European Innovation Council Accelerator Funding: How to apply
In accordance with the previous announcement, EU Commission has opened first calls under the European Innovation Council (EIC) programme. The funding worth over Euro 1 billion is available under the first EIC Accelerator calls, additional Euro 168 million under the EIC Pathfinder programme.
The EIC Accelerator funding aims to help scale up start-ups and small and medium-sized businesses. While over half of the funding is open to breakthrough innovations in any field, Euro 495 million are earmarked for innovations that support the European Green Deal as well as digital and health technologies.
Interdisciplinary teams of researchers can apply for research and innovation grants under EIC Pathfinder. The grants that vary from Euro 3 to Euro 4 million.
The Commission in a statement said EIC Accelerator acts as a catalyst to crowd in other investors necessary for amplifying the scale of the innovations.
”A unique financing model offers start-ups and SMEs grants of up to Euro 2.5 million combined with equity investments through the EIC Fund ranging from Euro 500,000 to Euro 15 million. In addition to financial support, all projects benefit from a range of Business Acceleration Services that provide access to leading expertise, corporates, investors and ecosystem actors.
The Commission has also opened the EIC Pathfinder programme, with a budget of Euro 168 million. Interdisciplinary teams of researchers can apply for research and innovation grants that will support them to realise their breakthrough ideas and have a transformative positive effect on our economy and society. The grants that vary from Euro 3 to Euro 4 million will focus on ”game-changing technologies that will address global challenges and improve our lives.”
Launched in March 2021 with a budget of more than Euro 10 billion for 2021-2027, the European Innovation Council is described as a one-stop-shop for innovators. It provides support from the early-stage scientific research on breakthrough technologies, to transitioning research results into commercial opportunities, and the development and scaling up of innovative start-ups and SMEs.
”A key novelty of Horizon Europe, it builds on a successful pilot phase that ran from 2018-2020, and predecessor SME instrument and Future and Emerging Technologies programmes, which supported over 5,000 SMEs and start-ups and over 330 projects research projects”, the Commission said.
The EIC Accelerator supports the later stages of technology development as well as scale-up.
“The technology component of the innovation must therefore have been tested and validated in a laboratory or other relevant environment. It complements two other EIC programmes: the ‘EIC Pathfinder‘ that supports interdisciplinary teams of researchers to realise their visions for scientific and technological breakthroughs, as well as ‘EIC Transition‘ that aims at transforming research results into innovation opportunities”, the Commission said in its statement.
“The EIC Accelerator is a unique funding instrument of the EU. It supports the development of breakthrough innovations through crowding-in private investors and offering support services to scale up. It will lead Europe at the forefront of innovation and new technologies, and help us tackle the health, environmental and societal challenges we are facing”, said Mariya Gabriel, Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth.
Find also full summary of the program here
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