What You Need To Know: EIC Accelerator Grant

The EIC Accelerator grant, part of the Horizon Europe funding framework, is one of the top funding mechanisms for European startups and SMEs building breakthrough innovations.

Companies can apply for a grant component of up to €2.5 million and an investment component of between €500,000 and €10 million. Irish companies have found success with the EIC Accelerator, accessing €64 million through the grant since 2021.

This guide for Irish companies takes you through the programme, how it works, who is eligible and what you need for success.

What is the EIC Accelerator?

The EIC Accelerator programme supports European companies developing and scaling up innovations with the potential to create or disrupt markets. The nature of the programme is to support high risk innovations which have the opportunity to impact society positively.

High-risk, high-impact innovations are the main target of the EIC Accelerator. These projects are too risky for traditional funding routes but have the potential to be transformative in their field. These projects need to be nearly market-ready, with just the final validation and commercialisation stages to get them onto the market.

Companies can apply for “grant only” (of up to €2.5 million) or “blended finance”, which includes an equity investment of up to €10 million. The funding supports up to 24 months of activity. Successful applicants will also get access to coaching, mentoring and Business Acceleration Services. The EIC Accelerator funds up to 70% of the project’s budget; the beneficiary must finance the other 30%.

The application consists of three steps which must be accepted in succession: a short proposal, a long proposal and a face-to-face interview with the EIC jury.

What are the eligibility criteria for the EIC Accelerator?

As a European funding mechanism, the EIC Accelerator is open to applications from EU member states and countries associated with the programme like Norway, Iceland and the UK.

Irish companies have always been able to apply for the EIC Accelerator and have had good success rates across the last five years, with 28 companies winning over €64 million in recent years.

You can apply as a single company, from startups and spinouts to small mid-caps. Small mid-caps (250-499 employees) can only apply for the investment component. People intending to incorporate can also apple.

The EIC Accelerator targets projects that are ripe for commercialisation but need funding to get them there. As such, your project must be at Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 6-8. TRL 6 means that proof of concept has been validated in a relevant environment; university spinouts are common applicants for this reason. Projects at TRL 7 have a system prototype validated in an operational environment. TRL 8 signifies your project is complete, tested and validated and ready for commercialisation.

Companies at TRL 9 (already at commercialisation stage) can apply for grant-only or equity-only funding to enable scaling.

Applicants with female CEOs are especially welcome to submit to the EIC Accelerator.

Importantly, applicants can only submit one application to the EIC Accelerator at a time. If you submit the same or an improved proposal to the EIC Accelerator (either Challenges or Open call) and it’s rejected three times at any stage, it’ll no longer be eligible to apply to the EIC Accelerator which runs through the end of 2027.

What types of projects of accepted?

The EIC Accelerator prioritises innovations that address critical societal challenges, including:

• Climate and energy transitions: Supporting green technologies and sustainable solutions aligned with the European Green Deal.
• Health and biotechnology: Driving advancements in medical technologies, pharmaceuticals, and digital health.
• Digital transformation: Accelerating developments in AI, quantum computing, robotics, and cybersecurity.

Each year, the EIC releases specific challenges and welcomes applications that address them. For 2026, the EIC is seeking solutions for the following challenges:

• Advanced materials for renewable energy and energy storage
• Biotech for agricultural soil regeneration
• Critical raw materials value chain
• Deep tech for climate adaptation
• Fusion power plant technologies

These challenges have a €50 million budget each, except for fusion power plant technologies, which has €20 million.

For projects that are transformative but not in the scope of the challenges, applicants can apply to the EIC Accelerator Open, designed for proposals in any field of science or technology. The overall budget for the open call in 2026 is €414 million.

How competitive is the EIC Accelerator?

With five years of data from the EIC Accelerator under the Horizon Europe programme, a few clear patterns have solidified.

Overall success rates remain stubbornly low. Long proposals-to-win rates are at 7% across 11,873 full applications submitted over five years.

It’s also getting harder to reach the final stages of the programme. In October 2025, only 13% of companies that submitted a long proposal made it to the jury interview.

However, with changes to the rules around the EIC Accelerator, especially limiting repeat applications, there’s been a decline in applicants. A more streamlined application pool is a good thing for your application.

