Commission seeks leading innovators for the European Innovation Council Board

The European Innovation Council launched a public call on 27 May 2021 for innovators to express interest in membership of a new EIC Board. The Board is created under the Horizon Europe framework and is given a central advisory role for one of the EU's most ambitious innovation instruments. The EIC sits inside Horizon Europe with a headline budget of approximately €10 billion for 2021 to 2027. The Commission describes the Board as having a powerful remit to guide implementation of the EIC to maximise impact.

What the Board is asked to do

According to the Commission the EIC Board will advise on overall EIC strategy, the annual work programme and the identification of thematic portfolios. The Board may also be asked to provide input on broader innovation policy matters. In practice the Board will take over from the pilot Advisory Board that supported the EIC during its early phase. The Commission will publish a separate, soon to appear, call to recruit the President of the EIC Board.

Who the Commission is looking for

The Commission invited applications from individuals with a track record in innovation and scaling. This includes entrepreneurs, investors and venture capitalists, corporate leaders, researchers and academics, and people who build or coordinate innovation ecosystems. The call asks for expertise across future and emerging technologies, breakthrough and disruptive innovation, starting and scaling businesses, and ecosystem development.

Application and appointment timeline

The Commission will select and appoint the 15 to 20 members following the call. Members are appointed for two year terms that can be renewed twice. In other words, individuals could serve up to six years if reappointed. The Board will inherit responsibility from the earlier EIC pilot Advisory Board that helped shape the initial strategy and implementation of the EIC pilot phase.

Background on the European Innovation Council

The EIC is a flagship instrument of Horizon Europe, designed to identify, develop and scale breakthrough and disruptive innovations and to support European leadership in emerging technologies and deep tech companies. The EIC combines grants and equity support mechanisms, and the Commission has described it as a step to make Europe more competitive on transformational technologies and to help high potential companies scale up across borders.

What to watch and critical considerations

The EIC Board will have an important advisory role but the Commission retains formal decision authority over work programmes and funding. That means the Board’s recommendations will matter most when they shape Commission priorities and the design of funding calls rather than when they directly allocate EU funds. Observers should track three items closely.

First, composition and diversity. The Commission says it wants a mix of innovators from across Europe. The make up of the Board will determine whose perspectives influence strategic priorities. A Board dominated by investors or established corporations could tilt priorities towards later stage scaleup and private capital leverage. Conversely a Board overweighted with academics could prioritise early stage research. Geographic balance and inclusion of innovators from widening regions of the EU matter for spreading benefits beyond core innovation clusters.

Second, conflicts of interest and transparency. Board members act in a personal capacity but many will be active founders, investors or corporate officers. Clear, public conflict of interest rules and declarations matter because Board advice can influence funding pipelines and investment environments. Applicants and citizens should expect publication of membership, declared interests and the Board’s meeting minutes.

Third, the advisory nature of the Board. The Commission frames the Board as powerful. In practice its power depends on how Commission services and the implementing agency integrate the Board’s recommendations into the work programme and portfolio management. Close scrutiny of whether Board advice changes call design or funding priorities will show how influential the body becomes.

Practical notes for applicants

The Commission asked innovators across the spectrum to apply. The public call set a clear deadline of 30 June 2021. Applicants should read the official call for expressions of interest for the precise eligibility rules, submission procedures and documentation requirements. Successful applicants will be selected and appointed by the Commission and are expected to start work when the Board is operational in September 2021.

Why this matters to the wider EU innovation ecosystem

The EIC is being positioned as a European instrument to close the gap between research and industrial deployment of deep tech. It sits alongside other EU efforts to build innovation capacity, such as regional ecosystem funding and the European Innovation Ecosystems initiative. The composition and activity of the EIC Board will influence strategic directions on areas such as health technologies, climate and green transition, digital sovereignty and critical technologies.

That influence is especially important because EU innovation policy has been criticised in the past for uneven regional distribution of benefits and for slow scaleup of breakthrough startups. If the Board pushes the Commission towards clearer milestone based support, better private co-investment, and more transparent selection criteria, it could help address long standing weaknesses. If instead meetings and advice remain behind closed doors, the potential for systemic change will be limited.

Questions the sector should ask next

Will the Commission publish the full selection criteria and anonymised scoring of candidates? How will conflicts of interest be managed and published? What will be the Board's budget and staff support and how will it interact with the EIC Programme Managers and the implementing agency? Will the Board’s opinions and minutes be made public so stakeholders can judge its influence? Answers to these questions will shape judgments about accountability and real impact.

Quick reference table

Where to find more information

Prospective applicants should consult the official EIC call for expressions of interest available on the European Commission and EIC websites for application forms and submission instructions. The Commission indicated a separate call for the Board President will follow. Stakeholders and observers should watch for further detail on selection criteria, transparency measures and conflict of interest rules.

The EIC remains an important experiment in EU innovation policy. Its success will depend on execution details that go beyond headline budgets and institutional names. Tracking appointment transparency, Board output and whether its advice changes funding priorities will be necessary to judge whether the new structure improves Europe’s ability to turn research into globally competitive companies.