The European Commission has adopted the European Innovation Council’s 2027 work programme, making €1.8 billion available to support “deep tech” entrepreneurs and researchers.
The package is the final European Innovation Council (EIC) funding round under Horizon Europe, the EU’s 2021 – 2027 research and innovation programme, the Commission said in a release on Thursday.
It noted that the EIC will continue backing projects from early-stage research through to commercialisation and scale-up, and that it is making support “simpler, faster and more targeted”.
The 2027 programme includes funding to complete the Scaleup Europe Fund at €1 billion, plus €200 million for defence investments and €25 million for an Advanced Innovation Challenges pilot first introduced in 2026.
Changes to schemes and extra support for women-led start-ups
The Commission said it will change parts of the EIC’s funding schemes, including managing the high volume of applications for its Pathfinder programme, which supports breakthrough research.
It added that the EIC Transition scheme will shift to supporting single teams and companies rather than consortia.
Support for women-led start-ups will expand through a redesigned Women TechEU programme, including doubling grants to €150,000 per start-up and creating a European Prize for Women Innovators in Quantum.
New measures will also help EIC-backed companies test their technologies with public and private buyers, including through public procurement.
The EIC has a budget of more than €10 billion for 2021 – 2027 and has supported more than 800 companies and nearly 700 research projects since its launch.
