Accelerate your innovation
with EIC Accelerator
funding

The EIC Accelerator is the European Innovation Council’s flagship funding scheme under Horizon Europe, designed to support start-ups and SMEs developing high-risk, high-impact deep-tech innovations that strengthen Europe’s competitiveness and strategic autonomy.

• Start-ups, SMEs, and small mid-caps (<499 employees) as single applicants.
• Established in an EU Member State or Horizon Europe-associated country.
• Starting from TRL6 or higher (TRL4–6 only applies to the Fusion Power Plants Challenge).
• Innovations must have strong market potential and a clear scaling strategy.

1. EIC Accelerator Open Call

• No thematic restrictions.
• Budget: €414M
  • €165M for the grant component
  • €249M for the equity component

2. EIC Accelerator Challenge Calls

• Targeted calls addressing strategic EU priorities.
• Budget: €220M
  • €88M for the grant component
  • €132M for the equity component

EIC Accelerator 2026 Challenges Topics:

• Advanced Materials for Renewable Energy and Energy Storage Systems (€50M)
• Alternative Concepts and Key Enabling Technologies for Fusion Power Plants (€20M, TRL4–6)
• Biotech for Regenerating Agricultural Soils (€50M)
• Boosting the European Critical Raw Materials Value Chain (€50M)
• Deep Tech for Climate Adaptation (€50M)

• Up to €2.5M in grants funding (non-dilutive)
• Up to €10M in equity investments.
• Funding types: Grant only, Blended finance (grant + equity) and Equity only.
• Funding rate: 70% of eligible costs for the grant component (30% self-financed).

• Short Proposal: Open year-round, collected monthly (first Tuesday of each month).
• Full Proposal: Six 2026 deadlines: 7 January, 4 March, 6 May, 8 July,  2 September and 4 November.

Previously, the EIC Accelerator had only 2 annual deadlines, but the 2026 Work Programme expanded this to 6 to speed up evaluation and funding decisions.

Step 1 – Short Proposal

• 12-page application + 10-slide pitch deck + 3-minute video (max. 3 speakers).
• Evaluated remotely by four independent experts within 4–6 weeks.
• Applicants receiving at least 3 “GO” scores are invited to submit a Full Proposal.

Step 2 – Full Proposal

• 20-page proposal + implementation plan + financials + budget + pitch deck + 3-minute video + FTO analysis + Letters of Intent (LoIs).
• Reviewed by a Technology Expert Evaluator and scored by a Panel of 3 experts.
• Evaluation completed within 8–9 weeks.

Step 3 – Face-to-Face Interview

• Live pitch based on the Full Proposal, followed by Q&A with the EIC Jury.
• Held three times per year during scheduled interview rounds.
• Results communicated 2–3 weeks after the interview.

💡 New in 2026: The EIC Accelerator introduces a Technology Expert Evaluator for deeper assessment of Full Proposals and implements three dedicated interview rounds per year to streamline the final selection process.

The EIC Accelerator assesses proposals on three main criteria:

1. Excellence – Breakthrough nature, technological maturity (TRL≥6), and IP position.
2. Impact – Market potential, business model, broader impact, challenge alignment, and STEP impact if applicable.
3. Risk & Implementation – Team quality, work plan, risk management, and investment risk and justification for EU support.

Various costs are eligible, such as personnel, equipment, travel, and subcontracting expenses, as well as 25% of indirect costs.

The 2026 Work Programme introduces several important updates to make the selection process faster, fairer, and more focused:

• Introduction of a Technology Expert Evaluator who conducts in-depth technical assessments of full proposals, and will hold a meeting of up to one hour with applicants to clarify any questions.
• Increase from two to six full-proposal deadlines per year to accelerate evaluations and funding decisions.
• Three dedicated interview weeks grouping applicants by cut-off dates.
• A shorter full-proposal format (reduced to 20 pages, down from 50) for greater clarity and efficiency.
• Updated rules for listed companies, which can now only receive investment if operating in EIC STEP strategic sectors.
• The evaluation of the full application returns to the scoring system, with a maximum score of 15.
• All applicants who exceed the threshold of 13 will receive the SoE.
• The minimum amount of equity has increased from 0.5 to 1 million.
• It has been clearly stated that concurrent submissions to both the EIC Accelerator and EIC STEP Scale Up calls are not permitted

Grant Only – Up to €2.5M in non-dilutive funding for innovation activities (covers up to 70% of eligible costs).

Blended Finance (Grant + Equity) – Combination of grant (up to €2.5M) and equity (up to €10M) to support both development and scale-up.

Equity Only – €1M–€10M in direct equity investment from the EIC Fund for companies ready to scale or commercialize.

Yes, but only for the equity component and in specific cases.

Under the 2026 Work Programme, listed companies can access EIC equity investment only if they operate in one of the strategic sectors defined by the EIC STEP programme — such as deep tech, clean energy, or digital technologies.

They are not eligible for the grant component, and listed companies outside these sectors cannot receive EIC funding. The programme remains primarily focused on deep-tech SMEs, startups, and small mid-caps.

The total budget for the EIC Accelerator 2026 is €634 million, divided between two main types of calls:

• Open Call: €414 million

  • €165 million for the grant component

  • €249 million for the equity component

• Challenge Calls: €220 million

  • €88 million for the grant component

  • €132 million for the equity component

The funding rate depends on the type of support:

• Grant component: Covers up to 70% of eligible project costs for innovation activities (with projects starting at TRL 6). The remaining 30% must be co-financed by the company.

• Equity component: Provides investments ranging from €1 million to €10 million, financing scale-up and market deployment activities (including beyond TRL 9).

These rules apply under the European Innovation Council (EIC) within the Horizon Europe Work Programme 2026.

The EIC accelerator is highly competitive; only the most disruptive and scalable startups and SMEs are selected for funding.  According to the European Commission, the EIC Accelerator success rate is about 2.7% across all application stages. However, applicants who reach the interview phase have a significantly higher chance of success.

Yes, but with limits.

Since 2024, applicants can reapply up to three times across all stages — Short Proposal, Full Proposal, or Interview.

After three unsuccessful submissions, a company becomes ineligible to apply again for the EIC Accelerator under the Horizon Europe Framework Programme.

💡 Tip: When reapplying, make sure to address evaluator feedback and show clear improvements to strengthen your proposal.

The full EIC Accelerator process typically takes 6 to 9 months from the short proposal submission to the final funding decision.

• Short Proposal: Evaluation within 4–6 weeks after batching (first Tuesday of each month).

• Full Proposal: Evaluation completed within 8–9 weeks after each deadline.

• Face-to-Face Interview: Results released within 2–3 weeks after the interview.