SmiLe Incubator
SmiLe Incubator (SmiLe Venture Hub) is a Lund, Sweden-based life science venture hub that runs a tiered suite of programs — e-Campus, HealthTech/BioTech/FoodTech bootcamps, a 2-4 year incubator, and alumni services — supporting early-stage biotech, healthtech, and foodtech founders with coaching, shared lab infrastructure, and investor networks.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2007
- HeadquartersLund, Sweden
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What SmiLe Incubator does
SmiLe Incubator (also branded as SmiLe Venture Hub) is a private, for-profit life science venture hub headquartered at Medicon Village in Lund, Sweden, founded in 2007. The organization supports early-stage biotech, healthtech, and foodtech startups through a tiered program architecture: a free 8-week e-Campus introductory course, sector-specific bootcamps (HealthTech 10 weeks, BioTech 8 weeks with Germany's BioM, FoodTech), a flagship 2-4 year Incubator Program, a post-graduation Alumni Service, and a CEO Group. The core offering combines expert coaching (with 300+ years of joint life science business experience among coaches), state-of-the-art shared laboratory infrastructure including the Open Lab South service, peer community access, and curated investor and industry networks. SmiLe is supported by founding partners Lund University, Medicon Village, Region Skåne, and Lunds Kommun, and by financial partners VINNOVA, the EU, AbbVie Scandinavia (Golden Ticket), and Servier (Golden Ticket). Since inception the program has supported over 100 startups, 94 of which have graduated; the current portfolio comprises 27 companies, and member firms have collectively raised more than EUR 841 million in venture capital and achieved 21 IPOs and 5 M&A exits, with 1000+ people employed across member companies.
SmiLe's revenue model is hybrid. Direct revenue comes from incubation fees, office and lab rental, and the Open Lab South service to external lab users, which together function as a subscription-style, recurring stream tied to the 2-4 year incubation cycle. A second stream consists of public-sector grants and project funding from VINNOVA, the EU, Region Skåne, and Lunds Kommun, which underwrite programs and infrastructure. A third stream is tied to INJECT Capital, a venture investment vehicle for Skåne-based life science startups, which may generate management fees or carried interest. The pricing mix ranges from the free e-Campus program to paid incubation and bootcamp seats, with detailed pricing not publicly disclosed. Customers are early-stage life science founders and startups, segmented primarily by vertical (biotech, healthtech, foodtech) and lifecycle stage (idea, early, growth, alumni), with distribution handled via direct online applications and regional partner referral channels. SmiLe is led by CEO Ebba Fåhraeus, with Lina Olsen Boreson as CXO/COO and Laura Bejtulai heading the Accelerator Program, and was recognized in 2024 by the Financial Times and Statista as one of Europe's leading startup hubs.
SmiLe Incubator firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- SmiLe Incubator
- Legal name
- SmiLe Incubator
- Website
- https://smileincubator.life
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2007
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- SmiLe Incubator (SmiLe Venture Hub) is a Lund, Sweden-based life science venture hub that runs a tiered suite of programs — e-Campus, HealthTech/BioTech/FoodTech bootcamps, a 2-4 year incubator, and alumni services — supporting early-stage biotech, healthtech, and foodtech founders with coaching, shared lab infrastructure, and investor networks.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
SmiLe Incubator industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Startup Incubation Services (Life Sciences)
- NAICS
- Professional and Management Development Training (611430), Educational Support Services (611710)
- SIC
- Services-Educational Services (8200)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Accelerators & Incubators (Investor-Operated) (FSANAAAM)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Entrepreneurship, Startup Incubation & Pitch Programs (EDAMAKAK), Entrepreneurship Foundations & Startup Basics (EDAMAHAA), Innovation & Design Thinking Programs (EDAMAHAD)
Keywords
Where SmiLe Incubator is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Lund
- HQ country
- Sweden
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
SmiLe Incubator business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Incubation Services & Office/Lab Rental: SmiLe generates revenue through providing incubation services including office space rental, lab access, and membership benefits to life science startups over their 2-4 year program duration.
- Government & EU Funding: The organization receives funding from public sources including EU projects, VINNOVA verification grants, and regional government support (Region Skåne, Lunds Kommun).
