The instruments located in Pillar 3 of Horizon Europe focus on innovation and market uptake. These include the European Innovation Council (EIC), the "European Innovation Ecosystems" and the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT).

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The European Innovation Council (EIC) is designed to promote market-creating and breakthrough innovations, following the example of the European Research Council as the flagship of European research excellence. The three programme lines range from innovative technology research to market-oriented project funding and risk financing instruments. The aim is to bring innovations to market more quickly, thereby also creating growth and employment. The EIC is essentially made up of the following three complementary programme lines:

• The EIC Pathfinder (Open/Challenge) promotes excellence-oriented, high-risk projects at an early stage of development with the aim of opening up new fields of science and technology. It combines the FET (Future and Emerging Technologies) funding programmes "FET Open" (development of novel ideas) and "FET Proactive" (development of emerging themes and research landscapes). The programme is aimed at all types of organisations.
• EIC Transition (Open/Challenge) supports the validation of technologies and the creation of business plans developed under the EIT Pathfinder or ERC Proof of Concept.
• EIC Accelerator (Open/Challenge) is suitable for innovation and market launch activities as well as scale up. The programme thus replaces the SME instrument and is aimed exclusively at SMEs (especially start-ups), for the commercialisation of highly innovative and high-risk ideas.

Applicants can largely propose the topics of the projects themselves. Approximately
10 billion euro is available for the EIC in the years 2021 to 2027 and thus the main part of the third pillar budget.

The "European Innovation Ecosystems" pursue the goal of establishing a network between national and regional innovation ecosystems. The aim is to optimise the environment and framework conditions for the successful implementation of innovations. To this end, the EIC Forum will be set up to develop innovation-friendly legislation, jointly funded innovation programmes and support accompanying measures for innovators.

The European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) is committed to strengthening the EU's competitiveness and innovation capacity. This is to be achieved by bringing together the knowledge triangle of companies (business), R&D institutions (research) and educational institutions (education). To this end, autonomous Knowledge and Innovation Communities (KICs) are being established as cross-border partnerships between leading universities, research laboratories and companies. Their aim is to promote entrepreneurial thinking already among students and to bring innovative products, processes and services to the market through business start-ups. A KIC is a highly integrated public-private partnership that brings together outstanding business enterprises, universities and research institutes in centres of excellence. Each KIC has its own legal form (company, association).

The EIT clusters its work in so far 8 Knowledge and Innovation Communities on current global topics such as InnoEnergy, Climate, Digital, Health, Raw Materials, Food, Manufacturing and Urban Mobility. The TU Dresden with its Faculty of Transport Sciences "Friedrich List" is, for example, a member of the knowledge and innovation community "Urban Mobility".

Approximately 13.5 billion euro is available for the implementation of Pillar 3 in the period 2021 to 2027.

Terms of Funding

EIC Pathfinder

What is funded?

• Supporting early stages of technological development with the potential to realise disruptive innovations
• Exploring breakthrough technological ideas to the stage of demonstrators
• TRL 1 - 4

Who is funded?

• Consortia from all scientific disciplines and technology sectors (universities, research institutions SMEs, start-ups, natural persons, industrial partners)
• At least three partners from three different EU member states or associated countries

Eligible costs:

• Maximum funding amount expected to be 3,000,000 EUR (in justified cases also higher).
• Funding rate 100 % of eligible costs

Additional funding for further activities:

• Pathfinder projects can raise up to 50,000 EUR (usually three times) for additional steps towards commercialisation or for portfolio activities.
• Eligible additional activities should not already be included in the original application.
• Pathfinder projects receive free access to Business Acceleration Services.

EIC Transition

What is funded?

• Research activities to validate and demonstrate advanced technologies in relevant application environments
• At the same time, support for the commercialisation of these technologies, e.g. through the development of business plans Market analyses
• TRL 4 - 6

Who will be funded?

• Individual applicants (SMEs, spin offs, start-ups, research organisations, universities) or small consortia of max. 5 partner organisations.
• Important restriction Applications must be based on EIC Pathfinder /ERC PoC results.
• Interviews foreseen for application phase

Eligible costs:

• • Maximum funding amount expected to be 2,500,00 EUR (higher in justified cases).
  • Funding rate 100 % of eligible costs

Additional funding for further activities:

• • Transition projects can raise up to 50,000 EUR to realise additional portfolio activities.
  • Eligible additional activities should not already be included in the original proposal
  • Free access to Business Acceleration Services and Partnering Events

EIC Accelerator

What is funded?

• Innovations with high market potential and need for risk financing
• Innovation activities from TRL 5/6 as well as market introduction and growth (scale up)

Who is supported?

• Small and medium-sized enterprises from MS/AS (including start-ups and spin-outs)
• Natural person(s) or entities wishing to set up an SME in MS/AS.

Funding:

• Funding as mixed financing of grant and equity capital.

Official website

Funding & Tender Portal

Contact at EPC

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Head of Unit "Joint Research Activities" / EPC Contact Eng. Sc.

Name

Ms Katja Böttcher

Horizon Europe, EDF, Cooperations

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Contact Information

Organization Name

European Project Center

European Project Center

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