EIC Accelerator
Grant component below EUR 2.5 million. Up to € 10 million of equity investments, coaching & mentoring, networking
Hasta el miércoles, 04 de noviembre de 2026 a las 23:59
The EIC Accelerator is a funding programme under Horizon Europe that offers support to start-ups and SMEs that:
- have a innovative, game changing product, service or business model that could create new markets or disrupt existing ones in Europe and even worldwide,
- have the ambition and commitment to scale up,
- are looking for substantial funding, but the risks involved are too high for private investors alone to invest
Lump sum contribution below € 2.5 million, for innovation activities (TRL 6-8), to be completed within 24 months.
- Grant only - for start-ups and SMEs with capacity to scale-up. To be provided only once during the implementation period of the Horizon Europe programme (2021-2027)
To fill the gap for high - risk innovation to a stage where they can be fully financed by other investments. €1 - €10 million. Higher amounts available in STEP ScaleUP.
- Blended finance: a grant component & direct equity or quasi-equity such as convertible loans.
- Investment only: for companies looking to scale-up rapidly and don’t need a grant
Applicants from EU Member States and countries associated to the Horizon Europe programme:
- Single start-up or SME (including spin-outs)
- Small mid-caps (up to 499 employees) in need of rapid scale up of the TRL 9 activity. Mid-caps can apply for investment only.
- Natural persons or legal entities willing to set up an SMEs or a mid-cap.
Applicants from third countries:
- Applicants from third countries may relocate their company in order to become eligible. This must be done before submitting the full application (Step 2).
- Applicants from the United Kingdom can only apply for the "grant only" scheme
Concurrent applications:
- Applicants may submit only one application to the EIC Accelerator. Additional applications can be submitted after receiving the results of the original submission.
The application process consists of 4 steps:
Step 1. Write your short proposal
Short proposals may be submitted at any time and will be batched for evaluation every first Tuesday of the month at 5pm Brussels time. The proposal will be evaluated remotely by 4 EIC expert evaluators ;
- A short 12-page form where you must summarise your proposal and respond to a set of questions on your innovation, your potential market and your team;
- A pitch-deck of up to ten slides in PDF format;
- A video pitch of up to three minutes where the core members of your team (up to three people) should provide the motivation for your proposal.
You will normally receive feedback within approximately 4-6 weeks. If your application meets the basic criteria for EIC Accelerator funding, you will be invited to prepare a full proposal to submit to one of the periodic batching dates for Accelerator Open or Accelerator Challenge funding.
Step 2. Prepare your full proposal
If your short proposal receives a GO, you can submit your full proposal to any of the 2026 batching dates.
Prepare your full proposal on Funding and Tenders portal. The full proposal consists of a 20 page form expanding on the short proposal template, pitch deck in PDF, implementation plan, financial information, Letters of Intent, FTO analysis & a 3 minutes video pitch.
Proposals will be assessed in parallel by a technology expert and an evaluation panel of at least three experts. Approximately 3-4 weeks after the batching date, you will have an interview with the technology expert online.
After the interview the technology expert will submit a report to the evaluation panel who will review and will propose a final score and adopt a report.
Based on the scoring of the evaluation panel, the top-ranked proposals corresponding to 2.5 times the available grant budget will be invited to interview with an EIC Jury. You will receive the results of the full proposal remote stage within 8-9 weeks.
Proposals will be batched for evaluation at 5pm Brussels time on the following dates:
- 7/01/2026
- 04/03/2026
- 06/05/2026
- 08/07/2026
- 02/09/2026
- 04/11/2026
Step 3. Pitch your innovation
After each second batch, an interview session will be organised. If you are invited to an interview with an EIC jury, you will receive more detailed information on the timing and format of the interview.
You will receive the interview results within 2–3 weeks of the end of the interview week.
The tentative dates of these interview sessions will be published on the EIC website.
Step 4. Sign the grant component, start due diligence for investment component
Grant only: you will sign the Grant Agreement and receive first pre-financing payment
Blended finance: you can use the additional flexibility of the investment component and negotiate a raise of maximum € 2 million
Relevant information of the project will be transmitted to the EIC Fund and the investment need will be assessed. BAS will support you in search of other investors. Within 2-6 months the investment component will be decided.
If the due diligence outcome concludes you are not mature for investment yet, you will start with the grant component. The case will be re-examined within defined milestones.
More information EIC.
10/02/2026 10:22 | AdmonVLC2
URL oficial/canónica: https://europa.emprenemjunts.es/?op=8&n=35335