Library FAQ
What are some gender-balance figures within the EIC portfolio?
Within the EIC portfolio, 30% of researchers involved in Pathfinder are female, 17% of companies selected in Accelerat or blended finance calls are women-led, and a May funding round resulted in 34% of selected companies being women-led.
What are the two main funding schemes of the EIC Pilot covered in the report?
The EIC Pathfinder, supporting early applied research, and the EIC Accelerator, supporting commercialisation and scale-up.
What budget did the EIC have in the pilot and what is the planned budget under Horizon Europe?
The EIC pilot budget was €3 billion (2018–2020) and the full EIC under Horizon Europe is expected to have over €10 billion (2021–2027).
What funding and support does the EIC Accelerator offer?
The Accelerator uses blended finance (grant or grant plus equity) of up to €15 million or more, targeting SMEs with highly risky, non-bankable ideas and scale-up potential.
What funding does the EIC Pathfinder provide and who is it for?
The Pathfinder provides grants up to €4 million targeting breakthrough research projects exploring radically new areas with market-creation potential.
What is blended finance in the context of the EIC?
Blended finance under the EIC combines grant funding with equity investments (direct or quasi-equity) to support and scale high-risk innovations.
What is the EIC Community Platform?
The EIC Community Platform is a virtual meeting place where companies and researchers can connect, share experiences, find investors and coaches, and leverage business partnerships.
What is the EIC Fund and what does it do?
The EIC Fund is the EIC's investment arm that provides investments from €0.5 million to €15 million to companies selected for blended finance under the Accelerator, making direct equity or quasi-equity investments for the first time by the Commission.
What is the EIC's wider ambition for the European innovation ecosystem?
The EIC aims to create a more connected innovation ecosystem across national and regional agencies, universities, tech transfer offices, accelerators, buyers, stock exchanges, corporates and investors to build a true European Innovation Area.
What is the European Innovation Council (EIC) Pilot?
The EIC Pilot (2018–2020) is a Commission initiative to identify, support and accelerate breakthrough technologies and game-changing innovations, tested ahead of full implementation under Horizon Europe from 2021.
What is the role of the EIC Advisory Board?
Appointed in June 2019 with 22 members, the Advisory Board provides strategic leadership, oversees the pilot rollout, and led the strategy and design of the EIC under Horizon Europe.
What KPI storylines has the EIC defined to measure success?
The EIC defined three KPI storylines: societal impact (contribution to SDGs and sustainability), economic impact (contribution to GDP and jobs), and attractiveness (hallmark of investment with equality and gender balance).
What measures has the EIC introduced to support women innovators?
Measures include ensuring at least 25% of best applicants invited to interviews are women-led (since May 2020), gender parity among expert evaluators and juries, women leadership programmes in Business Acceleration Services, and monitoring gender balance as an...
What ownership stakes does the EIC Fund generally expect to take?
The EIC Fund generally expects ownership stakes in supported companies of around 10% to 25%.
What short-, medium- and long-term KPIs are used by the EIC?
Short-term (year 1+): SDG contributions, market capital multiple (min 3x), share of women among target groups. Medium-term (year 3+): share of disruptive companies, number of scaleups and turnover, Net Promoter Score. Long-term (year 5+): Green Deal impact ind...
Who advises and manages the EIC Fund's ownership stakes?
The European Investment Bank acts as advisor to the EIC Fund and manages the ownership stakes of the European Commission.
Who is Mariya Gabriel in relation to the EIC report?
Mariya Gabriel is the Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth and authored the introductory statement in the report.
How are proposals evaluated across EIC schemes?
Evaluation is tailored by scheme: Pathfinder uses peer review scoring and ranking; Transition uses remote scoring then interviews with GO/NO GO for top ranked; Accelerator and STEP use remote scoring and interview-based binary GO/NO GO for top-ranked candidate...
How does the EIC manage projects and portfolios?
EIC Programme Managers proactively manage portfolios, use milestones and independent expert reviews to assess progress, may continue support or request amendments, suspend/terminate projects failing milestones, and include projects in thematic or Challenge por...
How is the Accelerator process organised in 2026 and what is the indicative budget?
Continuous submission with evaluation in batches (07/01/2026; 04/03/2026; 06/05/2026; 08/07/2026; 02/09/2026; 04/11/2026). Indicative budget: EUR 414 million (plus EUR 220 million for challenge-related budgets).
What are key Pathfinder deadlines and indicative budget for 2026?
Deadlines: 12/05/2026 (Open); Challenge cut-off 28/10/2026. Indicative budget: EUR 166 million (Open) and EUR 96 million (Challenges).
What are STEP Scale Up 2026 timelines, target areas and budget?
One batch per quarter: 11/02/2026; 06/05/2026; 09/09/2026; 25/11/2026. Targets include digital, clean/resource-efficient/net-zero technologies and biotechnologies. Indicative budget: EUR 300 million.
What are the EIC Advanced Innovation Challenges?
Pilot two-stage calls to solve demand-driven societal or technological problems: first-stage grants up to EUR 0.3m to validate solutions (starting TRL4), then second-stage grants up to EUR 2.5m (aiming TRL6/7) to develop and user test selected solutions.
What are the EIC policies on open access and intellectual property?
Pathfinder requires open access to scientific publications and promotes uptake of results. Accelerator IP rules are in contracts/investment agreements. Pathfinder and Transition projects may be asked to share results within EIC Portfolios under non-disclosure....