![\"China](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1784826548_674_be915485402b8056eaa8f3a9c4ad06d7198b5095-91785748.jpg\")
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China is courting Swiss start-ups; “technological dominance lies behind this” <\/p>\n
Keystone-SDA <\/p>\n
China is courting Swiss start-ups with offers that sound too good to be true such as interest-free funding, free office space for years on end, accelerator programmes and a business-friendly regulatory environment.\n<\/p>\n
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July 23, 2026 – 10:15\n<\/p>\n
But according to historian Ariane Kn\u00fcsel, the real objective is not cooperation, but rather technology transfer and dominance in strategic sectors. China\u2019s appeal to Swiss start-ups is certainly nothing new, but it is taking on increasingly sophisticated and dangerous forms.<\/p>\n
In an interview with the AWP news agency, the expert from the University of Fribourg \u2013 who has been studying relations between Beijing and the West for year, with a particular focus on Switzerland \u2013 reveals the mechanisms behind an attraction that may harbour deadly pitfalls for intellectual property and the very future of these companies.<\/p>\n
According to the professor, the roots of China\u2019s strategy lie in the past. <\/p>\n
\u201cAs early as the 1980s, China began systematically importing Western technology and know-how through high-tech zones, joint ventures and technology parks,\u201d she notes. But it was 2015 that marked a decisive turning point, with the introduction of \u201cMade in China 2025\u201d, a plan that set out to make Chinese companies global leaders in ten strategic industrial sectors.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the long term, China wants to become a technological superpower by 2049,\u201d explains Kn\u00fcsel, emphasising that Beijing still needs access to Western technology to transfer university research to industry.<\/p>\n
Not a bridge but world domination<\/p>\n
The recruitment of Swiss talent takes place through multiple, well-organised channels. <\/p>\n
\u201cChina has created a dense network for start-ups, featuring venture capital firms and state-backed funds, as well as support measures such as incubators and accelerators,\u201d says the expert. \u201cSo-called talent programmes are also used, which attract researchers with high salaries and suitable facilities. Foreign researchers, entrepreneurs and students are also approached for this purpose.\u201d <\/p>\n
Officially, the aim is to build a bridge for economic exchange between Europe and China. But Kn\u00fcsel is categorical: \u201cIn reality, this is about technology transfer \u2013 that is, access to intellectual property, research findings, information on production processes, data and know-how. Such structures are not illegal in themselves, but they provide China with access to technology and research.\u201d<\/p>\n
A telling example is the failed \u201cInnovation Centre Rapperswil\u201d, which SinoSwiss Holding, a subsidiary of the Chinese firm Fenshare Holding, wanted to build in 2023 in Rapperswil-Jona in the Swiss canton of St Gallen. The project offered free premises for three years, training programmes and access to funding.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt certainly sounds tempting \u2013 in fact, it\u2019s very tempting,\u201d admits Kn\u00fcsel, but warned start-ups not to be blinded by the perks. <\/p>\n
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How Switzerland could become a hub for Chinese e-commerce <\/p>\n
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Jul 22, 2026 <\/p>\n
After the EU has introduced a tax on small parcels from China, some worry that Switzerland could be a convenient loophole. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n Read more: How Switzerland could become a hub for Chinese e-commerce \u201cChina has the long-term goal of dominating various high-tech sectors. This has been clearly set out in the latest five-year plans. There will be no room for Swiss rivals. The aim is Chinese dominance, not a Sino-Swiss partnership.\u201d<\/p>\n There is certainly no shortage of opportunities for those who decide to venture into China: funding, tax breaks, land and subsidised rents await businesses in the targeted sectors. But the risks are just as real. <\/p>\n \u201cThe biggest risk is losing control over one\u2019s own technology, production processes and know-how,\u201d warns the historian. \u201cEconomic espionage is rife in China, and to successfully defend against intellectual property theft, you need to be able to afford lawyers. Not all Swiss start-ups or companies can afford to do so.\u201d <\/p>\n Furthermore, depending on the location, companies may be forced to hand over knowledge or technology. <\/p>\n \u201cWe must not forget that China is still an authoritarian state-capitalist regime,\u201d warns Kn\u00fcsel.<\/p>\n + How we produce English news<\/a> Articles in this story <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"China is courting Swiss start-ups; “technological dominance lies behind this” Keystone-SDA China is courting Swiss start-ups with offers…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":107291,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[4],"tags":[101,301,368,114,2143,100,103,41,17],"class_list":["post-107290","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-switzerland","tag-article","tag-beat-foreign-affairs","tag-beat-trade-policy","tag-business","tag-foreign-affairs","tag-latest-news","tag-production-type-deepl-autotranslation","tag-swiss","tag-switzerland"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ch\/116970400437445485","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107290","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=107290"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107290\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/107291"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=107290"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=107290"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=107290"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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Translated from Italian, reviewed by an\u00a0English Department<\/a> journalist.\u00a0<\/p>\n