Forty EIC-backed companies head to GITEX Europe 2025

A specially extended delegation of 40 European Innovation Council funded companies will take part in GITEX Europe 2025, with a shared presence in the EIC Pavilion from 21 to 23 May 2025 at Messe Berlin. The mission is organised under the EIC International Trade Fairs Programme 3.0, part of the EIC Business Acceleration Services. The intention is to give selected EIC beneficiaries a concentrated platform to show technology, meet potential partners and investors, and explore cross-border commercial deals.

What the EIC delegation will feature

The EIC is using its International Trade Fairs Programme 3.0 to subsidise exhibition space, coaching and matchmaking for awardees. The delegation will occupy the EIC Pavilion and also benefit from onsite matchmaking services. The programme targets companies that have received EIC funding and are at a commercialisation or scaling stage. Participation is intended to open market access, accelerate business development and create investor and corporate introductions.

The 29 companies selected under EIC ITF 3.0

Below are the 29 EIC-backed companies chosen to exhibit under the EIC International Trade Fairs Programme 3.0 at GITEX Europe 2025. Short descriptions are taken from the companies or the EIC selection text and summarise each company’s focus.

Additional EIC-supported participants at the EIC Pavilion

The EIC is also hosting additional beneficiaries at the pavilion who are part of other EIC initiatives. These participants receive tailored preparation support from the relevant EIC teams.

How companies are being prepared

Ahead of the show the EIC organised an online pre-departure workshop on 8 April 2025. The workshop involved EIC teams, market experts and about 30 EIC-funded companies. The stated aim was to align expectations, explain trade fair opportunities and outline the approach to onsite matchmaking. Selected companies will get additional coaching, individual briefings and access to matchmaking activities such as reverse-pitch sessions and one-on-one investor or partner meetings.

What to expect and what to watch

Trade fairs produce measurable outcomes but also a lot of noise. Expect that the best short-term outcomes will be qualified leads, pilot agreements or paid PoCs for companies that have a clearly defined enterprise value proposition and a prepared business development team. More speculative outcomes include investor meetings and long lead-time commercial partnerships. The EIC pavilion increases visibility but does not replace country-level market entry work, partner diligence, procurement compliance or regulatory approvals that many deep tech companies need.

Why the EIC runs these missions

The EIC Business Acceleration Services aims to help European SMEs and scaleups internationalise and commercialise faster. Trade fair support is positioned as a way to concentrate buyer exposure and reduce entry costs for participants. The programme is the successor to previous EIC Overseas Trade Fairs initiatives and continues the Commission’s effort to operationalise grant recipients’ path to market. For policy observers, these missions are useful because they help the Commission signal where industrial priorities are and to aggregate market intelligence from high-potential companies.

Practical details and contact

Event: GITEX Europe 2025. Dates in EIC Pavilion: 21 to 23 May 2025. Venue: Messe Berlin, Germany. The EIC Pavilion will host the selected companies listed above. If you have questions about the ITF Programme or the GITEX Europe mission, the EIC recommends contacting the EIC Community Helpdesk and selecting 'EVENT – EIC ITF Programme – GITEX Europe 2025' as the subject in the 'Category' field.

A note of healthy scepticism

Announcements like this understandably use promotional language. Many of the companies in the delegation make ambitious claims in their marketing copy. Claims such as being a 'world leader' or offering 'the world's best' technology are common in start-up profiles. Those claims are useful shorthand but should be verified by independent performance data, customer references and third-party audits when possible. Additionally, trade-fair exposure alone rarely resolves the tougher market access issues that deep tech companies face such as certification, procurement processes, system integration complexity and scaling manufacturing.

For journalists, investors and prospective partners, the EIC pavilion is a concentrated place to meet dozens of companies in a short period. Use the opportunity to ask for pilot results, reference customers, technical benchmarks, regulatory pathways and deployment timelines.

Follow up and where to get more information

The EIC Community platform and the EIC Business Acceleration Services newsletter are the primary channels for updates, future calls and additional trade-fair missions. Companies interested in future ITF 3.0 open calls must apply through the EIC Community when calls are published, typically several months before a given trade fair. The EIC also publishes impact and programme reports which offer independent analysis and lessons learned from earlier trade fair cycles.

Disclaimer. The EIC's announcement and participating company descriptions are provided for information and knowledge sharing. They do not constitute an endorsement of specific commercial claims. Outcomes from trade fairs vary by company and require follow-through to convert leads into contracts.