additionally, physical and online events are regularly organised, for which you can register via this platform.

This platform and the activities we facilitate through this platform are part of the Strategic Multi-Year Market (SMM) Development Plan (2026-2028).

This public-private approach between the Netherlands and Switzerland aims to accelerate the implementation and international adoption of Organ-on-a-Chip technology. By connecting research institutions, innovative companies, societal organisations, and government bodies in both countries, the programme facilitates collaboration between Dutch innovators and Swiss companies and end users. This supports the translation of advanced Organ-on-a-Chip models into applications within biomedical research and drug development. Through this partnership, Dutch and Swiss stakeholders are advancing human-predictive, human-centric approaches to health and healthcare and jointly exploring new ways to address shared global healthcare challenges.

Both the Netherlands and Switzerland are among Europe's most research-intensive and innovation driven economies. The pharmaceutical and biomedical sectors face growing pressure to accelerate R&D, reduce costs, and move towards animal-free research, which increases the need for new, human predictive model systems. Advanced in vitro technologies such as Organ-on-a-Chip (OoC)-based models can help meet this need by replicating essential human organ and tissue functions in controlled microenvironments, enabling safer, more accurate, and more efficient drug discovery and testing processes.

As European leaders in biomolecular and cell technologies, Switzerland and the Netherlands are well positioned to shape the future of OoC innovation. These technologies speed up biomedical progress and contribute to better patient outcomes, more sustainable use of resources, and lower development costs. By working together, partners in both countries can strengthen collaboration, connect expertise, and build an international ecosystem for OoC-based models that makes tomorrow's drug development more human-predictive and more effective.

The SMM is carried out by the Netherlands Ministry of Economic Affairs, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO), the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Switzerland, and Health Holland, together with partners from the Dutch Life Sciences and Health sector.

It is expected that this initiative it will contribute to sustainable and structural economic growth, improved drug development and most importantly, improved quality of life.

The Netherlands is a recognised global leader in biomedical models, with world-class expertise in stem cell biology, organoid development, and OoC integration. Dutch excellence in stem cell biology and organoid creation provides the biological foundation essential for effective OoC systems. These fields form a priority in the Dutch innovation agenda. Beyond research excellence, the Netherlands also has a strong industrial presence, with numerous life sciences and high-tech companies actively advancing Organ-on-a-Chip applications. Long-term public investment and coordinated national initiatives support this ambition and encourage Dutch partners to look outward and build strong international collaborations. Public-private consortia and National Growth Fund projects, including NXTGEN Hightech, the Institute for human organ and Disease Model Technologies (hDMT), the Ombion Centre for Animal-Free Biomedical Translation (Ombion), and the Bio/Microsystems Centre (B/MSC), form a lively ecosystem for these technologies. This ecosystem makes it easier to move from pioneering research to practical applications that are ready to be explored with international partners.

Dutch organisations contribute actively to international standards and qualification approaches for OoC through initiatives such as the Horizon 2020 project ORCHID, the CEN-CENELEC Focus Group Organ on-a-Chip Roadmap, the ISO TC 276 Biotechnology Subcommittee 2 MPS and OoC, and the NEN Mirror Committee for standardisation of MPS and OoC, as well as ongoing engagement with regulatory bodies. Additionally, Dutch OoC companies are already working directly with regulators to shape future pre-clinical assessment approaches for IND filing. This work supports wider acceptance and integration of OoC in industry and regulation.

Switzerland is a natural partner for the Netherlands in this area, with its strong pharmaceutical, biotech, and microtechnology sectors and direct links to global value chains. The Swiss life sciences ecosystem offers direct access to pharmaceutical and biotech end users advancing the adoption of human-relevant R&D models. Through the SMM approach, OoC developers can connect with Swiss pharma and other end users and jointly explore how these new models can be implemented, standardised, and used more broadly in real-world settings.

Get in touch!