Portraits of female entrepreneurs – Ekaterina Kukhtenko: a solution for detecting respiratory infections

‘To be an entrepreneur, you need to build a community’: these are the powerful words of Ekaterina Kukhtenko, who talks about the challenges of entrepreneurship and the importance of surrounding yourself with the right people to help your project grow. By choosing École Polytechnique to develop her innovation, VAir, this biological engineer has opted for excellence, in her own words. ‘It’s a great opportunity to have been selected to join the 18th cohort of the X-UP incubator in September 2024. The intensive programme enabled me to structure my project from technical, financial, human, and strategic perspectives. Thanks to École Polytechnique’s technical facilities, I was able to progress from concept to prototype. Furthermore, I secured my first round of funding from Bpifrance and the WILCO accelerator, which supports start-ups in the industrial, healthcare, and digital sectors.ʼ 

Ekaterina Kukhtenko benefits from a dynamic and diverse ecosystem comprising the Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, École Polytechnique’s research laboratories, and businesses based in the Saclay area. She met her business partner, Guillaume Belhaj, at the Paris-Saclay Spring event held on the École Polytechnique campus in May 2025. She is thus gradually building her community. ʽI come from a research background, whereas Guillaume comes from industry. We complement each other perfectly! This meeting came at just the right time, as VAir is in the midst of rapid development. We are currently raising our first round of funding, aiming for €1.5 million. Bringing our innovation to market is scheduled for 2030.ʼ Antigoni Alexandrou (a CNRS research director at the Optics and Biosciences Laboratory, former gender equality officer for École Polytechnique staff, and co-founder of the Femmes & Sciences association) has also played a key role in shaping her career path. ʽShe provides essential support to female entrepreneurs in deep tech and to female researchers,ʼ emphasises Ekaterina Kukhtenko. Above all, it's an entrepreneurial and human adventure!

People are at the heart of her project. Through her medtech start-up, she aims to make the detection of respiratory infections, which cause 2.5 million deaths worldwide every year, faster, simpler, and more accessible. Her solution is a compact, portable, reusable medical device into which users simply breathe, allowing their exhaled air to be analysed in just three minutes. The VAir device can identify the cause of the infection, whether it is the flu or another infection, enabling the appropriate treatment to be prescribed more quickly, thereby combating antibiotic resistance. This would result in a lower risk of complications for patients and provide support for healthcare workers, particularly in rural areas and developing countries where laboratories are scarce. 

Ekaterina Kukhtenko came up with this idea after seeing her grandmother fall ill, be hospitalised and develop serious complications due to undiagnosed Covid-19. ʽIn Russia, PCR tests were time-consuming and expensive. I then started thinking about designing a device for detecting respiratory infections that would be more affordable for vulnerable patients and easy to use outside of a laboratory setting,ʼ she tells us. Despite still being a student, she already has an impressive academic track record. She began her Bachelor's degree in Biomedical Engineering at the age of 16 in Saint Petersburg, Russia, undertook fundamental research internships in laboratories working on biosensors, published her first scientific paper at 19, and subsequently passed an internal competitive examination that gave her the opportunity to study at the SupBiotech biotechnology engineering school in Villejuif, France. While studying, she worked part-time in a laboratory focusing on biocontrol in the agri-food sector. Her work aimed to combat fungal infections using mechanisms and interactions found in nature as an alternative to conventional plant protection products. Her talents were quickly recognised, and she was hired by the start-up Brain Ever, which specialises in neurodegenerative diseases, even before completing her studies. ʽI was in charge of pre-clinical testing and preparing protocols, as well as the demanding process of stem cell culture,ʼ explains Ekaterina Kukhtenko. She then found herself torn between continuing her research work as an employee and launching her own project, an idea that had been on her mind for some time. She chose the latter and founded VAir in July 2024. ʽWhen I was little, I never would have imagined having the opportunity to study in the Île-de-France region, set up my own company, and develop it at École Polytechnique. Even if my journey with VAir were to end tomorrow, I am very proud of how far I’ve come.ʼ This is a story that is far from over, as evidenced by her selection by Viva Technology as one of the top 30 female entrepreneurs for the 2026 Female Founder Award, and it looks set to go from strength to strength.

Who are your sources of inspiration?

Ekaterina Kukhtenko: Marie Curie, because she fought to have her scientific work recognised and secure her place in history.

In my day-to-day life, however, it’s actually my mum who inspires me. She’s a chemistry researcher. Having a woman in my life who has had a career in science, a field in which women are still under-represented today, is motivating and she is a role model for me.
 

What do you like to do in your spare time? 

I cycle to work every day. It's the mode of transport I use the most. Cycling helps me unwind.

I also enjoy rock climbing. 

Which country or place would you like to visit? 

French Polynesia, with its stunning landscapes and natural beauty, is like paradise on Earth. Its remote location makes it all the more intriguing.

A hidden talent? 

I speak six languages: My mother tongue is Russian, and I also speak French, English and Ukrainian fluently. I am currently learning German and Mandarin. I am very interested in languages and love learning about different cultures.