EIC support for Ukrainian tech firms: scope, response and outstanding questions

The European Innovation Council has announced a targeted package of support for Ukrainian deep tech start ups and small and medium sized enterprises. The headline figure is a €20 million pot of grants, aimed at helping companies develop technologies in priority areas for Ukraine including artificial intelligence, robotics, biotechnology and cybersecurity. The stated objective is to accelerate market deployment by moving projects from an intermediate development stage to near market readiness.

What the call offers

Eligible Ukrainian companies could apply for grants of up to €500,000 to advance their technologies from Technology Readiness Level 4 to TRL 6 or 7. The action is explicitly framed to support deep tech innovations that can be integrated into European markets. The EIC said there will be a special emphasis on women led enterprises to promote inclusivity.

Market response and scale mismatch

The uptake of the call was strong. A total of 349 Ukrainian tech SMEs and start ups submitted proposals. Companies requested a total of €164 million in funding. By contrast the EIC allocated €20 million, which means demand exceeded available funding by a large margin. With only around 40 projects expected to receive awards, many competitive projects will not receive EIC support under this specific action.

That gap has practical implications. Applicants face uncertain funding outcomes and may need to secure bridge financing. The average requested amount of €470,000 shows applicants calibrated their requests close to the maximum award. The selection process will therefore be highly competitive and will likely prioritise projects that best fit the EIC’s criteria for impact, feasibility and market integration.

Timeline and next steps

The EIC expects the evaluation to be finalised in February 2026. Results are to be communicated to applicants in late February to early March 2026. The call itself was published in mid July 2025, opened on 12 August 2025 and closed on 26 November 2025. Selected projects will enter grant preparation, and where relevant may be matched with investment partners for the EIC Fund investment component.

Background and how this fits with previous EU support

This new allocation builds on earlier measures such as the Seeds of Bravery project launched under the EIC work programme 2022. Seeds of Bravery was created after the full scale Russian invasion to provide financial support and business services to Ukrainian tech companies and to help them connect with EU innovation ecosystems. According to the EIC, Seeds of Bravery delivered valuable support but also exposed gaps in scaling support for the most promising firms.

Assessment and implications

The initiative is an evident political and practical signal of support for Ukraine’s innovation sector. Direct grants targeted at TRL progression are useful because they finance engineering and validation work that can unlock larger public and private investment. The emphasis on sectors such as AI and cybersecurity aligns with both Ukraine’s capabilities and European strategic priorities.

At the same time the funding scale is modest compared with the demand. €20 million for up to 40 projects means average awards will be near the stated maximum and only a fraction of applicants will be funded. That creates a bottleneck. Many promising teams will need complementary sources of capital or business support to avoid losing momentum. The EIC and its partners will also face administrative and due diligence pressure when moving selected companies quickly through grant contracts and, where applicable, investment processes.

There are practical risks to watch. Rapid selection and contracting under complex security and legal environments can expose projects to delays. Cross border due diligence, procurement rules and the need to ensure proper use of funds during wartime conditions may complicate implementation. Finally, emphasising women led enterprises is a positive inclusion measure but it is worth monitoring how that objective is operationalised in selection criteria and outreach, and whether it leads to measurable outcomes in the medium term.

What applicants and observers should expect next

Applicants should prepare for a formally rigorous evaluation and possible follow up requests for clarification. Those not selected under this action will need to look for alternative EU and private instruments. Observers and policy makers should treat the allocation as one step in a broader suite of supports required to rebuild and scale Ukraine’s deep tech capacity. Tracking the match rate between applications and awards, the speed of contracting and the follow on investment outcomes will be important to judge the real impact of this initiative.

For reference applicants and other stakeholders can consult the EIC and EISMEA portals for the call documents, the standard application and evaluation forms, and the FAQs published in October 2025. More detailed data on winners and follow on funding will be needed to assess whether the action produces durable integration of Ukrainian innovators into European innovation ecosystems.