Library FAQ
What is the Seal of Excellence?
A quality label awarded to high-quality proposals that do not receive funding, to help other funding bodies use the EIC evaluation results; since October 2019, 2,537 companies from 40 countries have received certificates.
What non-financial support does the EIC provide?
Access to coaching and mentoring services and pitch opportunities with corporates, VCs, and others.
What proportion of applicants passed the EIC Accelerator's strict evaluation in 2019?
Around 2–3% of applying companies got through the strict evaluation in 2019.
What share of portfolio companies received SME Instrument Phase 1 grants versus Phase 2/EIC Accelerator funding?
Around 71% received €50,000 grants (SME Instrument Phase 1) and 29% competed successfully for funding above €0.5 million (Phase 2 and EIC Accelerator).
What types of customers do EIC-funded companies target?
A large majority (77%) target B2B users, while one fourth concentrate on B2C.
What types of support does the EIC offer to SMEs?
Grant-only support for any type of innovation and blended finance (grant plus equity/quasi-equity) for breakthrough and disruptive non-bankable innovation.
What was notable about applications in March 2020?
A record 3,883 eligible applications were submitted for a single cut-off, mainly driven by COVID-19 related applications; an extra €150 million was made available for COVID-19 projects.
Which industry sectors account for the largest shares of funded companies?
The top three industry sectors are health (1,262 companies), energy (922) and enterprise software (735).
How can AI accelerate advanced materials for energy?
AI can speed discovery and development of materials with improved thermal, electrochemical, or chemical properties (e.g., phase-change materials), enabling devices and systems with drastically improved performance.
How could high-temperature TES impact the next five to ten years?
It could help decarbonise industrial heat (a major source of emissions), reduce energy consumption, provide flexible power-system services as an alternative to batteries/hydro, and enable reversible heat-to-power systems (Carnot batteries) integrating renewabl...
How may enhanced energy density SAFs affect aviation in the next five to ten years?
They may increase EU aviation competitiveness, reduce aviation emissions, preserve industrial value chains like jet engine manufacturing, and prompt new regulatory frameworks and standards for safe, widespread adoption.
What are enhanced energy density sustainable aviation fuels (SAFs)?
They are SAFs engineered to have higher volumetric and gravimetric energy densities to match conventional jet fuels in performance and cost-per-energy unit, facilitating storage, handling, and use in aviation.
What are the key novelties in high-energy-density SAF development?
Developments focus on SAFs that rival conventional jet fuels in energy density, advanced insulation and storage for low-boiling fuels (LH2, ammonia), and integrating zero-carbon high-energy solid particles to boost energy output and stability.
What challenges does high-temperature TES face?
Challenges include material synthesis for storage media, containers and insulation, developing active heat exchangers with embedded storage, additive manufacturing processes, and system integration for durable operation at very high temperatures.
What impacts could advanced thermal management have in the next five to ten years?
Potential impacts include reduced global energy consumption in cooling-intensive sectors, extended EV range and improved battery safety, lower data centre energy costs, and repurposing low-grade waste heat sustainably.
What is artificial CO2 photosynthesis?
Artificial photosynthesis is a biomimetic approach that uses photocatalysts to convert solar energy, CO2, and water into storable renewable fuels and chemicals, aiming to decarbonise hard-to-abate sectors and contribute to carbon removal.
What is high-temperature thermal energy storage (TES)?
High-temperature TES stores thermal energy at temperatures above about 600°C and includes sensible heat, latent heat (PCMs), and thermochemical storage to improve energy efficiency and decarbonise industrial heat and power-to-heat applications.
What is the focus of thermal management innovations for EVs and data centres?
The focus is on ultra-low thermal resistance devices and systems that reduce energy losses, convert wasted heat into useful energy, improve reliability, and lower operational and infrastructure costs in EVs, data centres, and electronics.
What is urea electrosynthesis and why is it novel?
Urea electrosynthesis uses electrocatalytic co-reduction of CO2 and nitrogenous species at ambient conditions to form urea, offering a potentially lower-energy, lower-carbon alternative to traditional high-temperature, high-pressure processes.
What new approaches to thermal management are highlighted?
Innovations include integrating TES in EVs to separate battery power from thermal management and using thermochemical, sorption, or solid-state technologies to convert low-grade waste heat into cooling for data centres and telecom base stations.
What novelties are emerging in high-temperature TES?
Key novelties include advanced solid and liquid sensible storage materials (e.g., ceramics and molten salts), innovations in PCM-based and thermochemical storage, and specialised containers/coatings able to withstand high thermal cycling.
What opportunities exist in energy harvesting according to the source?
Energy-harvesting technologies like thermoelectrics need new operation principles and advanced materials (including exotic properties in topological or 2D materials) to overcome stagnation and enable transformative devices.
Which fuels are considered under enhanced energy density SAFs?
Examples include liquefied hydrogen (LH2), ammonia, synthesis fuels (e‑fuels), and biofuels, with approaches also exploring zero-carbon high-energy solid particles integrated into fuels.
Which TES technologies are described in the source?
The three main TES technologies are sensible heat storage, latent heat storage using phase change materials (PCMs), and thermochemical energy storage.