EIC STEP Scale Up Results 2026: €97M and Key Trends

EIC STEP Scale Up Results 2026: What the Second Round Reveals

The second EIC STEP Scale Up Results of 2026 are out, and they reveal more than six new investment recommendations. These results correspond to proposals batched at the 6 May 2026 cut-off, the second EIC STEP Scale Up evaluation round of the year.

From 24 proposals, 17 companies reached the interview. The EIC put six companies forward for potential EIC Fund investments totalling €97 million, subject to due diligence and negotiations.

Another six companies passed the evaluation threshold, but budget limitations prevented their selection. All 12 will receive the STEP Seal.

6 May 2026 cut-off: results at a glance

By comparison, the latest batch had fewer applicants than the first 2026 round but achieved stronger conversion rates. At the same time, the selected technologies point towards a sharper focus on the infrastructure behind Europe’s AI, computing and industrial ambitions.

The six selected companies may receive between €10 million and €30 million each.

What is EIC STEP Scale Up?

To recap, the EIC STEP Scale Up is an equity instrument for startups, SMEs and small mid-caps developing technologies of strategic importance to Europe.

Unlike conventional EU grants, it targets growth-stage companies preparing substantial financing rounds.

More specifically, through the EIC Fund, applicants can request:

• €10 million to €30 million in equity.
• As part of a total round of €50 million to €150 million or more.
• In addition, at least 20% of the target round must come from a pre-commitment by a qualified investor.

The programme has a €300 million budget for 2026 and covers digital and deep technologies, clean and resource-efficient technologies, and biotechnology.

As a result, STEP Scale Up is therefore not simply a larger EIC Accelerator. It is closer to an institutional investment process in which the EIC assesses technology, commercial maturity, investor credibility and execution capacity together

A smaller round with better success rates

By comparison, the second 2026 batch delivered stronger statistical results than the first.

Applications fell by 45.5%, while the number of selected companies declined by only 25%. As a result, the overall success rate increased from 18.2% to 25%.

However, the results do not show that the programme became easier. A smaller pool may reflect stronger self-selection, the timing of major financing rounds or fewer companies being ready to secure the required investor commitment.

Key takeaway: The statistical odds improved, but there is no evidence that the evaluation threshold fell.

The interview remains the decisive stage

More than seven in ten applicants reached the interview, yet the EIC only recommended 35.3% for investment. This confirms that reaching the jury is not the main challenge. The real test is proving that the company is ready for a major financing transaction.

Interviewed companies must be able to defend:

• The size and structure of the funding round.
• The credibility of investor commitments.
• Commercial traction and market demand.
• Manufacturing or deployment plans.
• Intellectual property and competitive positioning.
• The team’s ability to deploy eight-figure capital.
• The technology’s strategic importance for Europe.

The interview-to-selection rate improved from 28.6% in the first round to 35.3% in the second. Even so, almost two-thirds of interviewed companies did not move forward for immediate investment.

Key takeaway: A strong proposal can secure the interview, but a strong investment case is needed to convert it.

STEP Seal: The gap between excellence and funding narrowed

The STEP Seal figures provide another useful comparison. In the first round, 26 companies received the Seal, but only eight were recommended for investment. Namely, the EIC selected 30.8% of Seal recipients.

In the second round, 12 companies received the Seal and six were recommended. The conversion rate therefore rose to 50%.

Across both 2026 rounds:

• There were 68 proposals submitted.
• 38 companies received the STEP Seal.
• The EIC recommended 14 companies for investment.
• 24 companies passed the quality threshold without receiving an immediate investment recommendation.

This means that accross the two rounds, the EIC did not select 63.2% of STEP Seal recipients for immediate investment. The Seal can strengthen credibility and support access to investors, EIC Business Acceleration Services or alternative European and national funding. But it does not guarantee financing.

Key takeaway: Quality is essential, but ranking and budget availability still determine which excellent companies receive funding.

More than 80% of the headline 2026 budget is now associated with selections

The first two rounds represent a combined potential EIC Fund investment of €243.5 million:

1. First round: €146.5 million.
2. Second round: €97 million.

This equals approximately 81.2% of the programme’s €300 million 2026 budget. However, that does not mean the EIC has already legally committed or disbursed the full amount. Every selected company must still complete due diligence and investment negotiations, and final amounts may change.

The accurate conclusion is that more than 80% of the headline annual budget is now associated with companies recommended during the first two batches.

What happens to the EIC STEP Scale Up in 2027?

The apparent pressure on the 2026 budget does not mean that the programme is coming to an end. The current public draft of the EIC Work Programme 2027 proposes a further €300 million for EIC STEP Scale Up, maintaining the same annual budget as in 2026.

