Winning proposals, contributing to the objectives of the European Green Deal Strategy and the Recovery Plan for Europe, range from innovative solutions for the automotive, aerospace and maritime sectors to advanced materials or Internet of Things technologies.

Over one third of the selected companies are led by women CEOs, which is a big increase (tripling) of the number in previous EIC funding rounds. This increase reflects a pilot measure introduced for the first time in EIC funding which guaranteed at least a quarter of companies invited to the final interviews would have female CEOs. The 64 startups and SMEs selected are based in wide range of countries, including 17 EU member states - seven of which are countries catching up in their R&I performance - making this the most geographically diverse EIC call so far.

Background

In March 2020 the Commission amended the pilot EIC 2020 Work Programme in order to include a €300 million budget through the EIC pilot Accelerator for funding game-changing, market-creating innovations that contribute to the goals of The European Green Deal and the UN’’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The scheme offers startups and SMEs the option to apply for either grants or blended finance (grant and/or equity support).

Since the start of the EIC Accelerator Pilot in autumn 2019, a total of 140 start-ups and SMEs active in all technology intensive sectors (health, digital, energy, etc.) have been pre-selected for equity financing for a total of over €500m. The amended pilot EIC Work Programme also introduced special provisions to support applications by SMEs and startups with female CEOs. (Source: ec.europa.eu).