Basel life sciences entrepreneurial ecosystem – internal dynamics, growth drivers and pain points

Purpose This paper aims to investigate the internal dynamics, growth drivers and pain points of the Basel life-sciences entrepreneurial ecosystem. It evaluates how early-stage ventures perceive and leverage localized ecosystem forces compared to mature corporate incumbents. Design/methodology/approach Using survey data from Basel life sciences firms, the study adopts a perception-based, cross-sectional design. Exploratory factor analysis identifies underlying ecosystem dimensions, and Mann–Whitney U tests assess differences in how these dimensions are perceived across firm types. Findings Three core ecosystem dimensions emerge: resource accessibility, collaboration and ease of doing business. While perceptions are broadly aligned across most conditions, significant differences arise in access to talent and financial capital, with startups reporting systematically lower accessibility than mature firms. The findings indicate that strong ecosystem performance can coexist with internal asymmetries in resource access. Research limitations/implications The single-region, cross-sectional design limits generalisability and does not capture ecosystem dynamics over time. The findings support a shift toward micro-foundational and distributional approaches to ecosystem analysis. Practical implications The findings highlight actionable areas for ecosystem stakeholders to strengthen Basel’s entrepreneurial environment. Improving access to capital, aligning policies with startup needs and enhancing domestic market opportunities can accelerate venture scaling. Practitioners can leverage these insights for resource allocation strategies. Social implications Optimizing these regional framework conditions fosters regional economic development, job creation and innovation in life sciences. Enhancing collaboration and access to resources not only benefits entrepreneurs but also strengthens knowledge exchange and societal problem-solving. Originality/value This study bridges a gap in ecosystem literature by explicitly modeling the group-level perception asymmetries between startups and incumbents within a highly specialized agglomeration.