The draft also proposes a separate €100 million budget for EIC STEP Scale Up Defence, which is the dedicated equity track for companies scaling critical defence technologies. These figures remain provisional, since the 2027 Work Programme is still a working draft and has not yet been adopted or endorsed by the European Commission.

Next EIC STEP Scale Up cut-offs in 2026

The call remains continuously open, with proposals grouped into quarterly evaluation batches. The two remaining 2026 batching dates are:

• 9 September 2026
• 25 November 2026

Given the amount already associated with the first two rounds, later applicants may face strong competition not only on quality, but also on ranking and available budget.

Large investments remain central to the programme

Meanwhile, the average potential investment declined from approximately €18.3 million in the first round to €16.2 million in the second. Across both rounds, the average is around €17.4 million per selected company.

This confirms that EIC STEP Scale Up is designed for substantial growth and industrialisation plans.

STEP Scale Up helps those companies whose next challenge is industrial and commercial expansion, not simply further technology development.

Which companies were selected?

The second cohort includes companies from France, Germany, the Netherlands and Estonia.

France accounts for three of the six selected companies. However, because the EIC did not publish the country distribution of all proposals, we cannot calculate national success rates. Even so, the fact that 50% of this cohort comes from France highlights the strong presence of French deep-tech companies in this round.

A shift towards the infrastructure behind AI

The first 2026 round covered a broad mix of quantum computing, space, health AI, critical raw materials, biotechnology and renewable energy.

The second group concentrates more around the systems that support digital and industrial scale:

• High-performance processors.
• AI inference hardware.
• Data-centre power infrastructure.
• Laser communications.
• Battery material recovery.
• Low-carbon construction materials.

Four of the six companies in this cohort develop technologies for communications, computing, AI hardware or the infrastructure required to operate data-intensive systems.

This does not represent an official change in the programme’s scope. Nevertheless, the results suggest that the EIC is looking beyond AI applications towards the physical technologies that make European AI deployment possible.

Processors, inference systems, communications and energy infrastructure all sit underneath the digital economy.

Overall, the strongest sectoral insight is clear: the latest cohort supports the foundations of Europe’s technological sovereignty, not only end-user innovations.

A stable selection pattern is emerging

Overall, across the five published STEP Scale Up batches to date:

• 172 proposals have been submitted.
• 108 companies have reached the interview.
• 33 have been recommended for investment.

This produces a cumulative success rate of approximately 19.2%.

More specifically, the second round’s 25% success rate exceeds the programme average. Even so, it has not fundamentally changed STEP Scale Up’s level of selectivity.

• Innovation is only the starting point: Most interviewed companies already have differentiated technologies. Ultimately, final selection depends on whether that innovation can support a credible European or global scale-up.

• European relevance must be specific: Applicants should show precisely how their growth will reduce a dependency, strengthen a value chain, create European production capacity or secure strategic knowledge and intellectual property.

• Investor readiness is a core selection filter: The programme centres on a real financing transaction. Therefore, companies that are still exploring whether to raise a large round are unlikely to be ready.

• Capital-intensive technologies are a strong fit: Many companies in this cohort require substantial funding for hardware, manufacturing, infrastructure or industrial deployment.

• The EIC acts as an anchor investor: Its investment objective is to validate the opportunity and mobilize additional private capital… not replace it.

• Excellent proposals can still remain unfunded: The STEP Seal results show that meeting the threshold does not guarantee selection, particularly when there’s limited available budget is.

Three practical lessons for applicants:

1. Prove the company can absorb the capital:
Show that the leadership, governance, commercial pipeline and operating plan can support an eight-figure investment.

2. Integrate European impact into the business case:
Each growth milestone must show European relevance, not added as a separate policy argument at the end.

3. Prepare the interview as an investment committee:
The team must be able to defend the valuation, market assumptions, financing structure, execution risks and strategic relevance, not only the technology.

EIC STEP Scale Up Results: the main conclusion

Overall, the second EIC STEP Scale Up Results of 2026 show better statistical odds than the first round, but not a lower quality bar.

The applicant pool became smaller, while interview conversion improved and the overall success rate reached 25%. Meanwhile, potential investments linked to the first two rounds now represent more than 80% of the headline annual budget.

Moreover, the technology portfolio also points towards a strong focus on processors, AI infrastructure, secure communications, critical materials and industrial decarbonisation.

The EIC is not simply looking for excellent innovations. It wants companies capable of turning strategic technologies into European industrial capacity and global market leadership.

The central question is no longer only: Is the technology innovative enough?
It is: Can the company prove that it is ready to deploy major capital, and that its growth will strengthen Europe?

Considering an EIC STEP Scale Up application? Contact our funding team to discuss whether your investment round and scale-up plan are ready for the next EIC STEP Scale Up batch.

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