iTEAMS Program

Patient-derived organoids can reproduce important biological characteristics of human tissues and diseases more faithfully than conventional cell lines. Their broader use, however, remains limited because organoid culture requires specialized expertise, protocols are often poorly standardized, and individual laboratories or companies usually lack access to sufficiently diverse and well-characterized patient samples.

We aim to develop a Patient-Derived Organoid Reference Library: a standardized collection of organoid models generated from patient biopsies or patient-derived cells and linked to consented, de-identified clinical, molecular, and phenotypic information. Rather than offering isolated organoid lines, the platform would provide curated, application-specific panels designed to address defined research questions—for example, panels representing disease subtypes, treatment responders and non-responders, genetic backgrounds, disease stages, or clinically relevant patient heterogeneity.

The long-term vision is to make patient-derived organoid models as accessible and reliable as established cell-line collections, while adding the biological diversity and clinical relevance required for modern drug discovery and translational research. Customers without prior organoid expertise could obtain quality-controlled, ready-to-use organoids or assay-ready organoid panels together with validated culture protocols, reference data, and potentially technical or analytical support.

The iTeams challenge is to determine where such a platform would create the greatest value and how it should be designed:

• Which customers have the strongest unmet need for standardized patient-derived organoid panels?
• Which initial application offers the highest commercial potential—for example drug screening, biomarker discovery, patient stratification, toxicity testing, target validation, or academic disease research?
• Do customers need living organoid cultures, cryopreserved organoids, assay-ready plates, derived datasets, or a combined service?
• Which clinical and molecular metadata are most valuable, and what level of characterization is required?
• What are the main adoption barriers concerning reproducibility, logistics, intellectual property, ethics, data governance, regulation, and cost?
• Should the platform operate primarily as a biobank, a product supplier, a contract research service, or a combination of these models?

The objective is to identify a compelling first market, define the minimum viable product, and formulate a differentiated value proposition for a scalable patient-derived organoid platform.

Spherical silicon fillers with particle sizes of 10–100 µm combine high thermal conductivity, low electrical conductivity, low density, good flowability, and an attractive cost base. This combination of properties creates potential for applications across a wide range of industries. This challenge explores the market potential of spherical silicon microparticles. In addition to established applications in highly thermally conductive Thermal Interface Materials (TIM), the focus is particularly on identifying new growth opportunities and application fields where the specific material properties can provide technical, economic, or sustainability-related advantages.

Key Questions:

• Which attractive applications exist in the field of TIM (beyond automotive and chip/TIM-1 applications) as well as in adjacent or entirely new application areas?
• Which future technologies could benefit from spherical silicon particles, and which technical requirements need to be met?
• Which established materials do these particles compete against, and where do the greatest opportunities for differentiation and commercialization arise?

ReduCO₂ is developing a technology that converts industrial CO₂ emissions into high-purity graphite, a critical raw material for batteries, semiconductors and other advanced technologies.

To achieve competitive economics and large-scale deployment, the process will ideally be integrated directly with industrial emitters that provide a continuous supply of CO₂-rich exhaust gases. However, not all CO₂ sources are equally attractive. Different industries produce flue gases with varying concentrations of CO₂, inert gases and trace contaminants. Certain impurities, particularly sulfur compounds, boron species and metal-containing particles, may negatively affect graphite quality or require costly gas-cleaning processes. At the same time, industrial partners differ significantly in their willingness and ability to integrate carbon-utilization technologies on-site.

This project challenge invites participants to identify the most attractive industrial CO₂ source for future ReduCO₂ deployment.

Key questions include:

• Which industries provide the most suitable CO₂ streams in terms of concentration, continuity and contaminant profile?
• Which impurities are most relevant for downstream graphite applications and what purification technologies would be required?
• How do different industries compare regarding gas-treatment costs, infrastructure requirements and integration potential?
• Which industrial sectors are most likely to partner with ReduCO₂ and host future production facilities?

The outcomes should help shape ReduCO₂'s future feedstock strategy, identify attractive industrial partners and support future pilot plant deployment.

Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy stands as a pillar in the world of analytical techniques, offering unparalleled insights into the molecular structures and dynamics of biological samples. Its precision and robustness have made it an indispensable tool in biotechnology research and applications. However, the primary limitation has often been its current sensors, which permit analysis of only one sample at a time. This constraint restricts its potential for high-throughput investigations, making large-scale studies or rapid screenings cumbersome and time-consuming. Quantum Total Analysis Systems (QTAS) has developed a new technology for hyperparallelized NMR spectroscopy. The innovative approach uses quantum technology to allow the measurements of > 1000 samples at a time, enabling high throughput screening with NMR spectroscopy. Combining NMR spectroscopy's precision and the high throughput approach could revolutionize enzyme development and single-cell screening.

The primary goal for the iTEAM is to identify and analyze the best markets for this innovative analytical method.

