EU Accelerator Pilot: funding, coaching, and mentorship for innovative enterprises

This is a programme for high-potential innovative small or medium-sized enterprises that need the last push before scaling up. You will receive the funding and coaching to bring to market new product, service or business model that could shape new markets or disrupt existing ones.

You can receive a grant of up to EUR 2 500,000 and equity of up to EUR 15 000,000 to spend on prototyping, miniaturisation, scaling-up, design, performance verification, testing, demonstration, development of pilot lines, validation for market replication, including other activities aimed at bringing innovation to investment readiness and maturity for market take-up.

This opportunity is only one of the many opportunities for Ukrainians offered by the EU within Horizon 2020 Framework Programme.

Learn more information

What do I get?

Funding needed to scale-up your idea. You can choose between a grant (EUR 500,000-EUR 2 500,000) and blended finance (combining grant of up to EUR 2 500,00 and and equity of up to EUR 15 000,000).
The opportunity to receive up to 12 days of business coaching facilitated by the Enterprise Europe Network to help your business scale up and grow. Coaching covers business development, organisational development, cooperation, and financing.
The opportunity to receive mentoring to develop leadership skills such as resilience, tenacity and strategic insight.
Other advantages including training, links to investors, public and private procurers of innovation, partnering and networking with other beneficiaries, help with accessing new markets through participation in overseas trade fairs and links with investors.

Can I apply?

Organisers welcome innovative small and medium-sized enterprises from all sectors that:

Are for-profit
Are legally established in the EU, Ukraine, Iceland, Norway, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Turkey, Israel, Moldova, Switzerland, Faroe Islands, Tunisia, Georgia, or Armenia
Have their projects underpinned by a sound and strategic business plan

What do I need to apply?

Filled in proposal template describing the the innovation and how it meets the criteria of the call
Annexes 1–3 providing the information requested for ethics and security along with CVs for team members and other supporting documents
Annex 4 providing financial and corporate information in a spreadsheet
Pitch-desk providing a high-level overview of the various aspects of the proposal for expert-evaluators and that will also be used for the jury interview if the proposal goes through to the second step of the evaluation process

While preparing your proposal please follow the structure and provide the information detailed in these templates.

How do I apply?

Good to know

The evaluation of proposals happens both remotely and face-to-face (via an interview) by two panels of independent experts.
If the activity concerns a primarily technological innovation, a Technology Readiness Level (TRL) will be checked. Activities of a TRL above 8 can only be financed by blended finance option. Grant component will only apply to the activities with a TRL of 5/6 to 8
For non-technological innovation you should provide an equivalent to TRL.
Duration of the project is typically around 1 to 2 years.

EU Accelerator Pilot: funding, coaching, and mentorship for innovative enterprises

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