EIC matchmaking webinar connects medtech and health biotech founders with sector specialists

Brussels, August 24th 2026

Summary

›The EIC is running an online matchmaking webinar on 10 September 2026 to connect medtech and health biotech awardees with eight vetted ecosystem partners.
›The session combines an information briefing on the EIC Service Catalogue and ACCESS+ co-funding with eight five minute partner pitches and a 35 minute Q and A.
›Partners cover regulatory strategy, clinical validation, imaging infrastructure, software, commercialisation and market access support.
›Founders should check eligibility for EIC ACCESS+ co-funding and the Service Catalogue and plan concrete follow ups because five minute pitches are necessarily high level.

From lab to market: what the EIC matchmaking webinar aims to deliver

Bringing a medical device, diagnostic, or health biotechnology to market involves parallel technical, clinical, regulatory, and commercial challenges. The European Innovation Council is organising a targeted online matchmaking session for its awardees working in medical technologies and health biotechnology. The goal is to put specialised providers in front of innovators so founders can identify and schedule follow up support rather than having to assemble that expertise in-house.

Event details and format

When and who:Thursday 10 September 2026 at 15:00 Central European Time. Audience is EIC Awardees in medical technologies and health biotechnology. Registration is open up to the day of the event.

Structure of the webinar:The session opens with a 15 to 20 minute information briefing from the EIC Ecosystem Partnership Programme. That briefing will explain how the EIC Service Catalogue works, how awardees can access partner services, and how the EIC ACCESS+ co-funding scheme can be used to purchase services. After the briefing eight partners each deliver a five minute pitch. Partners share contact details so awardees can arrange one to one follow up meetings. The event includes a 35 minute Q and A slot.

Confirmed partners and what they offer

Partner	Country	Typical services offered to EIC Awardees
Creo Incubator Ltd	United Kingdom	Venture growth programmes, coaching and mentoring, digital prototyping, go to market and investor readiness support
Euro-BioImaging ERIC	European Union	Access to biological and biomedical imaging technologies and facilities, support with sample prep, image acquisition and data analysis
CoLAB TRIALS	Portugal	Regulatory strategy, product classification, pre clinical and clinical study design, technical and clinical documentation, agency interactions
NSBproject	Italy	Technology and business case validation, market access support, strategic matchmaking with research and commercial partners
ECC – European Customer Consultancy	Georgia	Operational and commercial readiness support to scale validated innovations, process and governance alignment
Nebula	Albania	Software architecture, web and mobile development, UI UX design and cloud technologies from prototype to deployment
MD101	France	Quality and regulatory compliance, clinical and market access strategies, funding and business development for medical devices and digital health
IGES Italy Pharma Consulting SRL	Italy	Market access and commercialisation strategy, pricing and reimbursement, early HTA, evidence generation and Joint Clinical Assessment strategy under EU HTA rules

Agenda

Agenda item	Duration
Introduction from EIC Ecosystem Partnership Programme, including Service Catalogue	15 minutes
Pitch 1 – Creo Incubator	5 minutes
Pitch 2 – Euro-BioImaging	5 minutes
Pitch 3 – CoLAB TRIALS	5 minutes
Pitch 4 – NSBproject	5 minutes
Pitch 5 – ECC (European Customer Consultancy)	5 minutes
Pitch 6 – Nebula	5 minutes
Pitch 7 – MD101	5 minutes
Pitch 8 – IGES Italy Pharma Consulting SRL	5 minutes
Q and A	35 minutes

The EIC Service Catalogue and ACCESS+ co funding explained

EIC Service Catalogue:The EIC Service Catalogue is a searchable database of services offered by organisations vetted as EIC Partners. According to EIC material the Catalogue lists more than 300 partners and over 700 services covering fundraising, acceleration, legal and IP support, access to research infrastructure and more. The aim is to make specialised, sector focused services discoverable to EIC awardees and Seal of Excellence holders.

EIC ACCESS+ co funding:EIC ACCESS+ is a Financial Support to Third Parties mechanism that can subsidise access to services in the Service Catalogue. The mechanism offers co funding of up to 50 percent of service costs and a maximum grant per beneficiary of up to 60 000 euros. The scheme is implemented as a continuous call and operates on a first come first served approach subject to eligibility checks. If you are considering ACCESS+ support verify the current call status and remaining budget before planning engagements.

ACCESS+ package	Maximum per beneficiary	Examples of services covered
Research package	Up to 60 000 euros	Access to infrastructure, R and D support, prototyping and proof of concept
Skills improvement	Up to 10 000 euros	Coaching and mentoring, HR and talent
Business acceleration	Up to 30 000 euros	Acceleration, business planning, matchmaking, internationalisation
Access funds	Up to 30 000 euros	IP and legal support, due diligence, fundraising support

Why founders in medtech and biotech should consider attending

Developers of medical devices, diagnostics and therapeutics face an overlapping set of hurdles. Regulatory classification and pathway, pre clinical and clinical validation, data and evidence generation, and national pricing and reimbursement rules each require specialist input. The webinar brings regulatory consultants, clinical trial designers, imaging infrastructure providers, software developers and market access consultants together so attendees can quickly shortlist providers and schedule follow up meetings.

EU HTA and Joint Clinical Assessment:Health technology assessment under the EU HTA framework is increasingly important for cross border market access and reimbursement decisions. For pharmaceuticals and certain high impact technologies the Joint Clinical Assessment mechanism can influence national reimbursement processes. Founders working on therapies and high risk diagnostics should assess whether evidence generation strategies align with expected HTA requirements early in development.

Practical expectations and limitations

The event is useful as a discovery and introduction mechanism but has clear limits. Five minute pitches necessarily compress scope and cost estimates. Founders should use the webinar to gather specific questions, request detailed scopes and pricing, and schedule one to one meetings afterwards. Also verify partner credentials and track record for the specific regulatory jurisdictions and clinical pathways that matter for your product.

EIC ACCESS+ co funding can help reduce the cost of buying services from the Catalogue but the scheme is subject to eligibility rules, budget availability and procedural deadlines. The EIC operates multiple support instruments and some calls are time limited. Check the current status of ACCESS+ and whether funding remains available before relying on it for procurement planning.

How to make the webinar productive

Prepare a short briefing note for each partner you want to meet. Include the product stage, regulatory classification questions you need answered, the type of clinical evidence you have or plan to produce, target markets and a realistic budget range for external services. During the Q and A use the time to surface common issues rather than narrow technical questions. After the session follow up promptly to secure one to one slots.

About the EIC Ecosystem Partnership Programme and EIC Business Acceleration Services

The matchmaking session is delivered through the EIC Ecosystem Partnership Programme which is part of the EIC Business Acceleration Services. The programme builds a network of partner organisations to supply sector focused services to EIC awardees. The broader BAS portfolio also includes investor readiness, corporate partnerships, global expansion support and trade fair programmes. These services are intended as complements to EIC grant and equity instruments.

If you have questions or face technical issues you can contact the EIC Community helpdesk and select the relevant category 'EIC Ecosystem Partnership Programme'. Be prepared when asking about ACCESS+ because funding status and eligibility criteria change over time.

Registration and contact

EIC Awardees can register up to the day of the event. Partners will share contact details during the webinar to arrange one to one follow ups. For programme or technical questions use the EIC Community contact page and include 'EIC Ecosystem Partnership Programme' in the subject line.

Final note for founders

Matchmaking events like this are valuable for building a short list of vetted suppliers and for learning how to scope regulatory and clinical work. They are not a substitute for due diligence. Use the session to collect concrete next steps and to test whether a partner has recent, relevant experience in your regulatory territory and clinical area before committing budget.