Animal-free science is the science of the future. Unfortunately, promising animal-free research models often fail in the Valley of Death: the infamous gap between scientific research and practical application. But we have a game-changing answer: the Proefdiervrij Venture Challenge 2026. Are you ready to take your animal-free innovation to the next level? Then register for the sixth edition of the Animal-Free Venture Challenge!
What is the Proefdiervrij Venture Challenge?
The Proefdiervrij Venture Challenge is the programme in which we help scientists take their human-centred, animal-free innovations out of the lab and prepare them for the market. In collaboration with the GameChanger Challenge, teams receive coaching, workshops and guidance to turn their ideas into concrete business plans. We are the initiator and organiser behind the Proefdiervrij Venture Challenge. The Universitas Foundation has been funding the challenge for years and will remain the main sponsor in 2026.
Why is the competition important?
The transition to human-centred science will only succeed if new, animal-free innovations make the leap into practice. This requires not only knowledge, but also courage, business insights and collaboration.
The Proefdiervrij Venture Challenge shows that it can be done:
- Researchers learn how to market their model or technology.
- They build networks that advance their innovation.
- And they inspire others to take the plunge too.
The results of previous editions prove that this works: there are now more organoid start-ups than ever before!
Winner of the Proefdiervrij Venture Challenge 2025
HeartSmart’s animal-free heart model won the Proefdiervrij Venture Challenge 2025 and with it the prize money of €25,000. The researchers behind HeartSmart developed a groundbreaking animal-free method to study fibrosis, the stiffening of heart tissue. The model consists of cultured human heart tissue and measures the contraction force of a healthy and a diseased heart. The model enables researchers to predict the effect of medicines on the human heart. To do this, they need 95 per cent fewer cells and other material than traditional methods.
This makes their method of testing drugs not only unprecedentedly accurate, but also faster and more efficient. But HeartSmart went one step further: from animal-free to animal-free. Matrigel is used for many other test models consisting of cultured heart cells. This substance, on which cells grow well, is harvested from tumours in mice that are deliberately made sick for this purpose. With the development of a Matrigel-free synthetic hydrogel, HeartSmart has created a cell model that is not only free of laboratory animals, but also completely free of animal material.
In short: what’s in it for you?
The Proefdiervrij Venture Challenge is not a competition which your team participate in to just win, but a learning process in which researchers learn to think like entrepreneurs. The winner receives support to further develop their innovation and demonstrates that a future without animal testing is within reach. This is what you can expect from the process:
- Personal guidance from experts
- Networking and collaboration opportunities
- Visibility and appreciation for your animal-free innovation
- An accelerated transition from lab to industry
- An impactful breakthrough towards better science for humans and animals
Take a look behind the scenes of the Proefdiervrij Venture Challenge 2024.
Participate now
Scientists based in the Netherlands can participate in the Proefdiervrij Venture Challenge in teams of at least 3 and a maximum of 5 people. Are you working on an animal-free product, process or service within the life sciences? Register yourself and your team for the Proefdiervrij Venture Challenge before January 5th, 2026 and turn your innovation into a company!