EIC Board calls for national and regional synergies to boost deep tech innovation

The European Innovation Council (EIC) Board has called on Member States and regions to unlock the full potential of their national and regional innovation ecosystems by aligning existing funding instruments with the EIC’s support for start-ups and SMEs.

Since 2021, the EIC has evaluated over 10 000 companies, identifying leading deep tech innovators. However, due to limited budgets, many high-quality proposals—particularly in strategic areas like digital, life sciences, and clean technologies—remain unfunded. The EIC Board encourages Member States to bridge this gap by aligning national and regional funding with EIC support, in line with the Commission’s guidance on combining ERDF and Horizon Europe programmes.

In a new statement, the EIC Board identifies three proven models that allow countries and regions to support high-potential innovators by leveraging the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF), and national programmes:

• Transfer of ERDF funds to the EIC for direct management, as successfully demonstrated by Lithuania.
• Direct funding of EIC Seal of Excellence recipients as seen in Bulgaria, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, and Spain.
• The EIC Plug-In Scheme, allowing national programmes to nominate top-performing companies for fast-tracked access to EIC Accelerator.

“Member States have the tools to strengthen their innovation ecosystems and amplify the impact of the EIC. It’s time to turn funding synergies into start-up success stories,” said members of the EIC Board.

The Board calls on the European Commission to continue facilitating knowledge exchange and, on all stakeholders, to secure the best possible conditions for deep tech companies to thrive in Europe.