Swiss startup Prismus has received a total of CHF 150,000 (around €163,000) from Venture Kick after completing all three stages of the funding programme. The company now has 30 paying customers, up from just three in May.
Prismus plans to use the funding to expand its presence in the deep tech sector and bring its AI-powered research platform, Lupa, to individual users.
Venture Kick is a privately funded and philanthropic initiative that supports Swiss startups based on scientific research. Its funding is provided in three stages: an initial CHF 10,000 grant, followed by convertible loans of CHF 40,000 and CHF 100,000. These loans can later be converted into company shares when the startup raises a significant investment round. Prismus received the CHF 40,000 loan in May.
“VentureKick has excited us, challenged us and pushed us into the next phase of our company,” said Elisabeth Blyumin, co-founder and chief executive of Prismus.
Turning Research Into Business Opportunities
Prismus says deep tech companies often spend considerable time searching for potential customers and partners across LinkedIn, Google and other research sources. Relevant information about scientific research, patents and industries is scattered across different platforms, making it difficult for companies to identify business opportunities.
Lupa aims to bring this information together in one place.
The platform collects scientific papers, patents, research grants, researchers, laboratories, companies and investors in a searchable database. Its AI agents then analyse the information to identify potential customers, markets, research partners and business opportunities.
The system also checks how closely each result matches a company's technology and ranks the most relevant prospects. Users can trace the results back to the original research papers, patents or other records.
Prismus says Lupa searches live sources and compares information from different databases. This helps users spot conflicting information rather than relying on potentially outdated or incomplete results.
Sales teams at deep tech companies can use the platform to identify potential buyers before attending conferences or planning outreach campaigns. Researchers can also use it to search and organise scientific literature.
Lupa's first customers included companies that make scientific equipment. Two Swiss companies have shared their experiences with the platform.
“Finally a great tool that provides meaningful and well-organized data,” said Florian Emaury, chief executive of laser technology company Menhir Photonics.
Giulio Zorzi, head of Europe, Middle East and Africa at MaxWell Biosystems, said Lupa helps his team identify researchers whose work is relevant to the company's technology. MaxWell Biosystems develops equipment that records electrical signals from cells.
Moving Beyond Founder-Led Sales
When Prismus received its second Venture Kick award in May, the company had three paying customers, all based in Switzerland. These early customers were already using Lupa to support sales outreach, business strategy and decision-making.
At the time, Prismus said it wanted to move away from a business model that depended heavily on its founders to find customers. Instead, it planned to build a product-led business that could grow more easily as demand increased.
The company also said every customer pilot helped improve its proprietary knowledge graph. This database connects scientific developments with potential commercial applications and market demand.
A Team With Science and Business Experience
Prismus was founded in Zurich in May 2025. Its team brings together experience in science, finance, engineering and artificial intelligence.
Co-founder and CEO Elisabeth Blyumin studied computational physics at ETH Zurich. Her previous work includes tribology, the study of friction and wear, as well as quantum sensing.
Chief revenue officer Peter Kempin spent 20 years working in corporate finance and business development at Swiss bank UBS before joining Prismus full-time.
Chief AI officer Gonçalo Hora de Carvalho has around 10 years of experience developing AI systems for hospitals, universities, government organisations and businesses.
Chief technology officer Timen van Gelderen is a full-stack engineer with experience building complex web products designed to handle large numbers of users.
What Comes Next for Prismus?
In less than 18 months, Prismus has moved from its launch to 30 paying customers, built a team with experience across several industries and secured the full CHF 150,000 available through Venture Kick.
Its next challenge is to reach more deep tech companies and make Lupa available to individual users, including researchers who want to use the platform independently.
The latest funding is expected to support both goals as Prismus looks to grow beyond its initial group of Swiss business customers.
