EIC Accelerator October cut-off – record number of proposals submitted since the EIC’s launch under Horizon Europe

The European Innovation Council received 1211 full applications from start-ups and SMEs for the EIC Accelerator 3 October cut-off. It is the highest ever number of submissions since the launch of the EIC. All together, they request €8.875 billion budget. Blended finance continues to be in high demand - 898 companies (74% of total applicants) requested grants combined with equity investments.  

32% of the proposals were submitted by women-led companies (CEO, CTO or CSO). The applicants come from 35 different countries (including 13 widening countries), with the highest number of participants coming from Germany, Israel, and France.  

Next steps 

Proposals are now being evaluated by independent experts. The highest ranked companies will then be invited to pitch in front of a jury of investors and business experts between 20 and 24 January 2025. Final decisions on which companies will receive funding are expected by the end of February 2025 and those selected for equity support will be passed to the EIC Fund for investment decisions 

Funding opportunities in 2025 

This was the last EIC Accelerator cut-off this year. New funding opportunities and the dates for Accelerator full applications will be announced in the 2025 EIC work programme that is expected to be adopted by the end of October 2024. Short applications (that give access to the full application stage) can be submitted at any time.