EIC Accelerator

The EIC Accelerator is the European Union's flagship program for single startups and small companies with deep-tech products that private investors consider too risky to fund alone. It is run by the European Innovation Council (EIC) under Horizon Europe, the EU's 2021–2027 research and innovation program. Its distinctive feature is that it can combine a grant with an equity investment in the same company.

This page describes the program as published on the EIC website on 26 October 2026, under the EIC's 2026 Work Programme. Rules, budgets and dates change with each annual work programme, so treat the official pages as the final word.

What it offers

The Accelerator funds innovations that could create new markets or disrupt existing ones, at technology readiness levels (TRL) 6 to 8: technology demonstrated in a relevant environment up to a system complete and qualified. The EIC describes its approach as patient capital. Support comes in three forms:

The grant pays for activities at TRL 6–8 and must be used within 24 months. The investment component goes up to €10 million. The EIC Fund's published guidelines give a range of €0.5 million to €10 million for Accelerator companies, with larger tickets of €10 million to €30 million under a separate scheme, EIC STEP Scale Up. Selected companies also get access to the EIC's Business Acceleration Services: coaching, mentoring, partnering and introductions to investors.

For 2026, the EIC page gives a budget of €414 million for the EIC Accelerator Open, which accepts proposals in any field, and €220 million for the EIC Accelerator Challenges, which fund predefined strategic topics.

The equity component and the EIC Fund

The investment is not made by the Commission directly. It is made by the EIC Fund, which the EIC calls its venture arm: an investment fund under private law in which the European Commission is a shareholder, with investment decisions taken by an external fund manager, supported by the European Investment Bank.

• Stake size. The EIC Fund takes minority stakes, typically around 10% and up to 25%.
• Instruments. Equity or quasi-equity: shares, preferred shares or convertible instruments.
• Horizon. Patient capital with a target holding period of 7 to 10 years, and a maximum of 15.
• Strategic protections. In strategic areas the fund may seek blocking minority rights or shareholder agreements; protecting EU strategic interests is one of its stated aims.
• Timing. After selection, the EIC Fund runs its own due diligence. The EIC says the investment component is decided within two to six months. If the fund concludes the company is not yet ready for investment, the company starts with the grant and the investment is re-examined at agreed milestones.

Treat the EIC Fund as a real investor in your cap table. Its stake dilutes existing shareholders, and its rights will sit alongside those of your private investors. The fund's stated aim is to crowd in private capital, so expect it to look for co-investors, and show your existing lead investor its terms early.

Who can apply

• A single startup or small and medium-sized enterprise (SME), including university spin-outs, established in an EU member state or a country associated to Horizon Europe.
• An individual, or a legal entity, intending to set up an SME or a small mid-cap.
• Small mid-caps with up to 499 employees, but only for the investment-only option.
• Companies from other countries may relocate to an eligible country to apply; the move must happen before they submit the full application.
• United Kingdom applicants can apply only for the grant-only option.
• Only one EIC Accelerator application can be in progress at a time; another may be submitted after results on the first.

The Accelerator funds single companies, not consortia. The EIC says it particularly welcomes applications from companies with female CEOs.

The application, step by step

1. Short proposal. Submitted at any time and batched for evaluation on the first Tuesday of each month at 5 pm Brussels time. It consists of a 12-page form on the innovation, market and team, a pitch deck of up to ten slides, and a video pitch of up to three minutes featuring up to three core team members. Four expert evaluators assess it remotely. Feedback normally arrives in about four to six weeks. A "GO" lets you proceed.
2. Full proposal. Prepared on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal and submitted to one of the published cut-off dates. It expands the short proposal into a 20-page form and adds a pitch deck, an implementation plan, financial information, letters of intent, a freedom-to-operate analysis and another three-minute video. A technology expert and an evaluation panel of at least three experts assess it, and you have an online interview with the technology expert about three to four weeks after the cut-off. Results of this stage come within about eight to nine weeks. The top-ranked proposals, up to 2.5 times the available grant budget, are invited to the jury stage.
3. Jury interview. A face-to-face pitch to an EIC Jury, organized after every second cut-off. Results arrive within two to three weeks after the interview week.
4. Grant agreement and investment due diligence. Grant-only companies sign the grant agreement and receive a pre-financing payment. Blended-finance companies sign the grant while the EIC Fund carries out due diligence on the investment.

Proposals that score at least 13 out of 15 in the remote evaluation but are not invited to interview, and those the jury does not select, receive a Seal of Excellence, meant to help them secure funding from other sources. Two shortcuts also exist: the Fast Track, for proposals arising from existing Horizon Europe or Horizon 2020 projects, and the Plug-In, for proposals from certified national or regional programs. Both allow a proposal to go straight to the full-application stage after a review.

Cut-off dates

As of 26 October 2026, the EIC Accelerator page lists these 2026 cut-off dates for full proposals, each at 5 pm Brussels time:

Only companies that already hold a GO on a short proposal can submit a full proposal. Dates for 2027 depend on the EIC's 2027 Work Programme; at the time of review the EIC had announced information days on its 2027 funding opportunities but had not listed 2027 cut-offs on the Accelerator page. Check the EIC Accelerator page and the Funding & Tenders Portal before planning around a date.

Practical points for founders

• Plan for months, not weeks. From a short proposal to a signed grant, each stage has its own waiting period, and the investment component adds two to six months of due diligence on top.
• Write for a jury, not only for evaluators. The final decision follows a live pitch. Be ready to explain the team, the size of the market opportunity, and why the risk is too high for private investors alone, which is the gap the program exists to fill.
• Prepare the documents investors will ask for anyway. A clean cap table, financial projections, letters of intent from customers and a freedom-to-operate view on your IP are part of the full proposal. A ready data room saves time.
• Think through the equity terms before you need them. If you choose blended finance, the EIC Fund's stake and rights will interact with your next round. Model the dilution and discuss it with existing investors early.
• Remember the grant is a lump sum tied to deliverables, not a free cash injection. Budget for reporting.
• Use the National Contact Points. Every eligible country has Horizon Europe National Contact Points that give free guidance on participation.

For a UK company the grant-only route sits alongside domestic options such as Innovate UK. US companies are not eligible unless they relocate; see SBIR and STTR for the US equivalent.

Sources

1. EIC Accelerator, European Commission, European Innovation Council. CC BY 4.0 (Commission reuse policy, Decision 2011/833/EU).
2. EIC Accelerator Open, European Commission, European Innovation Council. CC BY 4.0 (Commission reuse policy, Decision 2011/833/EU).
3. About the EIC Fund, European Commission, European Innovation Council. CC BY 4.0 (Commission reuse policy, Decision 2011/833/EU).
4. EIC Fund Investment Guidelines and Approach, European Commission, European Innovation Council. CC BY 4.0 (Commission reuse policy, Decision 2011/833/EU).
5. Legal notice (reuse policy), European Commission. CC BY 4.0 (Commission reuse policy, Decision 2011/833/EU).