The European Innovation Council (EIC) is looking for expertise in critical defence technologies to contribute to Europe’s innovation landscape. Experts will help assess which companies should receive direct equity investments to scale up disruptive innovations in defence.
What are we looking for?
- Expertise in defence technologies:
- Air and missile defence
- Artillery and precision strikes
- Missiles and ammunition
- Drones and counter-drones
- Strategic enablers
- Cyber, AI, electronic warfare
- Military mobility
- Ground combat
- Maritime
- Air combat
- Medical and countermeasures
- Financial expertise and/or venture capital experience.
- A valid Personal Security Clearance (PSC).
Selection will be made based on professional expertise and other factors (gender balance, rotation).
What are the working conditions?
Selected experts will be part of a panel that assess proposals for short-term assignments. They may be invited to an on-site evaluation in Brussels. They will be duly remunerated.
How to register?
Register in the European Commission’s experts’ database by 15 October. In case already registered, update your profile with the relevant keywords (defence, security clearance, defence innovation, critical defence technologies, venture capital, equity).
Please also express your interest by filling in this form.
For further advice, consult FAQs for experts and the IT manual.
Personal Security Clearance
- Experts need to possess valid PSC level EU Confidential issued by the relevant Member State(s) authorities before the submission of the expression of interest. For more information refer to Council Decision 2013/488/EU and Commission Decision 2015/444.
- If an expert is not in possession of a valid a PSC, the Commission cannot initiate the vetting procedure for them. Guidance on how to obtain a PSC should be directed to the National Security Authorities.
- Should the expert be selected as potential candidate, EISMEA may support the expert aiming to acquire a PSC from the National Security Authority by providing an email confirming that their expertise is relevant for the purposes of this call.
What’s next?
If selected, we will contact you. The first evaluation panels for the EIC are planned for end of 2026.
We may also contact you later for other defence-related programmes beyond the EIC.
More information
- Publication date
- 15 April 2026
- Author
- European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency