EIC Summit 2025: Brussels gathering of Europe's deeptech ecosystem
- ›The European Innovation Council Summit 2025 took place in Brussels on 2 and 3 April 2025 at Tour & Taxis, with a beneficiaries day on 2 April and a flagship public day on 3 April.
- ›Programme included focused workshops on IP, AI, ARPA-style management, regulation for health technologies, procurement, scaling, and EIC Fund co-investments.
- ›The Summit featured an exhibition with one main EIC stand, 23 EIC-funded project booths, six EU service stands, five satellite events, and multiple awards including the European Innovation Procurement Awards and the European Prize for Women Innovators.
- ›Six finalists for the European Innovation Procurement Awards were announced in February, with top prizes of 75,000 euros, 50,000 euros and 25,000 euros per category.
- ›Speakers mixed EU institutional leaders, EIC board members, investors, founders and agency managers. The event emphasised networking through a dedicated app and concluded with an after party featuring DJs from Tomorrowland.
EIC Summit 2025 — what, when and where
The 2025 edition of the European Innovation Council Summit ran across two days in Brussels. An invitation only beneficiaries day took place on 2 April 2025. The flagship public event ran on 3 April 2025. Organisers used the historical Tour and Taxis site on the Brussels Canal as the venue. The Summit combined workshops, pitching sessions, a project exhibition, satellite events, award ceremonies and extensive networking opportunities.
High level programme and format
The Summit was structured to serve multiple audiences. Day one was a closed beneficiaries day with practical workshops and peer learning. Day two was the flagship event open to the wider innovation ecosystem with plenaries, fireside chats, panels and prize ceremonies. The event also included five satellite events before and after the Summit proper and a project exhibition showcasing EIC-funded work.
| Date | Audience | Main features |
| 2 April 2025 | EIC beneficiaries, invitation only | Workshops on investments, IP, scaling, access to infrastructures, innovation procurement, EIC Business Acceleration Services and awards for procurement |
| 3 April 2025 | Open to stakeholders | Plenary speeches, policy discussions, panels, EU Prize for Women Innovators award ceremony, networking sessions and after party |
Selected programme highlights and workshop themes
Workshops and sessions covered a broad set of topics intended for researchers, startup founders, investors, corporate partners and public procurers. Session titles signalled practical advice on moving technologies from lab to market and on systemic topics that shape deeptech growth in Europe. Below are the principal themes and a selection of workshops.
| Theme | Representative sessions | Why it matters |
| Access to research infrastructures | Workshop on accessing high performance computing, synchrotrons and advanced labs | Deeptech projects often require large scale facilities to progress through experiments and validation |
| Intellectual property | Importance of IP for deeptech businesses, EIC-EUIPO IP Due Diligence Service case study | IP strategy is critical for attracting investors and protecting technological advantage |
| Regulatory pathways for health | EMA session on AI driven devices and combination products | Early engagement with regulators can accelerate market access for medical innovations |
| ARPA-style funding | Session on ARPA management principles for high risk high reward projects | Explores whether mission oriented models can be adapted in Europe for breakthrough projects |
| AI innovation and governance | Panel on innovation beyond the generative AI hype and interplay with regulation | Addresses technical capability limits and policy constraints shaping AI scale up |
| Innovation procurement | Sessions on the EIC Innovation Procurement Programme and EUIPA finalists | Demand side public buying can create early markets for novel solutions |
| Investments and co-investing | EIC Fund co-investment session, closing investment rounds and seeding strategies | Explains deal structures and investor perspectives for deeptech rounds |
| Scaling and corporate collaboration | Corporate venturing panel, EIC Scaling Club on making boards work | Large corporates can provide market access but collaboration brings governance and cultural challenges |
Speakers and delegates
The event assembled a wide roster of speakers from the European Commission, EIC governance bodies, investment partners, founders and agency managers. Institutional leaders included Ekaterina Zaharieva, Commissioner for Startups, Research and Innovation, Michiel Scheffer, EIC Board President, Marc Lemaître, Director General for Research and Innovation at DG RTD, and Henna Virkkunen, Executive Vice President for Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy.
Organisers published an extensive speakers list that also featured investors, EIC board members, programme managers and EIC ambassadors. The mix aimed to blend policy signals with practical, operational insight from founders and investors.
| Representative institutional speakers | Role |
| Ekaterina Zaharieva | Commissioner for Startups, Research and Innovation |
| Michiel Scheffer | EIC Board President |
| Marc Lemaître | Director General, Directorate General for Research and Innovation |
| Henna Virkkunen | Executive Vice President for Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy |
| Enrico Letta and Carlos Moedas | High profile fireside chat participants on Europe as a global tech leader |
Awards and recognitions
Two major award strands were part of the Summit. On 2 April winners of the European Innovation Procurement Awards were to be announced. On 3 April the EU Prize for Women Innovators was to be awarded. The European Innovation Procurement Awards publish finalists ahead of the Summit and allocate cash prizes of 75,000 euros for first place, 50,000 euros for second place and 25,000 euros for third place in each category.
