Important Information – FAQ

• Up to 100,000 CHF (mainly) for salaries over six months.
• At least 5 hours of individual and needs-based coaching (e.g., coding or user-centered design) during the funding period.
• Access to our network in politics, administration, academia, and civil society.
• During the project period, we support project teams in connecting with potential partners and funding programs. Long-term impact is very important to us, and we help participants develop future perspectives for their projects.

The Prototype Fund is implemented by a dedicated team at the Opendata.ch association. 

We regard the Prototype Fund itself as a prototype. The program is the first of its kind in Switzerland. We are constantly working on improving and adapting the program. We want to learn a lot, share our experiences with you and help you realize your plans and projects. Your feedback is important.

For our purposes, a prototype is an early, functional version of a software-based tool or application (Minimum Viable Product; MVP). In this round, prototypes can also include hardware or other approaches.

The prototyping phase follows the investigation of the problem, testing of existing solutions, and evaluation of target group needs. This synthesized knowledge guides the prototyping process.

The existence of a prototype allows for testing whether the tool meets its goals (proof of concept) and serves as the foundation for further improvements.

We expect a minimally functional technical prototype of the digital tool as the output, not necessarily including design or communication aspects. However, we understand that changes are part of the process, and even early project termination is possible if it becomes clear that there is no demand for your product. #failosophy

If possible and reasonable, only open source software should be used during prototype development (e.g. sound engine), especially if software is purchased with Prototype Fund grant money.

At the end of the prototyping phase, the software you develop must be released under one of the open source licenses which are recognised by the Free Software Foundation or the Open Source Initiative. The code must be made publicly available via a Git repository (e.g. Gitlab, Github or Bitbucket repository). Publishing the source code will make your project more impactful, sustainable, and trustworthy, as other citizens can build on your prototype and develop it further. If relevant for the success of your project, a delayed publication of the code can be discussed.

You can find all the important dates and the procedure for the application and implementation phase in our program schedule.

In principle: Anyone with an innovative idea for a digital tool that addresses a societal problem and strengthens the common good in Switzerland. The focus of the current funding round is sustainable digitalization and digital sufficiency.

Additionally, you must have a valid work permit in Switzerland and be over 18 years old (of legal age). Swiss nationality is not required. We welcome applications from everyone, regardless of origin, age, religion, sexual identity, disabilities, or skin color.

To receive funding, you will need a legal entity (e.g., association, sole proprietorship, or LLC) with its own bank account after approval. We’re happy to assist you with questions about legal forms and staffing once your project is accepted.

Public institutions and universities are not eligible to apply. However, researchers or employees of a university or public institution may apply as part of a team.

In this funding round, we are supporting a project team based in and/or having an impact in Basel-Stadt. This is made possible through the support of the Christoph Merian Foundation, headquartered in Basel.

All key dates and the process for the application and implementation phases can be found in our program schedule.

We recommend applying early to allow more time to clarify any outstanding questions about your submission.

You can apply via our website. All key dates and the process for the application and implementation phases can be found in our program schedule.

We recommend applying early to allow more time to clarify any outstanding questions about your submission.

Yes, you can. But you can only get funding for one project.

Yes, you can. However, your submitted project must be clearly distinguishable and demonstrate a sufficient level of novelty, such as planning to expand or improve an existing project with a new module.

Ask yourself: Does the project apply existing elements (e.g., code, libraries, interfaces) in new contexts or make them accessible to new target groups?

In any case, you must clearly specify what you will work on during the 6-month funding period.

We will review applications in English, French, German, or Italian. Please use the English application form for an application in Italian.

All team members supported by the Prototype Fund must have a Swiss work permit. You must designate a formal team leader, i.e., the team member responsible for submitting the application to the Prototype Fund. In the application form, we ask you to outline the different modules within the project and assign each module to a team member with an estimated time allocation. If your project is selected by the jury, we will assist you in finding the appropriate legal entity: to receive the funding, you will need to establish a legal entity (e.g., association, sole proprietorship, or LLC) with its own bank account after approval.

Your project submission will receive short comments from the jury or the Prototype Fund team upon request.

After you submit your application, it will be reviewed by the team based on the selection criteria and evaluated by a qualified jury.

At least 3 projects are being funded in the current round.

The decision, based on the team’s review and the jury’s evaluation, will rely on the following selection criteria.

We support innovative projects that strengthen the common good and solve societal problems using open-source technologies. These can include software, hardware, or other approaches. Project topics can include participation (Civic Tech), diversity, open knowledge, data literacy, or security. The current funding focus is sustainable digitalization and digital sufficiency.

For project inspiration feel free to check out our ”big brother” from Germany or the Civic Tech Field Guide as well as the selection criteria used by the jury. 

In this funding round, we are supporting a project team based in and/or having an impact in Basel-Stadt. This is made possible through the support of the Christoph Merian Foundation, headquartered in Basel.

Not sure if your project fits the Prototype Fund? Send us an email.

