EU opens first European Innovation Ecosystems calls with over €90 million to connect and scale startups
- ›The European Innovation Ecosystems (EIE) Work Programme opened its first calls with more than €90 million available across three destinations: SCALEUP, CONNECT and INNOVSMES.
- ›SCALEUP offers three actions totalling €13.75 million, including a Women TechEU pilot giving €75,000 equity-free awards plus coaching.
- ›CONNECT contains two calls with €8 million to build joint multiannual programmes and strengthen innovation procurement capabilities.
- ›INNOVSMES opens a large partnership call with €72.8 million to support innovative SMEs to boost R&I capacity and access new markets.
- ›The EIE initiative is positioned as complementary to the EIC and EIT while aiming to reduce fragmentation and better link regional ecosystems, but delivery and impact will depend on coordination with national and regional actors.
European Innovation Ecosystems launches first calls to connect and scale startup ecosystems
On 13 July 2021 the European Commission opened the first calls under the European Innovation Ecosystems Work Programme. The initiative is a new strand within Horizon Europe intended to create better connected, more resilient, and more inclusive innovation ecosystems across the EU and associated countries. The initial set of calls makes over €90 million available across three destinations: SCALEUP, CONNECT and INNOVSMES. The calls target a mix of network building, regional capacity development, innovation procurement and direct support to innovative SMEs.
| Destination | Call ID | Call title | Objective summary | Budget | Deadline |
| SCALEUP | HORIZON-EIE-2021-SCALEUP-01-01 | Expanding Acceleration Ecosystems | Create links and joint programmes between accelerators in less connected and high-performing regions to improve acceleration services and scale-up support | Part of €13.75M total for SCALEUP | 10 November 2021 |
| SCALEUP | HORIZON-EIE-2021-SCALEUP-01-02 | Scaling up deep tech ecosystems | Develop deep tech ecosystems around pan-European research and technology infrastructures to seed and scale breakthrough technologies | Part of €13.75M total for SCALEUP | 10 November 2021 |
| SCALEUP | HORIZON-EIE-2021-SCALEUP-01-03 | Women TechEU | Support women-led deep tech start-ups with coaching, mentoring and an equity-free grant of €75,000 | Part of €13.75M total for SCALEUP; individual awards €75,000 | 10 November 2021 |
| CONNECT | HORIZON-EIE-2021-CONNECT-01-01 | Preparatory action for setting up joint programmes | Enable national, regional and local authorities to prepare co-funded multiannual action plans with private and research actors to strengthen interconnection and tackle shared challenges | Part of €8M total for CONNECT | 26 October 2021 |
| CONNECT | HORIZON-EIE-2021-CONNECT-01-02 | Building capabilities in innovation procurement | Provide training, best practice exchange and capacity building to reveal innovation procurement potential | Part of €8M total for CONNECT | 26 October 2021 |
| INNOVSMES | HORIZON-EIE-2021-INNOVSMES-01-01 | Partnership on Innovative SMEs | Support the European Partnership on Innovative SMEs to strengthen SMEs' R&I capacity and embed them in global value chains | €72.8M | 1 September 2021 |
SCALEUP destination — connect accelerators, grow deep tech, support women founders
The SCALEUP strand focuses on reinforcing connectivity inside and between innovation ecosystems, speeding up sustainable company growth and encouraging female leadership in deep tech. The destination opened three calls with a combined budget of €13.75 million and a submission deadline of 10 November 2021.
CONNECT destination — joint programmes and innovation procurement
CONNECT seeks to foster co-funded multiannual programmes among Member States, associated countries and regions. The destination aims to broaden stakeholder involvement across the quadruple helix and to stimulate innovation procurement to accelerate market uptake of novel solutions. Two calls with a combined budget of €8 million opened with a deadline of 26 October 2021.
INNOVSMES destination — partnership to boost innovative SMEs
The INNOVSMES destination underpins the European Partnership on Innovative SMEs and opened a substantial call with a budget of €72.8 million. The call, HORIZON-EIE-2021-INNOVSMES-01-01, closed on 1 September 2021 and is intended to help innovative SMEs increase R&I capacity and productivity and to integrate into global value chains and new markets. The action is co-ordinated with the Eureka Eurostars partnership and national co-funding.
How the EIE fits with existing EU innovation instruments
The European Innovation Ecosystems Work Programme is presented as complementary to existing instruments such as the European Innovation Council and the European Institute of Innovation and Technology. EIE aims to reduce fragmentation by encouraging coordination between EU, national, regional and local programmes and private initiatives. The programme stresses support for linkages between resources, research organisations, accelerators, investors and policymakers to ease scaling pathways for firms.
Context and caveats — what to watch for
The initial €90+ million is an important signal of attention on ecosystems, but it is modest relative to the scale of investment needed to grow deep tech scaleups across Europe. Success will depend on execution, coordination with national and regional programmes, and on whether these calls reduce duplication and administrative burden for applicants. The Women TechEU grant is a welcome acknowledgement of the gender gap but €75,000 is a small amount compared with typical seed rounds and will be most useful when combined with effective mentoring and follow-on finance pathways.
Policymakers and stakeholders should also watch for practical issues that have limited impact in past programmes. These include limited absorptive capacity in some regions, the complexity of co-financing rules, the challenge of aligning national priorities with pan-European objectives, and the risk that small grants get absorbed by administrative overheads rather than front-line services.
Who should consider applying and practical tips
Public authorities, regional development agencies, accelerators, research organisations, and consortia combining these actors are the natural applicants to CONNECT and SCALEUP actions. Innovative SMEs, business support organisations and national authorities participating in the Eurostars partnership are the principal target for INNOVSMES. Applicants should design proposals that clearly show how the action will strengthen ties across ecosystems, include measurable milestones for scale-up impact, and demonstrate co-funding arrangements where required.
Practical tips: involve investor and buyer communities early to show market pull, plan realistic KPIs to measure improved acceleration or procurement capacity, and use the EIC and EIT networks to avoid duplicating existing services. Expect administrative requirements tied to Horizon Europe and allocate time for partner coordination.
Calls, contacts and further information
The calls were published under Horizon Europe and are managed by the European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency (EISMEA). Interested applicants should consult the Funding and Tenders Portal and the EISMEA call pages for templates, eligibility rules and submission procedures. The EIE contact email provided by EISMEA is EISMEA-EU-ECOSYSTEMS@ec.europa.eu.
The EIE actions are intended to complement the European Innovation Council, the European Institute of Innovation and Technology, regional and national initiatives, and private sector efforts. For potential applicants and ecosystem builders the key follow-up is to assess where these relatively small but targeted funds can be used to unlock larger funding or policy change, rather than to substitute for the capital and services that scaleups need to reach global markets.