What Promobilia Foundation does

Promobilia Foundation (Stiftelsen Promobilia) is a privately endowed Swedish nonprofit foundation established in 1965 by Dr. Per Uddén to develop the electric wheelchair that became Permobil. After founder Per Uddén's death in 2002 and the 2005 sale of Permobil AB, the foundation refocused entirely on funding research and innovation that creates conditions for independent and active lives for people with disabilities. It is headquartered at Nybrogatan 59, Stockholm, registered in Västernorrlands Län under organisation number 889200-5797, and operates with a small secretariat (CEO Patrik Malmunger, Scientific Director Tove Alm, Administrator Dragana Krstic) under a board chaired by Jan Bernhard Waage.

The foundation's core offerings are four grant programs: Project Grants (up to SEK 1,000,000 per year for 1-3 year projects), Promobilia Postdoctoral Fellowships (SEK 1,000,000 annually for 2 years with possible 1-year extension), Personal Scholarships for individual innovators, and the annual Dr Per Uddens Stipendium. Applications are managed through a digital platform (SBS Manager) with BankID authentication, with defined submission windows (February 1-March 1 for project grants, September 4-October 5 for fellowships). Total annual disbursements exceeded SEK 50 million for the first time in 2023, with cumulative grants spanning 2006-2025.

Promobilia's revenue model is endowment-based: it is funded by returns on the proceeds of the Permobil divestiture and does not generate commercial revenue. Its go-to-market is institutionally focused on Swedish universities, colleges, hospitals, and public institutions, plus a limited channel for individual researchers and personal-scholarship applicants. Strategic research partnerships anchor major long-term commitments at Karolinska Institutet, KTH, Lund University, Chalmers, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, University of Gothenburg, St. Erik Eye Hospital, and University of Lausanne, with annual grant disbursement cycles between January 15-June 30 and September 1-December 15.

Name

Promobilia Foundation

Legal name

Stiftelsen Promobilia

Website

https://www.promobilia.se

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Promobilia Foundation (Stiftelsen Promobilia) is a Swedish nonprofit foundation, founded in 1965, that funds disability, mobility, and assistive-technology research at Swedish universities, colleges, and hospitals through project grants, postdoctoral fellowships, and scholarships, with annual disbursements exceeding SEK 50 million.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Research Foundation / Research Grant Funding

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Grantmaking and Giving Services (8132), Voluntary Health Organizations (813212)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Scholarship & Fellowship Foundations and Trusts (EDADAHAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

International Grantmaking & Development Foundations (BPAGAKAH), Special Education, Disability Support & Inclusive Education Nonprofits (BPAGADAH), Foundation/NGO & Philanthropic Scholarships (EDAIAOAH)

Keywords

• Research grant funding
• Disability research grants
• Assistive technology research
• Postdoctoral fellowship funding
• Mobility research support

Headquarters

HQ city

Stockholm

HQ country

Sweden

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. Foundation Grant Disbursements: Promobilia Foundation operates as a charitable foundation that distributes research grants rather than generating commercial revenue. The foundation's income derives from its endowment and investment returns. It distributes three types of grants: Project Grants (1–3 years, up to SEK 1,000,000 per year), Promobilia Fellowships (2 years with possible 1-year extension, SEK 1,000,000 annually for postdoctoral research), and Personal Scholarships. Total annual disbursements exceed SEK 50 million.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Promobilia Foundation is a Swedish nonprofit research foundation that funds research, innovation, and change to create conditions for independent and active lives for people with disabilities. Its core offering consists of Project Grants (up to SEK 1,000,000/year for 1–3 years), Promobilia Postdoctoral Fellowships (SEK 1,000,000/year for 2 years), the Dr Per Uddéns Stipendium, and Personal Scholarships, all directed at Swedish research institutions and individual researchers working on mobility, assistive technology, and disability. Annual disbursements exceed SEK 50 million, with cumulative grants across 2006–2025.