For the funding period of six months, you can apply for up to 100,000 CHF. We require a general project plan with approximately four milestones and a budget plan. The budget must include information about your daily rate. Additionally, the days must be assigned to a team member and/or specify how many days are allocated for different types of activities. All material expenses must also be listed in the submitted budget plan. The budget plan is integrated into the application form.

In principle, the Prototype Fund pays for your working hours, i.e., your salary. Specifically, 95% of the working hours you invest in the project are funded. The remaining 5% is your own contribution—meaning you “donate” 5% of your additional hours to your project.

You will definitely have to pay regular income tax. We make the VAT provisions for your project funding.

During the project period we expect

• Active participation in the Kick Off Workshop and Demo Day.
• Documentation of the milestones of your project. We will define the milestones during the kick-off workshop and refine and adapt them during the funding period.
• A description of your project for the Prototype Fund website.
• At least one blog post describing your challenges and first experiences with your prototype.
• Participation in internal surveys that contribute to the improvement of the Prototype Fund.
• Participation in the bi-weekly written check-ins, the bi-weekly moderated peer calls and other elements of the coaching program developed together with you.
• Participation in external communication (media, presentation at events, social media contributions).

At the end of the project we expect:

• A functioning prototype that has been tested with the target group.
• The experiences of the target group have been evaluated using a written questionnaire.
• An updated description of your prototype for the Prototype Fund website.
• Your project has been released under an open source license and your code is publicly available, e.g. via GitHub or GitLab. Delayed publication of the code can be discussed in exceptional cases.
• Interest and commitment to further develop your prototype after the end of the funding period.

Yes, this is possible. However, it is important to us that the external individuals are already involved in the project at the time of application. We want all participants in the project to be committed to the success of the prototype.

We therefore ask you to include external project collaborators as team members in the application form (including their GitHub account) and describe in the text how the work will be divided with the external individuals. Please also describe the experience of the external individuals and mention any past collaborative projects with them. In addition to the budget, the application must include a quote specifying how many hours will be worked for which tasks and at what daily rate.

You can find a graphic illustration of the program process here. The funding period starts with a kickoff workshop and lasts 6 months. After the kick-off workshop, you will work on the milestones you have defined yourself. We see ourselves as an engagement-based funding program: The Prototype Fund team supports you with bi-weekly check-ins and bi-weekly moderated peer calls. 

During the funding period, you or your team will receive up to 5 hours of external coaching as needed (e.g. workshops on user testing, communication, data protection law, fundraising, cyber security, etc.). We will support you in finding mentors and give you access to our network. During the prototyping phase, there will be a user testing and pre-demo day, where you will present your interim status in a small group and receive feedback.

At the end of the funding period, you will present your prototype to the public on Demo Day. Finally, there will be a workshop where we will reflect together on the findings from the prototyping phase and look ahead.

Since we see the Prototype Fund itself as a prototype, we will continuously improve and adapt the program to make our support as useful as possible for you. Your feedback is important to us, even now. So get in touch with us at .

Basically, the amount of time to be planned depends on the amount of funding, the number of team members and your daily rate. As a rule, however, it corresponds to an average of approx. 80 – 160 % of the staff during half a year. Also, a certain flexibility of the project team, especially the project leads, is expected to participate in the program (workshops, check-ins, etc.).

At the end of the six-month project period, we invite all teams to a Demo Day to present their prototypes and discuss successes, challenges, and issues. In addition to the teams, we also invite other guests. As part of the Prototype Fund network, you will remain closely connected to the program even after the funding period ends.

Your code must be published in a repository, and your project documented to ensure it can be easily reproduced.

During the project period, we support the project teams in connecting with potential partners and funding programs. Long-term impact is very important to us, and we help participants develop perspectives for their projects.

The software must be published under one of the open source licenses which are recognised by the Free Software Foundation or the Open Source Initiative. The code must be made publicly available (e.g. via a Git repository such as the Gitlab, Github or Bitbucket). Publishing the source code will make your project more impactful, sustainable, and trustworthy, as other citizens can build on your prototype and develop it further. If relevant for the success of your project, a delayed publication of the code can be discussed.

We recommend having a look at the list of the ten most important security risks according to the OWASP. This is a good start for your reflection about security risks in your project.

In principle, the funding finances your salary. More specifically, the funding supports 95% of the working hours that you put into the project. The remaining 5% are your own contribution – meaning you make a donation to your project by putting in these 5% of extra hours. If you need to get funding for expenses other than salaries, please provide details in the budget plan you will submit. 

The grant will be paid in installments based on the achievement of the milestones that you defined at the beginning of the prototyping phase. If required, we can discuss during the prototyping phase whether the milestones need to be updated.

81% of your budget will be paid during the grant period:

• The first installment (27% of the project budget) will be paid out at the beginning of the grant period, 
• the second 27% conditional on the achievement of the first milestone, and 
• the third 27% conditional on the achievement of the second milestone. 

The remaining 19% of your budget will be paid out after the Demo Day.