With the amount of time and resources required to prepare your application, it’s important to be realistic about your chances. The EIC Accelerator is very competitive even amongst world-class projects. If your project doesn’t fit into the criteria of the programme, especially at an innovative level, you should consider alternative funding routes. But if your hurdle is not having the time to dedicate to your application, grant bid advisers like Myriad can help you structure and submit your proposal.

You can read more about the EIC Accelerator’s recent success rates in this blog: EIC Accelerator 2024 vs. 2025: What the Data Tells Us

What is the application process?

The process has three steps (a short proposal, a long proposal and a jury interview) and an applicant must have its proposal accepted at each step before proceeding to the next.

At all stages, the evaluators are assessing your proposal on excellence, impact and implementation:

• Excellence: Is the proposed innovation highly novel, deep tech breakthrough compared to existing solutions? Is the innovation at the cutting edge of new market, societal or technological trends?
• Impact: Is the innovation better than what the competition proposes? Does the innovation have the potential to develop new markets or significantly transform existing ones? Does it align with EU values and goals?
• Implementation: Does the team have the capability and motivation to implement the innovation proposal and bring it to the market? Is there a plan to acquire any critical competencies which are currently missing, including adequate gender balance?

Step 1 – Short Proposal

The Step 1 Short Proposal is the first stage of the application process, where applicants provide an overview of their innovation, its potential, and their company. Both the EIC and the applicant can assess at an early stage if the project is likely to qualify.

The Short Proposal is submitted through the EIC’s Funding and Tenders platform by filling in standard questions and then a 12-page narrative. Companies should answer questions about their team, potential market, and scientific breakthrough innovation, as well as provide a 10-slide pitch deck and a 3-minute video.

There is no deadline for the Step 1 Proposal; applicants can apply to Step 1 on a rolling basis. However, there is a deadline for Step 2, so aligning your Step 1 Proposal with the Step 2 cut-off you’re aiming for is the smart move. Step 1s accepted in 2025 can proceed in any of the calls in 2025 or 2026; those accepted in 2026 can apply to calls in 2026 or 2027.

Your evaluators will take between 4-6 weeks to review your proposal, starting from the first Tuesday of the month after your submission. If at least three of the four evaluators give you a GO, you can proceed to Step 2.

We recommend submitting your Step 1 with a minimum of 12 weeks before the cut-off you’re aiming for, to allow for the review of Step 1 and time for the preparation of Step 2.

You’ll receive feedback on the strengths and weaknesses of your application, which you can use to improve your proposal at Step 2. Step 1 should make it clear that the problem is genuine and widespread, the proposed solution is unique, the market is sizable, and the business model is sound.

Step 2 – Long Proposal

If your short proposal receives at least three GOs from the four evaluators, you can get started on your full proposal.

As with Step 1, Step 2 is submitted online using the Funding and Tenders portal. The Step 2 proposal is longer than Step 1, with 20 pages to fill in compared to the 12 of Step 1. A pitch deck (which will be used in Step 3, if approved) and a 3-minute video are also required, as well as various other data annexes.

Step 2 is judged on the same criteria, but your responses need to be much more in-depth. It’s important not to underestimate the Step 2 Proposal; we invite you to review the template application form, especially the Technical Description (Part B), to understand the level of detail required.

In 2026, the Step 2 application changed a little, reducing in size (from 50 pages to 20) but increasing in frequency of deadline. Where previously companies could only submit their Step 2 at two deadlines annually, there are now six deadlines a year.

Three new evaluators will review the application within 9 weeks. To move on to Step 3, you will need three unanimous GOs from the evaluators.

Step 3 – Jury Interview

If you receive three unanimous GOs at Step 2, you will be invited to an interview with a jury panel of 4-6 industry experts, either in-person in Brussels or remotely via video conference. These interviews are organised three times a year.

The interview lasts 45 minutes, including a 10-minute pitch using the pitch deck from Step 2 and a 35-minute Q&A session. Three representatives should be at the interview, from your company’s employed staff, board members and investors.

You can expect your result within 2-3 weeks. The decision is voted on by the jury and is a consensus. If successful, you’ll be invited to negotiate a grant agreement. If unsuccessful, you’ll usually receive a Seal of Excellence, demonstrating that the proposal was considered strong enough to reach the jury stage. The Seal of Excellence can help you get funding from other sources and access to EIC Business Acceleration Services.

EIC Accelerator Success Stories

For an idea of the variety of projects that are funded, check out some of these recent winners. These projects span life sciences, AI and data platforms and climate technology.