Product overview

Promobilia Foundation operates as a research funding organization rather than a traditional product company. The foundation's offerings consist of grant programs: Projektanslag (project grants for 1-3 year research projects), Promobilia Fellowships (postdoctoral positions), Dr Per Uddéns Stipendium (annual named scholarship), and Personligt Stipendium (personal scholarships for product development). All applications are managed through the SBS Manager digital platform. The foundation's strategic focus is on funding research and innovation that promotes independent and active living for people with disabilities, particularly in mobility, communication, and assistive technology.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Project Grants (Projektanslag) Research funding grants of up to SEK 1,000,000 per year for 1–3 year projects focused on disability, mobility, and assistive technology, awarded to Swedish universities, colleges, hospitals, and public institutions. Indirect costs are capped at 20% of the total sum.
• Promobilia Postdoctoral Fellowships Postdoctoral fellowships lasting 2 years (with possible 1-year extension) providing SEK 1,000,000 annually to enable researchers to start a career in disability research at Swedish institutions. Includes salary, salary side costs, and indirect costs at the institution (max 20%).
• Dr Per Uddéns Stipendium Annual scholarship established in 1995 to honor the foundation's founder Dr Per Uddén; awarded annually to researchers in the field of disability and mobility.
• Personal Scholarship (Personligt Stipendium) Personal scholarship available to private individuals meeting specified conditions, intended to develop an idea into a usable product in the disability assistance field. Not for individual aid purchases or living expenses.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over SEK 50 million distributed annually in grants as of recent years
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Stiftelsen Spinalis (Spinalis Foundation)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Initiated the LOVA sailing project for persons with spinal cord injuries, founded by Claes Hultling who is active in research at Karolinska Institutet. The project made sailing and archipelago experiences accessible to wheelchair users.
• Stiftelsen Skota HemminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Collaborating partner in the LOVA – Segla högre sailing project, led by Emma Hallen, operational manager at Stiftelsen Skota Hem. The project adapted sailing boats for accessibility.
• Svenska Turistföreningen / Vandrarhem along sailing routeminorOthers · 1 January 2023Partner accommodation providers along the LOVA sailing route between Arholma and Landsort, enabling participants with disabilities to stay at hostels and acclimatize to life aboard the adapted sailing vessels.
• Lunds universitet (Lund University)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020ESSE project (EMG control, Sensations, and Sensing for prosthetics) at Lund University, led by researchers Christian Antfolk, Nebojša Malešević, and Fredrik Sebelius, aimed at improving control of advanced prosthetics through sensory integration and stimuli.
• Center for Bionics and Pain Research (CBPR)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020A cross-disciplinary center established in Gothenburg in 2020 to promote research, development, and clinical introduction of new treatment methods for sensory and motor functional disabilities including amputations and nerve injuries. Functions as a collaboration platform between Chalmers, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, and University of Gothenburg.
• KTH (Royal Institute of Technology)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Promobilia MoveAbility Lab established at KTH in Stockholm, led by Professor Lanie Gutierrez-Farewik, focusing on developing technology to decode, predict, and improve human movement for persons with motor disabilities, both children and adults.
• Karolinska InstitutetcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMultiple funded research projects at Karolinska Institutet, including: (1) Better health and movement for children with motor disabilities led by Ferdinand von Walden; (2) Photoreceptor replacement with stem cells led by Anders Kvanta and Fredrik Lanner; (3) Humanizing spinal cord regeneration research with Dr. Mark A. Anderson at University of Lausanne.
• St. Erik Ögonsjukhus (St. Erik Eye Hospital)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborating with Karolinska Institutet on photoreceptor replacement research using stem cells to treat hereditary retinal diseases (retinitis pigmentosa) and age-related macular degeneration.
• Chalmers University of TechnologycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner institution in the Center for Bionics and Pain Research (CBPR) alongside Sahlgrenska University Hospital and University of Gothenburg, focusing on bionics and pain research.
• Sahlgrenska Universitetssjukhuset (Sahlgrenska University Hospital)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner institution in the Center for Bionics and Pain Research (CBPR) alongside Chalmers and University of Gothenburg, focusing on clinical application of bionics and pain research.
• Göteborgs Universitet (University of Gothenburg)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner institution in the Center for Bionics and Pain Research (CBPR) alongside Chalmers and Sahlgrenska University Hospital, focusing on academic research in bionics and pain treatment.
• University of Lausanne (UNIL)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDr. Mark A. Anderson, Associate Professor at University of Lausanne, received funding through the Promobilia Chair in Spinal Cord Repair for pioneering research combining gene therapy and neurotechnology to develop treatments restoring function in spinal cord injury patients. Funded for 5 years.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation: Sweden's largest private research funder, supporting basic research at Swedish universities. Comparable to Promobilia in being a Swedish grantmaking foundation with endowments funding research, but operates at vastly larger scale and broader scientific scope.
• Swedish Research Council (Vetenskapsrådet): Sweden's primary government research funding agency. Peer because it distributes competitive research grants to Swedish universities in similar disciplinary areas, including medicine and engineering, overlapping with Promobilia's funded domains.
• Vinnova (Swedish Innovation Agency): Sweden's government innovation agency funding research and innovation. Comparable as a Swedish institution that funds applied research projects and innovation programs, though its mission is broader and it is government-funded rather than endowment-backed.

Direct peers

• Swedish Foundation for Strategic Research (SSF): Swedish private research funding foundation supporting strategic research in natural sciences, engineering, and medicine. Closely comparable to Promobilia in funding model (Sweden-focused competitive grants, fellowships, endowed structure) and scale (SEK ~600M+ annually).
• Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation: US non-profit funding spinal cord injury research and quality-of-life programs. Directly comparable to Promobilia in mission (spinal cord injury/mobility research, fellowships, quality-of-life grants) and model (endowed foundation funding research grants).
• Craig H. Neilsen Foundation: US foundation funding spinal cord injury research and quality-of-life programs. Peer in mission and model: endowed foundation distributing research grants, postdoctoral fellowships, and quality-of-life grants focused on SCI and mobility.
• Marcus and Amalia Wallenberg Foundation: Swedish private foundation funding scientific research, primarily in medicine and engineering. Comparable to Promobilia in being a Swedish research grantmaking foundation with similar grant tiers and focus on impactful Swedish research.
• Erling-Persson Family Foundation: Swedish private foundation (H&M family) funding research, education, and humanitarian causes. Comparable as a Swedish grantmaking foundation with multi-million SEK annual disbursements to research institutions.
• Paralyzed Veterans of America Research Foundation: US non-profit funding SCI and disability research through grants and fellowships. Comparable to Promobilia in mission (SCI research, mobility, fellowships) and grantmaking model.

Emerging players

• RehabCentrum/Spinalis Foundation: Swedish foundation focused on spinal cord injury research and rehabilitation, including the LOVA sailing project co-funded with Promobilia. Peer in mission and recent partnership activity.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/promobilia-foundation

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Promobilia Foundation