With nomoko from Villigen Valley to Silicon Valley

Every year, venturelab, Switzerland’s national start-up training program, selects the ten best Swiss start-ups to form the “Venture Leaders Technology” team. The selected companies benefit from a business-boosting trip, exclusive pitching opportunities and peer exchange in Silicon Valley. This year, nomoko AG, one of PARK INNOVAARE’s resident companies, made it to California.

Each year, only ten out of more than 100 start-ups make it onto the Venture Leaders Technology team. This year, nomoko AG convinced a jury consisting of investors from Waypoint Capital, Rothschild Bank and Swisscom Ventures and joined the team on its way to Silicon Valley. The company develops the technology to create photorealistic and extremely accurate (down to one centimeter) 3D models of cities at unprecedented speed. This is made possible by nomoko’s new camera with 1.5 gigapixel resolution and the associated tailor-made, 3D modeling software. Such realistic 3D digital environments will serve, for instance, as simulation environments for the training of self-driving car algorithms, virtual reality experiences, urban planning, and much more.

“The spirit of Silicon Valley is fascinating”

The Venture Leaders’ one-week roadshow to Silicon Valley took place in March. The companies met top technology investors and experts, benefited from market exposure, direct feedback, unique networking opportunities and hands-on business development. One of the highlights of the journey was the Swiss Start-up Summit, attended by roughly 200 people. The event made it possible for Swiss start-ups to gain exposure in front of a small selection of jury members, mostly venture capitalists. “It was fascinating to witness the development everyone underwent in the short period of time we were there as a group”, says Nilson Kufus, CEO and co-founder of nomoko AG. “We could truly experience the spirit of Silicon Valley: a mix of direct feedback and broad technical understanding among investors and experience.”

Moving to Silicon Valley or not?

During the trip, nomoko also engaged with the autonomous driving industry, the epicenter of which is – on a global scale – in Silicon Valley. Consequently, the trip also served as a way to evaluate whether its presence in the US and California, specifically, would make sense from both a business and an investment perspective. The very positive feedback, together with validation from the key players of the industry, made it clearer than ever: nomoko’s active presence in the Silicon Valley is imminent.