Library FAQ
Do successful proposals receive Business Acceleration Services?
Yes. All successful proposals receive tailor-made access to a wide range of Business Acceleration Services in addition to funding.
How are candidates prioritised for face-to-face interviews if invitations exceed capacity?
Prioritisation order is: (a) companies the jury invited to resubmit directly to the next interview sessions; (b) companies with female CEOs up to 40% of invited companies to promote gender balance; (c) remaining companies prioritised by the submission date and...
How are full proposals assessed and what are the interview arrangements?
Full proposals are first assessed remotely by EIC expert evaluators (results in approximately five to six weeks). Successful proposals receive a GO and are invited to a face-to-face interview with an EIC jury approximately eight to nine weeks after the cut-off...
How are short proposals evaluated?
Four EIC expert evaluators (with competences matched to the technology and market) assess each short proposal and give a GO or NO GO against the evaluation criteria. If at least two evaluators give a GO the short proposal is successful; if more than two give a...
How does the short proposal submission work?
Short proposals can be submitted at any time via the Funding & Tenders Portal directing to the EIC AI-based platform. The short proposal includes a 5-page summary form, a pitch deck (up to ten slides, pdf) and a video pitch (up to three minutes with up to thre...
What application routes are available?
Applicants can submit to EIC Accelerator Open (no predefined thematic priorities) or to EIC Accelerator Challenges (predefined thematic topics in areas of emerging and strategic technologies).
What are possible outcomes of the investment due diligence process?
The due diligence may lead to a negotiated investment, to the recommendation to start with the grant component first with the investment subject to milestones, or to rejection of the investment (due to due diligence results, compliance checks, irregularities,...
What are the 2022 cut-off dates for submitting full proposals?
The cut-off dates for 2022 are 23 March 2022 at 17:00 Brussels time, 15 June 2022 at 17:00 Brussels time, and 5 October 2022 at 17:00 Brussels time.
What are the main features of the grant component?
The grant reimburses eligible costs up to a maximum of 70%. The remaining 30% and costs for commercial introduction and full scale up (TRL 9+) are not reimbursed by the grant but can be financed by the investment component if awarded. Grants should normally no...
What are the minimum and maximum amounts for the investment component and key terms?
The investment component ranges from a minimum of EUR 0.5 million to a maximum of EUR 15 million (higher amounts allowed in duly justified strategic cases). Equity investments will not exceed 25% of voting shares except in strategic cases, and investments are...
What confidentiality and data-sharing arrangements apply to proposals?
All personal data and proposal information are kept strictly confidential. Before submitting a full proposal you can be offered the option to share basic or all data with your National Contact Point. You must consent to share necessary information with the EIC...
What happens after selection for funding?
Selected beneficiaries are invited to negotiate the grant contract and, if applicable, the indicative investment amount. A single award decision by the Commission defines the grant and the maximum investment amount; an initial contract is signed and pre-financ...
What is Grant First and what conditions apply to it?
Grant First is for innovations requiring validation and demonstration (TRL 5–8). Grant-first proposals must include a milestone at mid-term or at least six months before the project end for the EIC to assess deployment prospects. A positive milestone assessmen...
What is Grant Only and what must Grant Only applicants demonstrate?
Grant Only applicants request only the grant component and must provide evidence that they have sufficient financial means (revenue, existing investors or shareholders, etc.) to finance deployment and scaling up activities that the investment component would n...
What is the EIC Accelerator?
The EIC Accelerator supports start-ups and SMEs to scale up high-impact innovations that can create new markets or disrupt existing ones. It offers funding (EUR 0.5 to EUR 17.5 million) and Business Acceleration Services, focuses on deep tech and patient capit...
What is the EIC Accelerator blended finance model?
Blended finance combines an investment component (usually direct equity or quasi-equity such as convertible loans) and a grant component to reimburse eligible innovation costs (demonstration, prototyping, R&D, regulatory work, IP management, etc., typically TR...
What support is provided between a successful short proposal and the full proposal?
Successful short-proposal applicants receive coaching to prepare a full proposal and access to the EIC AI-based platform to develop a detailed business plan. Full proposals must be submitted to a cut-off date within 12 months of the short-proposal response and...
Who can apply to the EIC Accelerator?
Eligible applicants include a single company classified as an SME established in an EU Member State or an Associated Country; a single small mid-cap (up to 499 employees) established in a Member/Associated Country (but only for rapid scale up and the investmen...
How does the EIC Accelerator grant component work?
Eligible costs are reimbursed up to a maximum of 70% within the ceiling of the maximum grant amount. The grant component should normally be less than EUR 2.5 million but may be higher in exceptional cases.
What are chip-scale optical frequency combs and why are they important in the Challenge?
Photonic integrated frequency combs are on-chip combs generated by nonlinear effects; they are compact, have large mode spacing matching telecom grids, can integrate other functionality, and are compatible with wafer-scale semiconductor fabrication, with appli...
What are 'Grant Only' and 'Grant First' options?
Grant Only requires evidence of sufficient financial means to finance deployment and scaling. Grant First applies where work is still required to validate and demonstrate in relevant environments and may lead to a follow-on equity component subject to mileston...
What are the main features of the EIC Accelerator investment component?
Typically delivered as direct equity or quasi-equity (e.g., convertible loans). The minimum investment component is EUR 0.5 million and the maximum is EUR 15 million, with requests above EUR 15 million allowed in duly justified cases; terms are negotiated case...
What are the objectives of the Chip-scale optical frequency combs Challenge?
Advance understanding of light states in driven nonlinear systems, develop novel platforms with higher conversion efficiencies and extended wavelength ranges, integrate with other functionalities compatible with wafer-scale manufacturing and exploit comb preci...
What aspects are evaluated under 'Investment readiness and go to market strategy'?
Appropriateness of plans to secure subsequent financing (e.g., applying for EIC Accelerator, private investment, patenting/licensing) to bring the technology/innovation to market.