| Award | Date awarded at Summit | Prizes |
| European Innovation Procurement Awards | 2 April 2025 | 75,000, 50,000 and 25,000 euros per category |
| European Prize for Women Innovators | 3 April 2025 | Ceremony and prize allocation as per EIC Prizes programme |
EU Innovation Procurement Awards 2025 finalists
The EIC announced six finalists across two award categories ahead of the Summit. The projects combine public procurement and innovation to solve municipal and industrial problems, with an emphasis on sustainability and deployable solutions.
| Category | Finalist project | Short description |
| Innovation Procurement Initiative | CameraCar | AI based monitoring of parking zones in Prague, combining traffic sign verification and road surface assessment to improve urban mobility solutions |
| Innovation Procurement Initiative | EMS LLS | Expansion of a smart electricity grid in Living Lab Scheveningen to manage congestion and improve energy forecasting and distribution |
| Innovation Procurement Initiative | Joint POSIDON PCP | Pre commercial procurement to develop new methods for decontaminating petroleum hydrocarbons and heavy metals from polluted land in Italy and Spain |
| Facing Societal Challenges - Net Zero Industry Procurement | CABRIO-TRIPTYCH | Tools for greener construction including circular selection criteria, local planning tools and specifications for circular materials |
| Facing Societal Challenges - Net Zero Industry Procurement | H2Global | Market building for renewable hydrogen through a double auction system aimed at reconciling production costs and affordability |
| Facing Societal Challenges - Net Zero Industry Procurement | Net Zero Persikan | Demonstration of an all electric machinery pool for emission free groundworks at a development site in Stockholm |
Exhibition, satellite events and networking
The Summit exhibition was organised around one main EIC stand, 23 EIC-funded project stands and six EU service stands showcasing support services and funding opportunities. Satellite events expanded the Summit timeline with trainings and info days both in person and online.
| Satellite event | Date and format | Notes |
| EIC Community Training - AI tools for innovators | 1 April 2025, Brussels | Practical workshop on using AI tools for innovation |
| EIC Partners' Day 2025 | 1 April 2025, Brussels | Partners meeting and coordination |
| Networking event for Latvian start ups in the EU | 2 April 2025, Brussels | Targeted networking for Latvian founders |
| Pathfinder Challenges Info Day | 4 April 2025, Borschette, Brussels | Info day on Pathfinder Challenges work programme |
| Future Tech Week 2025 | 7 to 11 April 2025, online | Series of online events following Summit |
Attendees were encouraged to download a dedicated EIC Summit networking app to schedule meetings. The Summit concluded with an official networking after party on 3 April featuring DJs from Tomorrowland.
Venue, travel and practical information
Tour and Taxis is a large former industrial complex on the Brussels Canal with sheds repurposed for cultural and conference events. The EIC used Shed 1 for the Summit. Organisers provided guidance on public transport, parking and accommodation as part of logistics information for delegates.
| Transport or facility | Details |
| By bus | STIB lines 14, 15 and 89 stop Picard. Other lines stop Armateurs. De Lijn regional buses also serve nearby stops |
| By metro and tram | Metro lines 2 and 6 reach Yser or Ribaucourt within 10 to 15 minutes walk. Tram line 51 stops at Sainctelette within 12 minutes walk |
| By train | Gare du Nord is about a 20 minute walk |
| Parking | Event parking accessible from Avenue du Port 88. Fee quoted at 8 euros per day with card payments accepted |
| Low Emission Zone | Brussels has a LEZ. Vehicles must comply with criteria or register and if necessary buy a day pass. Foreign registered vehicles must register before travel |
| Suggested hotels | Hotel Indigo Brussels City, Best Western Royal Centre, Courtyard by Marriott Brussels EU, Thon Hotel EU, Hilton Bruxelles Grand Place, Hotel ibis Brussels off Grand-Place |
Context and critical perspective
The Summit performs several functions at once. It is a visible showcase for EIC results and policy direction, a convening mechanism for different parts of the innovation ecosystem and a marketing opportunity for funded projects and partner services. Those roles are necessary and useful, but they also generate common tensions that the EU innovation community must manage.
First, prizes and exhibitions give attention to promising projects, yet attention alone does not guarantee market traction. Many deeptech ventures need sustained capital, customer procurement and industrial partnerships to cross the valley between prototype and commercial deployment. Second, demand side tools such as innovation procurement are powerful but require public buyers to invest time and procurement reform to create predictable markets. Third, ARPA style and mission oriented models promise high reward for bold goals, but they require governance models that balance risk appetite, transparency and the need for measurable delivery. Finally, co investment through the EIC Fund helps attract private capital, yet scaling deeptech remains capital intensive and geographically uneven across EU member states.
Where to find recordings and materials
Organisers indicated that recordings, photos and other materials from the Summit would be made available on the EIC Summit pages. The EIC also published a wrap up video and replay of plenaries and plenary session times were listed for both days. For enquiries on prizes and awards the EISMEA contacts were provided in advance of the Summit.