Foi constellations operating in Sweden’s leading life science innovation environments will coordinate the implementation of a unique business and product validation model – SWElife Hands-On – with support from the national regional fund programme and three ongoing regional fund projects and the national innovation programme SWElife. The project will ensure more and growing small and medium-sized companies in Sweden’s life science industry, through increasing private external investments in the companies. This is achieved by increasing collaboration between Sweden’s leading regional FoI constellations in life science. This lays the foundation for a nationally lasting cross-border business and product validation model for entrepreneurs and SMEs. Expected project results are that the six participating FoI constellations have introduced the Hands-On model in ordinary operations and that the model corresponds to SMF’s needs for technical and commercial business and product validation in early development. Education in sustainability aspects is offered to all SMEs involved in the project. The gender equality aspect has been taken into account in the composition of project and process managers. The connection to the business community is integrated into the Hands-On model, both in terms of SMEs, large companies and customers/users (health care). The long-term effect is that SMEs in life science have attracted sufficient external capital to become a growth company. The model (BIO-X) for the model shows that 70 % of contractors receive substantially strengthened external financing and continue their commercial development. This strengthens the sector’s capacity for renewal and international competitiveness.