HEK - Haus der Elektronischen Künste Basel

Name

HEK - Haus der Elektronischen Künste Basel

Legal name

HEK (Haus der Elektronischen Künste)

Website

https://hek.ch

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Münchenstein / Basel

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Ticket Sales: Revenue from physical museum entry tickets for exhibitions and events
2. Membership Program (Friends of HEK): Annual membership program offering benefits to supporters of electronic arts
3. Shop and HEK.editions: Sale of merchandise and digital collectibles including NFT shop at nftshop.hek.ch

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

HEK is a Swiss non-profit museum and cultural institution that presents, collects and researches electronic and digital art. It stages physical exhibitions at its Basel venue and virtual exhibitions on virtual.hek.ch, maintains a collection of net art and software-based works, runs educational programs (workshops, school and family programs), and supports digital artists through initiatives such as the Pax Art Awards and the Mesh Festival. Revenue is generated via ticket sales, the Friends of HEK membership, an NFT shop (HEK.editions), a merchandise shop, public grants and foundation funding.

Product overview

HEK (Haus der Elektronischen Künste) is a Swiss cultural institution and museum dedicated to electronic arts, media art, and digital culture. The organization operates as a unified cultural center offering physical exhibitions at its Basel location alongside a digital platform (virtual.hek.ch) for online exhibitions, a blog (share.hek.ch) providing articles and interviews, an NFT marketplace (HEK.editions), and a retail shop. Additional offerings include educational programs through Vermittlung, a membership program (Friends of HEK), participation in the annual Mesh Festival, and the Pax Art Awards recognizing Swiss media artists. The institution maintains a permanent collection of electronic artworks while rotating exhibitions throughout the year.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Friends of HEK: Membership program supporting the organization's activities and mission.
• Pax Art Awards
• HEK.editions
• virtual.hek.ch
• Mesh Festival

Products and services

• HEK (Haus der Elektronischen Künste) Museum Experience Rotating exhibitions of electronic arts, media art, net art and software-based art presented at the museum's physical venue in Münchenstein/Basel and online. Targeted at the general public, art enthusiasts, schools and digital artists.
• virtual.hek.ch Virtual Exhibition Platform Browser-based virtual exhibition space accessible globally at virtual.hek.ch, hosting online-only digital art exhibitions such as the 404_LAND project with Tezos Foundation. Targeted at online visitors of digital and electronic arts.
• HEK Sammlung (Collection) Permanent collection of net art, software-based and electronic artworks preserved and exhibited by HEK. Targeted at researchers, artists, students and museum visitors.
• Vermittlung (Educational Programs) Workshops, school programs, family events and corporate events focused on digital media literacy and electronic arts education. Targeted at schools, families, teachers and corporate groups.
• Friends of HEK Membership Annual membership program providing supporters with exhibition previews, events, open calls and discounts. Targeted at supporters of electronic arts.
• HEK.editions (NFT Shop) NFT marketplace offering blockchain-based digital art editions and collectibles from HEK's program and artists. Targeted at digital art collectors.
• HEK Shop Online retail store selling exhibition tickets and HEK-related merchandise. Targeted at museum visitors and supporters.
• Pax Art Awards Annual awards program recognizing emerging artists in Swiss media art and electronic arts, with main prize and emerging artist categories. Targeted at Swiss media artists.
• Mesh Festival Annual festival focused on urban actions and spatial utopias, organized by HEK as part of its programming. Targeted at the general public and digital art community.

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Tezos FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Partnership for 404_LAND exhibition in 2026, creating the first virtual exhibition of the partnership on virtual.hek.ch. The exhibition explores overlooked spaces and hidden territories of the internet through artistic digital experiences.
• KuverumminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration for the roundtable 'Cultural Participation' organized on 20 March 2026, addressing questions of cultural participation and museum access.
• Gazelli Art HouseminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborating on the 'After the Dataset' exhibition exploring how AI shapes cultural memory and visual knowledge, selected by Friends of HEK community.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Ars Electronica: Austrian center for electronic arts running the Ars Electronica Festival, Futurelab, and museum in Linz. Closest direct peer: shares HEK's mission around digital/electronic art, new media, and technology-culture discourse.
• Nam June Paik Art Center: Korean museum dedicated to Nam June Paik and media art. Comparable to HEK as a dedicated new-media art institution with permanent collection, temporary exhibitions, and scholarship around electronic/digital art.
• ZKM | Center for Art and Media Karlsruhe: Germany's flagship museum for media art and electronic arts. Directly comparable to HEK: focuses on net art, software-based art, and digital culture with physical exhibitions, a permanent collection, and educational programming.
• FACT (Foundation for Art and Creative Technology): Liverpool-based foundation and exhibition venue for art and creative technology. Comparable to HEK in combining physical exhibitions with media-art programming, residencies, and educational outreach.
• Le Fresnoy – Studio National des Arts Contemporains: French national studio and exhibition center for contemporary art, with a strong focus on digital and audiovisual production. Comparable to HEK in combining artist residencies, exhibitions, and digital-media practice.

Broad incumbents

• Museum of the Moving Image: New York museum focused on moving image and media culture. Broader than HEK but overlaps in programming digital culture, video art, and electronic media exhibitions for general audiences.
• ICA (Institute of Contemporary Arts): London contemporary arts institution with overlapping programming in moving image, digital culture, and new media. Comparable mission breadth to HEK though with a wider contemporary-art remit.
• V&A (Victoria and Albert Museum) Digital: UK national museum with a growing digital-culture and electronic-arts program. Less specialized than HEK but increasingly relevant as incumbents move into HEK's space.
• Serpentine Galleries: London contemporary art galleries with growing engagement in digital and technology-themed exhibitions (e.g., Serpentine/Engine projects). Adjacent to HEK in audience and curatorial ambition.

Emerging players

• Rhizome: US-based nonprofit supporting born-digital art preservation and commissioning. HEK explicitly references Rhizome/Nicole Savoy on share.hek.ch; comparable as a digital-art infrastructure and advocacy organization.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/hek_basel
• YouTubevimeo.com/user1190733
• Facebookfacebook.com/HEKBasel
• Instagraminstagram.com/hek_basel

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about HEK - Haus der Elektronischen Künste Basel