EIC Immersive Programme in Boston: Empowering European health and life sciences innovation
- ›From 9 to 13 June 2025 the European Innovation Council ran an Immersive Soft-landing Programme in Boston in partnership with MIT linQ for 13 EIC-backed health and life sciences companies.
- ›The week combined institutional tours, workshops, investor matchmaking and multiple pitching opportunities designed to accelerate transatlantic partnerships and market entry.
- ›Two cohort companies competed for an USD 80,000 prize at Mansfield Bioincubator and NeoGap won a USD 20,000 prize plus a year of lab space from a separate pitching competition.
- ›The mission is part of the EIC Business Acceleration Services and sits alongside other EIC internationalisation efforts such as the International Trade Fairs Programme 3.0 and EIC Global Business Expansion activities.
- ›While such programmes expand exposure and contacts, long term commercial and clinical impact requires follow up on regulatory, IP, reimbursement and fundraising milestones.
EIC Immersive Programme in Boston: a concentrated push for health and life sciences scaleup
Between 9 and 13 June 2025 the European Innovation Council brought 13 EIC-backed health and life sciences companies to Boston as part of its Immersive Soft-landing Programme. The programme partnered with MIT linQ to provide cohort companies with structured innovation coaching, curated introductions into Boston's research and biotech ecosystem, targeted investor and buyer meetings, and repeated pitching opportunities. Organisers framed the mission as a gateway to the US market and to the dense investor and translational-science networks clustered around Cambridge and Boston.
What the programme is and how it works
Five days in Boston, and what companies actually did
The schedule mixed ecosystem tours, technical and commercial workshops, one-to-one advisory sessions and targeted investor and partner meetings. Visits emphasised facilities where translational work and early stage company incubation happen. Workshops aimed at practical topics such as hospital procurement and refining clinical value propositions. Several pitch opportunities were provided, including competitive events with cash and in kind awards.
| Activity | Partners or hosts | Purpose | Notable outcomes |
| Institutional tours | MIT ecosystem, LabCentral, DEKA engineering labs, Cambridge Innovation Center CIC | Expose companies to translational research sites, shared labs and incubators | Introductions to incubation environments and potential collaborators |
| Workshops and advisory sessions | VA Boston Healthcare System, MIT Catalyst, MIT linQ experts | Topics included hospital procurement practices, refining value propositions and tailored business strategy coaching | Personalised advisory meetings and improved pitch and procurement readiness |
| Investor and partner matchmaking | US investors, corporates, healthcare stakeholders | Targeted one-on-one meetings to explore funding and partnership opportunities | Multiple meetings opened doors to US investors and potential strategic partners |
| Mansfield Bioincubator pitch and investor meetup | Mansfield Bioincubator | Prize competition for cohort companies | Two cohort companies O11 Biomedical and Neogap Therapeutics competed for an USD 80,000 prize |
| European Innovation Spotlight | MIT Innovation Headquarters co-hosted by EIC and MIT linQ Catalyst | A public pitching event bringing together European innovators and Boston stakeholders | 13 companies pitched. NeoGap won second place in their pitching competition and received USD 20,000 and a year of lab space |
| EIC Pitch Day | CIC Venture Café | Sector split pitches for medtech and biotech with investor panels and Q and A | Focused feedback and networking with investors and industry players |
Who attended from the EIC cohort
The mission gathered 13 companies from across Europe working on diagnostics, therapeutics, devices and digital monitoring. The cohort combined early clinical stage technologies with companies focused on operational efficiencies in hospitals. A pre departure onboarding session and a series of preparatory workshops were organised to improve readiness for the Boston immersion.
| Company | Country | Focus or technology |
| ADmit Therapeutics | Spain | Early Alzheimer detection aimed at enabling personalised and precision medicine |
| AkknaTek | Germany | Precision for intraocular lens implantation |
| BestHealth4U | Portugal | Unspecified in article, cohort participant in health and life sciences |
| Bio2Skin | Portugal | Skin adhesive that balances strong adhesion with skin gentleness |
| FineHeart | France | Devices for mechanical heart failure support |
| Hemispherian | Norway | GLIX1, a novel approach to treat brain cancers |
| moveUP | Belgium | Patient experience transformation and healthcare delivery optimisation |
| MYSPHERA | Spain | Automation of surgical coordination to increase throughput and reduce downtime |
| NETRIS Pharma | France | Therapy to overcome oncology resistance by targeting Netrin-1 |
| Neogap Therapeutics | Sweden | Cancer therapy targeting malignant cells while sparing healthy tissue |
| O11 Biomedical | Germany | RESPILIQ, an oral approach intended to lower CO2 in COPD patients |
| Surgify Medical | Finland | Tissue specific bone removal system using HaloSense technology |
| TILT Biotherapeutics | Finland | Next generation immunotherapies for solid tumours |
| Time is Brain | Spain | Automated brain monitoring for faster and equitable stroke treatment |
Preparatory and follow up coaching
Before departure the group received additional coaching through six targeted workshops and an online onboarding session held on 14 April. Workshops included pitch training, partner networking strategies for Boston, a leadership session, a testimony from a therapeutics company on chronic disease work, a session on innovation funding and an overview on legal and financing issues for US expansion. These activities are typical of EIC efforts to raise readiness before market immersion.
How this mission fits into the wider EIC internationalisation effort
A measured look at the benefits and the limits
Programmes that concentrate access to networks and expertise are valuable. They lower transaction costs for founders seeking partners and investors. However outcomes worth tracking include actual deals signed, clinical trial starts in new jurisdictions, regulatory clearances, pilot procurements that lead to purchase orders and sustained revenue growth. Public reports typically highlight wins and metrics aggregated across many initiatives. For investors and policy makers it is important to request longer term follow up data on clinical endpoints, revenues and recruitment into trials, and clear attribution of deals to the programme activities.
Practical challenges for cohort companies entering the US market
Participants will need to navigate regulatory regimes, especially FDA pathways for devices and therapeutics, local reimbursement systems and hospital procurement cycles. Intellectual property strategy and freedom to operate reviews matter when translating European research into US clinical deployment. Fundraising expectations should be calibrated to US investor timelines and due diligence standards. The workshops and MIT linQ coaching address parts of these areas but longer term legal, regulatory and commercial support is usually required.
Implications and recommendations
Policymakers and programme operators should ensure that short immersive missions are connected to follow up mechanisms that support regulatory readiness, business development and pilot execution. Organisers should provide transparent, longitudinal outcome metrics that go beyond meetings and pitches and track follow on funding, pilot procurement conversions, clinical milestones and entry into strategic partnerships. For cohort companies, prioritise converting warm introductions into concrete next steps such as memorandum of understanding, pilot agreements or clinical collaboration plans.
How to follow the EIC programmes or apply
Information about the EIC Immersive Programme, the International Trade Fairs Programme 3.0 and other EIC Business Acceleration Services is published on the EIC Community Platform. The EIC BAS newsletter and the platform publish open calls, upcoming events and application guidance. Organisations and founders interested in these services can register on the EIC Community Platform and contact the EIC Helpdesk selecting the relevant programme category for specific enquiries.
Disclaimer This article synthesises information published by the EIC and MIT linQ and adds independent context. It is not an official position of the European Commission. Claims of programme impact are reported as stated by organisers and benefit from longer term verification.