EIC Accelerator Steering the EIC Accelerator: Lessons Learned from the Pilot Program Posted on May 2, 2023April 17, 2023 The EIC Accelerator funding (with blended financing option) by the European Innovation Council (EIC) and European Commission (EC) is providing startups and Small- and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SME) with up to €2.5 million in grants and €15 million in equity financing per project (€17.5 million total). The program is often supported… Read more
EIC Accelerator Investigating EIC Accelerator Success Rates for Each Stage (SME Instrument) Posted on February 16, 2021February 15, 2021 The EIC Accelerator blended financing (formerly SME Instrument Phase 2, grant and equity financing) is undergoing a transformation in 2021 (read: Proposed Evaluation). The former 2-step process (application and pitch interview) which has been active for almost 4 years is gaining a third step (video pitch and mini-application) which can… Read more
EIC Accelerator The UK’s Participation in the EIC Accelerator under Horizon Europe after 2021 (SME Instrument) Posted on January 3, 2021May 15, 2021 The United Kingdom (UK) has officially left the European Union (EU) in February 2020 but their future relationship concerning EU funding programs has been a mystery thus far. Under Horizon 2020, the UK was largely able to participate in funding programs as could all EU-27 and third-country applicants with some… Read more
EIC Accelerator How to Select an EU Grant Financing Program such as the EIC Accelerator (SME Instrument) – Part 3 Posted on December 28, 2020December 20, 2020 This article is a continuation of Part 2 and describes a list of considerations to be made by startups and Small- and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SME) that seek to raise grant financing from the European Union (EU). One of these options is the EIC Accelerator blended financing (formerly SME Instrument Phase… Read more
EIC Accelerator How the EIC Can Incentivise Shorter and Clearer Applications for the EIC Accelerator (SME Instrument Phase 2) – Part 3 Posted on December 15, 2020December 10, 2020 Information for readers: The following is a description of a proposed evaluation process but it does not, in any way, reflect the current way EIC Accelerator applications are evaluated. For this, please read this article. This article is a continuation of Part 2 (see also: Part 4 & Part 1)…. Read more
EIC Accelerator Key Takeaways from the EIC Accelerator Deep Tech Report (SME Instrument Phase 2) Posted on October 30, 2020January 12, 2021 The European Innovation Council (EIC) has published The Deep Tech Europe Report: key numbers from the EIC performance (PDF) which summarizes key impact figures and statistics with respect to the EIC Accelerators performance. The EIC Accelerator blended financing program (formerly SME Instrument Phase 2, grant and equity financing) has been… Read more
EIC Accelerator Developing a Commercial Strategy for the EIC Accelerator (SME Instrument Phase 2) Posted on August 18, 2020October 9, 2020 One of the core sections of an EIC Accelerator application (SME Instrument Phase 2), taken from the official grant proposal template, is the commercial strategy. Such a strategy might seem very straight forward in many cases but, in order to fully advertise the impact and scalability of a project, great… Read more
EIC Accelerator The Biggest Mistakes When Applying to the EIC Accelerator (SME Instrument Phase 2) Posted on August 11, 2020February 19, 2023 Every once in a while, a company is reaching out to us with a rejected EIC Accelerator grant (SME Instrument Phase 2) application which they have prepared themselves but were unsuccessful with. Very rarely, such self-prepared applications are professionally written and reach a high score (i.e. above 13 out of… Read more
EIC Accelerator Why It’s Great to be a Female Entrepreneur in the EU (EIC Accelerator) Posted on August 4, 2020October 9, 2020 The Europen Commission has long implemented policies and targets to increase gender equality across all industries and government institutions. While the EIC Accelerator (formerly the SME Instrument Phase 2) has been largely free from any interventions of such policies, there are a variety of factors that have been part of… Read more
EIC Accelerator The Financing Timeline For EIC Accelerator Applicants (SME Instrument Phase 2) Posted on July 31, 2020October 9, 2020 The EIC Accelerator (formerly SME Instrument Phase 2) is a highly competitive grant (as well as equity) financing program by the European Commission (EC) and the European Innovation Council (EIC). Many startups and Small- and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SME), in their journey of seeking financing sources, discover this opportunity since it… Read more
EIC Accelerator Identifying a Broad Vision for an EIC Accelerator Project (SME Instrument Phase 2) Posted on July 29, 2020October 9, 2020 The introduction is an important aspect of an EIC Accelerator (SME Instrument Phase 2) application and, even though it is not specifically mentioned in the template, it sets up much of the perceived project impact (see EIC Accelerator Writing: Providing the Missing Link). In general, the introduction should be as… Read more