The inventors are developing microarray chips for chemiluminescence immunoassays, which are for example used for the detection of antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 and other diseases. These rapid point-of-care test can produce an accurate result within 4-7 minutes from human whole blood samples, with a similar specificity and sensitifity to commercially available test systems. The aim is to produce microarray chips for a test that can be run directly from patient samples with no sample preparation needed. Therefore, the inventors can offer various base materials for the microarry chips as well as costum assay design according to customer requirements and a measurement service.
 

Due to the high risk, the inventors have not yet decided to enter the medical device market with their invention. Instead, the research market would also be a potential option for them. In general, the inventors are looking for a wide range of applications for the first version of their test kit including their microarray chips. 
In principle, the used method allows potential test kits to be very wide-ranging and test for a variety of biomarkers, from small molecules, antibodies, DNA/RNA to bacteria/cells. 
 

The task for the iTEAM would be to investigate possible applications of such a test kit and identifying promising markets worldwide. Where would the availability of these tests have the greatest impact, and what applications are realistically feasible for a new start-up company?

B vitamins play a crucial role in maintaining overall well-being, supporting brain function, and promoting a healthy nervous system. Currently, evaluating various vitamin B statuses, including B1, B2, B6, and B12, typically necessitates a healthcare professional's visit often involving expensive laboratory equipment. This lack of a convenient assessment solutions leaves many individuals unaware of their vitamin B levels and are only recognised when health issues have already emerged. This delay in assessment can lead to deficiencies or imbalances that impact one's health and vitality.

The inventors have developed a Vitamin B Test Kit that employs advanced technology to analyze a small blood sample, providing users with instant feedback on their vitamin B status. The technology behind this kit is a pilot diagnostic platform for vitamin B6 level determination in human blood. Furthermore, the platform has the potential to expand its capabilities to assess other essential B vitamins based on a familiar lateral flow format (known from COVID testing). This advancement in point-of-care diagnostics holds significant potential for addressing diseases associated with vitamin B deficiencies.

The challenge for the iTEAM is to investigate the market potential of the Vitamin B Test Kit BVitAlyzed by engaging with relevant stakeholders. They will identify the most promising market segments and determine which specific B vitamins hold the highest market potential. The insights gathered from the market analysis will offer valuable guidance to the inventors regarding the project's next phases.

Conductive polymers (e.g., PEDOT:PSS or polyaniline) are light, cheap, and can be prepared e.g., via spray-coating deposition as very thin (nm-µm) coatings on (almost) any surfaces. This makes them ideal candidates for the use as organic nano-electronics. In addition, the use of spray-coating deposition allows for an easy up-scaling of the coating area. However, these polymers come with a drawback: in humid environments, they can absorb a large amount of water, which leads to swelling, deformation, degradation, aging, and eventually a loss in conductivity. 

To overcome this, cellulose nanofibrils (CNFs) are added. These long (µm-range) but thin (nm-range) fibrils significantly enhance the mechanical integrity and limit water absorption, while the flexibility, weight, and foremost the conductivity remain unchanged. 

The task for the iTEAMS is to identify potential application fields and the respective requirements on the polymer/CNF coatings.

Qkera is developing solid electrolytes for next-generation batteries with a current focus on Li ion conducting materials that enable high-performance lithium metal batteries. While lithium remains the industry standard, interest is growing in sodium-based alternatives. Solid electrolytes that can stably conduct Na ions and thus enable sodium metal batteries may offer advantages for large-scale energy storage, particularly in stationary and grid applications due to sodium’s abundance and low cost. Further, critical raw materials and geopolitical dependencies are potentially reduced.

This project challenge invites participants to explore the market potential of sodium solid electrolytes and sodium metal batteries. Key questions include:

• Which application areas are most promising?
• How do performance requirements compare with lithium systems?
• What adoption barriers exist across different industries?

The outcomes should help shape Qkera’s strategy for expanding into sodium-based technologies and identify high-value opportunities for commercialization.

Fluorescent proteins have revolutionized the way we probe biological systems. In our recent work, we demonstrate that flavin-based proteins, which generate radical pairs upon optical excitation, exhibit optically detected magnetic resonance (ODMR)—meaning their fluorescence can be modulated by magnetic and radiofrequency fields. This system is tunable through modifications to the protein structure.
We believe that the ability to control spin transitions introduces a new class of biophysical tools with promising potential, which we aim to explore further in this course. For example, modulating fluorescent properties could enable lock-in detection and enhanced sensitivity. Moreover, due to the spin-selective nature of radical pair chemistry, our findings lay the foundation for radiofrequency-based manipulation of biological systems.

Questions:

• What practical applications does such a system have?
• What is the market for these applications?

Literature:

https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.04.16.649006v1

https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2024.11.25.625143v3.abstract

https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.02.27.640669v1

iTEAMS offers exceptional benefits to individuals passionate about deep tech ventures while helping them build a professional network. Participants will gain invaluable insights into translating academic research into commercially viable products. 

This program is especially designed for advanced master’s students and doctoral candidates in the natural sciences, engineering, or business.

Yes. All participants are expected to attend our weekly meetings in person.

No, this program is a great learning opportunity; becoming a founder is not necessary.

Easy! Just complete the application form.

No, anyone can join! 

However we do recommend that you have a background or strong interest in natural sciences, engineering or business