- INJECT Capital: Venture capital investment vehicle for promising life science startups from Skåne incubators, suggesting management fees or carried interest from fund operations.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Pay-as-you-go | e-Campus Program - Free |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels5 records
SmiLe Incubator product offering
Product offeringCore offering
SmiLe Incubator is a venture hub that supports life science startups (biotech, healthtech, foodtech) from concept to commercialization through a 2-4 year flagship Incubator Program, supplemented by intensive 8-10 week Bootcamps, online educational programs (e-Campus, e-Dragon Academy), state-of-the-art laboratory access (Open Lab South), and venture capital deployment (INJECT Capital). Services include coaching, lab and office facilities, peer community access, investor introductions, and post-graduation alumni support.
Product overview
SmiLe Incubator operates as a venture hub offering a comprehensive suite of interconnected programs and services for life science startups. The core offering is the Incubator Program (2-4 years), supplemented by intensive bootcamp programs (HealthTech Bootcamp: 10 weeks, BioTech Bootcamp: 8 weeks, FoodTech Bootcamp) and the e-Campus introductory program (8 weeks). Capital access is facilitated through INJECT Capital and VINNOVA Verification Grant. Additional services include the CEO Group for networking, Alumni Service for continued support, e-Dragon Academy for venture capital preparation, and Open Lab South for laboratory access. The portfolio follows a lifecycle model: e-Campus for beginners, Bootcamps for early-stage development, the Incubator Program for established growth, and Alumni Service for post-graduation support.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Incubator Program Flagship 2-4 year incubation program that supports life science startups from concept to commercialization, providing coaching, community access, lab facilities, office space, and investor/industry network introductions.
- HealthTech Bootcamp Program 10-week virtual development program designed to help healthtech entrepreneurs get their business idea investment-ready through intensive business development support.
- BioTech Bootcamp Program 8-week program co-delivered with Germany's BioM incubator that maps the path from lab to market for biotech entrepreneurs, leveraging Europe's leading biotech incubation expertise.
- FoodTech Bootcamp Bootcamp program designed to help early-stage FoodTech entrepreneurs advance their food technology innovations to the next stage.
- e-Campus Program Free 8-week online program where participants learn the basics of life science entrepreneurship from industry experts, serving as the entry point into the SmiLe ecosystem.
- INJECT Capital Venture capital investment vehicle for promising life science startups emerging from Skåne-based incubators, providing capital and investor pathways.
- e-Dragon Academy Educational program designed to empower and prepare startups, students, and early entrepreneurs for raising venture capital and engaging with investors.
- Alumni Service Post-incubator alumni membership providing graduated companies continued access to SmiLe's community, labs, events, and investment opportunities.
- Open Lab South Service Laboratory access service offering external users advanced equipment and life science expertise at the Medicon Village campus, enabling R&D without heavy capital investment in own equipment.
- VINNOVA Verification Grant Facilitation Facilitation service connecting member startups with Swedish VINNOVA verification grant funding to help early-stage entrepreneurs develop and validate their businesses.
Quantifiable outcome
- 82% success rate for graduated companies
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use SmiLe Incubator
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles5 records
SmiLe Incubator technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature1 record
SmiLe Incubator partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Medicon VillagecoreMedicon Village is the physical location housing SmiLe's headquarters and facilities, hosting over 200 life science companies and organizations. The partnership provides a collaborative ecosystem for SmiLe member startups.
- Lund UniversitycoreLund University is a founding partner providing academic connections, talent pipeline, and research collaboration opportunities for SmiLe member startups.
- Region SkånecoreRegional government partner providing funding, strategic alignment with regional innovation priorities, and connections to healthcare system for healthtech startups.
- Lunds KommunminorMunicipal partner supporting the startup ecosystem through funding and local business development initiatives.
- BioM (Germany)coreLeading German biotech incubator partnering with SmiLe to co-deliver the Biotech Bootcamp program, mapping paths from lab to market with cross-border European expertise.
Scale indicators10 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
SmiLe Incubator competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- BioM: BioM is Germany's leading biotech cluster and incubator based in Munich. It directly co-delivers SmiLe's BioTech Bootcamp program and serves a near-identical life science startup incubation mission, making it the closest comparable peer.
