New Building Opened at XISTA Science Park: More Space for Biotech and Deep-Tech Start-ups

Solgate develops novel therapies targeting membrane transport proteins. The scientific head of the international team, Enrico Girardi, guided visitors through the newly occupied rooms at the opening. Overall, the new building is to provide space for up to four spin-offs in the future, though a large portion of the space will initially continue to be used by the institute itself.

Representatives from science, business, and politics came to the ceremonial opening at the Lower Austrian site. Among the guests were Uli Grabenwarter from the European Investment Fund (EIF), Helmut Miernicki, ISTA President Martin Hetzer, Doris Agneter, as well as Lower Austrian Governor Johanna Mikl-Leitner. Bernadette Schabbauer, the managing director of the economic agency ecoplus, emphasized that the construction project had been completed "on time und in budget".

Voices from Politics and Science

Mikl-Leitner referenced the investment of around 22 million euros and underscored the strategic significance of the location: „Das einzige Mittel, um sich im globalen Wettbewerb durchzusetzen, ist Innovation, Forschung und Spitzentechnologie". She also said: „Mit Billigprodukten und Dumpinglöhnen werde man in Zukunft nicht mehr punkten können." She further stated: „Der internationale Wettbewerb werde immer härter und fordernder."

Martin Hetzer, President of ISTA, placed the new building within the long-term mission of his institution. „Die Übersetzung wissenschaftlicher Erkenntnisse in konkrete Anwendungen und erfolgreiche Startups ist seit der Gründung von ISTA ein zentraler Teil unserer Mission. Mit XISTA Innovation haben wir eine Brücke zwischen Spitzenforschung und kommerzieller Umsetzung gebaut. Wir unterstützen unsere Forscher:innen dabei, ihre Ideen zu patentieren und zu erfolgreichen Startups zu entwickeln." He also said: „Dieses Gebäude ist ein ganz essentieller Teil, dass wir eine Wirkung, die über die Forschung und die Labors hinausgeht, in die Gesellschaft hineinbringen."

Markus Wanko, managing director of XISTA, described the opening day as the result of many years of development work. „Was wir heute sehen, ist das Ergebnis von vielen Jahren Aufbauarbeit. Unser Ziel war immer, Forschung schneller in Anwendung zu bringen – mit der richtigen Infrastruktur und einem Umfeld, das Unternehmertum ermöglicht. Mit dem neuen Gebäude setzen wir genau hier den nächsten Schritt." He also emphasized: „Im Kern steht die Entwicklung neuer Unternehmen aus der Forschung heraus."

Wanko quantified the program's leverage effect: To date, just over 30 million euros had been invested in start-ups through XISTA, and the companies involved had themselves raised 300 million euros. „Die Unternehmen selbst haben das genutzt, um 300 Millionen Euro selbst einzuwerben. Also ich glaube, wir haben es geschafft, da ein System aufzubauen. Das funktioniert."

Financing and Leverage Effect

The European Investment Fund (EIF) is the anchor investor of the XISTA Science Ventures Fund II. Uli Grabenwarter, Deputy Director for Equity Investments at the EIF, said about the commitment: „Das Engagement des EIF im XISTA Science Ventures Fund II spiegelt unser Vertrauen in XISTAs enge Integration mit führenden Forschungsumgebungen wider und dass sein langfristiger Ansatz für Deep Tech genau das ist, was Europas Innovations-Ökosystem braucht."

According to XISTA, the XISTA Science Venture Fund recently completed its 30th investment. With the expansion, the park is increasingly opening up beyond ISTA and is increasingly targeting science entrepreneurs from Vienna and all over Europe, the site management explained. According to its own information, ISTA conducts basic research in the natural sciences, mathematics, and computer science with around 90 research groups and 1,400 employees.

Outlook for the Expanded Campus

At the center of the expanded campus, the XISTA "Playground" is being created – a meeting space between the buildings with shaded seating areas, open communal zones, and seasonal planting. The site itself is located in green surroundings according to XISTA and is connected to Vienna via a shuttle bus. The new building was designed by F+P Architekten in collaboration with Ferro & Partner.

With the expansion, the site is responding to growing demand for research-adjacent infrastructure. In 2024, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen had already visited the campus. The new building is considered a building block to further increase the number of spin-offs at the site and to deepen the interconnection between basic research and commercial exploitation.