Library FAQ
How will EIC Challenges be selected going forward?
Selection of EIC Challenges will continue to react to current technological, market and policy developments, including areas identified by the EIC Emerging Technologies report.
What are EIC Business Acceleration Services (BAS) and EIC Ecosystem Partners?
EIC BAS are externally contracted services to support commercialisation and scaling of EIC innovations, including access to coaches and training (through EIC Ecosystem Partners) and access to global partners (corporates, investors, procurers, distributors, cli...
What are the roles of EIC Programme Managers, Project Officers and Tech to Market Advisers?
EIC Programme Managers are high-level experts who manage one or more EIC Portfolios and develop visions for breakthrough technologies; they are supported by EIC Project Officers (appointed to manage an action) and EIC Tech to Market Advisers, who assist primar...
What is the budget outlook after this Work Programme?
This Work Programme is the last to include a financial contribution from the Next Generation EU budget; consequently the annual budget for future EIC Work Programmes will be lower, while aiming to ensure a balance between Open and Challenge funding.
What is the EIC-EIT collaboration and what does the Memorandum of Understanding cover?
The EIC and the EIT agreed a Memorandum of Understanding (8 January 2021) to strengthen collaboration, covering areas such as the FastTrack process by EIT KICs, integration of KIC advisory services into EIC BAS, joint communication materials, data sharing, and...
What is the EIC Forum?
The EIC Forum brings different innovation drivers and governance levels together to discuss relevant policy issues openly and informally; its recommendations and activities aim to support and complement initiatives in Horizon Europe.
What is the EIC Fund and who manages it?
The EIC Fund is an alternative investment fund established to invest in companies selected through EIC Accelerator calls. An external alternative investment fund manager (the EIC Fund Manager) manages the Fund, and the European Investment Bank (EIB) supports t...
What is the EIC Innospace Platform, EIC Community Platform and EIC Marketplace?
The EIC Innospace Platform is a virtual platform for interactions among innovators, open from 2023, including the EIC Space to support EIC operations, the current EIC Community Platform and the EIC Accelerator AI platform. The EIC Community Platform (to become...
What is the objective and scope of the EIC Pathfinder Open call and what are its gatekeepers?
EIC Pathfinder Open aims to develop the scientific basis for breakthrough technologies by supporting earliest-stage research (typically low TRLs 1-4) for high-risk/high-gain, science-towards-technology breakthrough research. Gatekeepers: a convincing long-term...
What is the role and composition of the EIC Board?
The EIC Board oversees strategy and implementation of EIC activities, provides advice on Work Programmes, comprises 20 leading innovators and innovative researchers including the EIC President, and is appointed by the European Commission following an open call...
What open access provisions apply to EIC Pathfinder publications?
Provisions will be applied to ensure open access to scientific publications and promote the uptake of research results (see Annex 2 on open science).
Which agency implements Horizon Europe EIC activities?
The European Innovation Council and Small and Medium-sized Enterprises Executive Agency (EISMEA) is the Agency entrusted by the European Commission with implementation of Horizon Europe EIC activities.
Who are EIC Awardees and beneficiaries?
EIC Awardees are the consortia, institutions, natural persons and/or companies named in an EIC grant agreement (Pathfinder, Transition) or contract/investment agreement (Accelerator), as well as winners of EIC Prizes. The legal entities receiving support in ag...
Will EIC activities change in future Work Programmes?
Yes. The EIC is set up as an agile organisation and activities are expected to evolve in each annual Work Programme based on advice from the EIC Board, implementation experience and innovation dynamics.
Will the main provisions of EIC Open calls change significantly?
The main provisions are expected to remain relatively stable to provide predictability for applicants, while incorporating necessary improvements.
How could quantum technologies enable energy-efficient secure communication?
Quantum reservoir computing combined with integrated photonic platforms could deliver robust, power-efficient quantum communication and sensing via low-footprint, alignment-free, mass-manufacturable quantum nodes.
How is the EIC supporting quantum technology development in Europe?
The EIC funds projects across maturity stages, complements the European Quantum Flagship, supports startups via the Accelerator and Fund to attract private investment, and targets areas such as quantum metrology, sensors, software, hybrid computing, and novel...
What agri-food innovations are highlighted for next-generation aquaculture?
Developments focus on algae-based, fish and shellfish production in seas and oceans, and microalgae-based marine biotechnology for products ranging from nutraceuticals to materials.
What alternatives to mineral fertilisers are described?
Alternatives include microbial-origin fertilisers, direct green conversion of CO2 and NOx into fertilisers, digital twins for optimized fertiliser use, and advanced sensing and robotics for soil protection and restoration.
What are next-generation Photonic Integrated Circuits (PICs) and some example approaches?
Next-generation PICs are compact, high-performance, low-cost photonic devices for sensing and computing; approaches include integrated optical circulators, dual comb spectrometers for high-resolution spectroscopy, and nanoelectromechanical programmable silicon...
What are the proposed green concepts for active space debris removal (ADR)?
Promising green, propellant-less ADR concepts include electrodynamic tethers, space-based lasers, and solar sails, which avoid chemical propellants and offer mass/cost savings and extended lifetimes.
What biomimetic and material innovations are emerging in construction?
Biomimetic design using generative computational material computation enables tailored, efficient structures; carbon-neutral materials like sustainably sourced timber and carbon-negative materials such as carbon-sequestering concrete are also emerging, along w...
What challenges do current qubits face and what novel qubit approaches are proposed?
Qubits suffer from short coherence times that hamper error correction; proposed approaches include hybrid superconductor–semiconductor platforms and encoding information in topologically protected systems to achieve fault-tolerant computation.
What developments aim to enable room-temperature quantum devices?
Atomically Precise graphene nanoRibbons (APRs) are highlighted for exhibiting topological quantum phases and spin polarization controlled by topology and edge structure, offering a route toward room-temperature quantum platforms.