- LabCentral: LabCentral is a premier US life science incubator in Cambridge/Boston providing shared lab space and community to biotech startups. It mirrors SmiLe's lab-facility-plus-incubation model in a more mature US biotech market.
- IndieBio: IndieBio is a leading global biotech accelerator providing mentorship, lab access, and seed funding to life science startups. It is highly comparable in mission, structure, and stage of support, though operating at larger scale across multiple geographies.
- BioGenerator: BioGenerator is a St. Louis-based biotech generator and investor creating and funding early-stage life science companies. It combines incubation services with investment, closely mirroring SmiLe's hybrid incubator-plus-fund model.
- Karolinska Institutet Innovations (KI Innovations): KI Innovations is Sweden's other major life science incubator, based in Stockholm at the Karolinska Institute. It offers comparable lab access, coaching, and investor networks to Swedish biotech/healthtech startups in the same national ecosystem as SmiLe.
Regional players
- Sciety: Sciety is a Swedish life science investor network and syndicate platform. It serves a complementary function in the Nordic ecosystem, providing later-stage capital access that overlaps with SmiLe's INJECT Capital and alumni network.
Others
- Vinnova: Vinnova is Sweden's national innovation agency and a direct funding partner of SmiLe. It is not a direct competitor but a key ecosystem stakeholder whose funding priorities shape SmiLe's operating context.
Broad incumbents
- JLABS (Johnson & Johnson Innovation): JLABS is J&J's global network of life science incubators operating in multiple geographies. It serves similar biotech/healthtech startups but as part of a much larger pharma corporate venture, offering deeper resources and pharma validation.
- M Ventures (Merck): M Ventures is the corporate venture arm of Merck KGaA investing in biotech and life sciences. It represents the broader CVC activity in SmiLe's space and shares overlapping deal flow and partnership potential with life science incubators.
- Bayer Co.Lab: Bayer Co.Lab is Bayer's pharma-backed life science accelerator network spanning multiple countries. It targets similar biotech/healthtech founders with the backing of a top-10 global pharma, representing both a potential partner and competitor to SmiLe.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
SmiLe Incubator social profiles
Digital presenceSmiLe Incubator financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
SmiLe Incubator leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles3 records
SmiLe Incubator funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
SmiLe Incubator M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments20 records
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about SmiLe Incubator
What does SmiLe Incubator do?
SmiLe Incubator is a venture hub that supports life science startups (biotech, healthtech, foodtech) from concept to commercialization through a 2-4 year flagship Incubator Program, supplemented by intensive 8-10 week Bootcamps, online educational programs (e-Campus, e-Dragon Academy), state-of-the-art laboratory access (Open Lab South), and venture capital deployment (INJECT Capital). Services include coaching, lab and office facilities, peer community access, investor introductions, and post-graduation alumni support.
Is SmiLe Incubator a public or private company?
SmiLe Incubator is a private company. It is classified as unknown and is currently operating.
When was SmiLe Incubator founded?
SmiLe Incubator was founded in 2007. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is SmiLe Incubator based?
SmiLe Incubator is headquartered in Lund, Sweden, in the Europe region.
How does SmiLe Incubator make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Incubation Services & Office/Lab Rental is the primary driver. The others are government & EU Funding and INJECT Capital.
Who are SmiLe Incubator's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are BioM, LabCentral, IndieBio, BioGenerator and Karolinska Institutet Innovations (KI Innovations). Sciety is listed as a regional player. Vinnova is listed as an others. Broad incumbents are JLABS (Johnson & Johnson Innovation), M Ventures (Merck) and Bayer Co.Lab.
Does SmiLe Incubator have an API?
No public API is recorded for SmiLe Incubator.
What industry is SmiLe Incubator in?
SmiLe Incubator's product category is Startup Incubation Services (Life Sciences). Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSANAAAM, Accelerators & Incubators (Investor-Operated), with a secondary code of EDAMAKAK, Entrepreneurship, Startup Incubation & Pitch Programs. Its NAICS code is 611430 and its SIC code is 8200.