Giovanna Dipasquale is the ‘Female Innovator of the Year’ 2025

The eighth edition of the Female Innovation Forum once again highlighted the leadership and creativity of women driving technological innovation. Giovanna Dipasquale was awarded Female Innovator of the Year, recognizing her economic and societal impact though HeroSupport, which develops personalized 3D-printed support systems for radiation therapy in breast cancer. Lara Gervaise, co-founder of Virtuosis AI, won the Recognition Award.

About 250 women (and some men) joined the annual Female Innovation Forum yesterday at JED in Schlieren. Organized for the 8^th time by the business community Ladies Drive, the event aims to celebrate innovation, female entrepreneurship, gather inspiration and network with the audience comprising by entrepreneurs, business professionals, mentors, and investors. The forum kicked off with a series of inspirational keynotes, impulse workshops, providing five promising startups with the opportunity to collect ideas and insights to address their current business challenges.

The event culminated in the Award Night to honor female founders with outstanding achievements in various categories. The main awards, ‘Female Innovator of the Year’ and ‘Recognition Award’, are bestowed onto female founders whose business idea sustainably contributes to strengthening the Swiss economy, for instance, through job creation. For the recognition award, the company’s solution should have a long-term impact on the local community, and their solution is already on the market for a maximum of five years.

This year’s Female Innovator of the Year is Giovana Dipasquale, CEO and co-founder of HeroSupport, the startup dedicated to transforming radiotherapy treatment for cancer patients. Founded in 2022 as a spinoff of the Geneva University Hospital (HUG), HeroSupport developed VENUS SHELL, a patient-specific 3D-printed, immobilization shell for breast radiotherapy in a prone position. The system significantly enhances treatment efficacy, minimizes side effects, and improves patient comfort and quality of life, while contributing to more efficient working practices in everyday clinical practice. Since April this year, HeroSupport has been collaborating with the Swiss Medical Network to integate its system into their radio-oncology centers, including Clinique de Genolier and Clinique Générale-Beaulieu in Geneva. Meanwhile, the startup is aspiring to obtain medical approvals to accelerate market entry.

The Recognition Award went to Lara Gervaise, CEO and co-founder of Virtuosis AI. With the goal of promoting well-being in workplaces, the Lausanne-based startup uses artificial intelligence to analyze speech patterns and thus detect early signs of stress or psychological strain in employees. This technology was developed during Gervaise’s doctoral thesis at EPFL in collaboration with AI experts and behavioral psychologists. Virtuosis AI was founded in 2022 and works with Microsoft, among others. As part of the award, Gervaise will be supported in her next career steps by Siemens and Advance.

Two additional female innovators were also recognized and honored for their special achievements. The social innovation and design by USM and the Canton of Zurich, Office for Economic Affairs went to Barbara Brendler, founder of “Nonchalant,” for her commitment to sustainable nutrition. Her company produces bouillon powder from rescued vegetables. The Design Award by USM Modular Furniture was bestowed onto Tanja Klein, founder of the fashion label “Kleinbasel,” in recognition of her clear, sustainable designs and responsible use of materials. Her collections combine aesthetics, durability, and Swiss craftsmanship.

(Press release/RAN)