• Luminate Medical (€7.5m, Ireland): Luminate Medical is a Galway-based spin-out company from the University of Galway. The company's mission is to deliver cancer treatment in patients' homes, including the funded project LILY. Their wearable cap uses compression therapy to prevent chemotherapy-induced hair loss.
• Hooke Bio (€5.5m, Ireland): Hooke Bio developed Mera, a groundbreaking “body-on-a-chip” solution that simulates the entire human body’s response to drugs. Unlike existing models that mimic just single organs, Mera offers a holistic approach, reducing the need for animal testing.
• Butterfly Medical (€16.5m, Israel): Butterfly Medical is developing a fast, simple, and minimally invasive alternative treatment to medication and surgery used for Benign Prostate Hyperplasia treatment. Butterfly’s innovative device transfers the procedure from the operating room to the clinic, with the device being placed in 6 to 8 minutes, under local anaesthesia.
• Ore Energy (€8.5m, Netherlands): A climate tech company developing ultra-cheap long-duration energy storage systems, based on very abundant materials: iron, water and air. Compared to other state-of-the-art electrochemical storage systems such as Li-ion batteries, our batteries can supply energy for days instead of just a few hours at an unbeatable cost. They are also the only truly scalable batteries.
• Hyperion Robotics (€11m, Finland): Concrete accounts for 8% of global CO2 emissions. Hyperion offers a breakthrough technology: a green, carbon-negative 3D printable concrete. Hyperion’s technology can reduce the CO2 emissions of concrete element production by 100%, offering it at 50% of today’s cost of 3D printable concretes.
• AURA AERO (€17.5m, France): ERA is a hybrid electric aircraft, propelled by electric engines that are powered by batteries and turbogenerators. ERA matches the most advanced needs of the market and will allow exploitation for decades. Depending on the configuration, ERA covers distances from 400km up to 1500km.
• Mifundo OÜ (€9m, Estonia): Today's bank lending is country-based and there is no solution available across the EU, making cross-border borrowing almost impossible. Mifundo is developing the first cross-border AI and data platform, providing a technology layer to passport credit histories across borders through one single API.
• Melt&Marble (€7.5m, Sweden): Melt&Marble specialises in developing exceptional fats for plant-based foods. More than 60% of dietary proteins are supplied by animals whose farming takes up ~77% of all agricultural land despite supplying only 17% of the world’s calories. Melt&Marble have created a scalable, precision-fermentation-based proprietary technology platform, using engineered yeasts that produce animal-like fats with superior functionality and flavour. The fats have lower saturated fats levels (40-60% vs. 90% of coconut oil) and better functionality than coconut oil to impart a better taste.

Tips for a Successful Application

At Myriad, we know a thing or two about compelling applications for the EIC Accelerator. We've worked with companies on over 30 winning proposals and have learned some key points you need to bear in mind when preparing your application.

First, it’s important to give a clear narrative in all stages of your proposal. This may result in some repetition, but it’s critical to make your case as robust as possible. Establish the main points of your case and hammer them home. This could be cost savings, market size, improvements to users’ lifestyles or efficiency in comparison to existing market solutions, or a mix of a few of these, but it must be transformational and it must be clear as a bell.

You shouldn’t understate the business case. Scalability and commercial success are as important as societal benefit. The EIC Accelerator funds projects on the cusp of commercialisation but that are still too risky for traditional funding routes. However, that doesn’t mean that Horizon Europe doesn’t care about the return on investment; their funding mechanisms are meant to propel European innovation and improve the lives of people living in Europe and globally. Having a realistic financial plan and a credible team to implement your scaling strategy is crucial to showing that you can deliver.

Getting to Step 2 and Step 3 allows applicants to use external expertise to make their proposal attractive. Don’t miss out on coaching and mentoring opportunities of the EIC Accelerator. With competitive funding streams, use all the help you can. Even if you ultimately don’t receive funding, the guidance you receive from EIC’s experts will help you in your continued search for funding.

Can you combine the EIC Accelerator with Ireland's R&D Tax Credit?

Yes. The EIC Accelerator grant and Ireland's R&D tax credits are separate schemes serving different purposes, and Irish companies can run both alongside each other.

The R&D tax credit rewards qualifying research and development activity, while the EIC Accelerator is a competitive grant that funds the scaling of a specific innovation project. Claiming one does not prevent you from accessing the other.

The one area to watch is cost overlap. If EIC grant funding has already covered a specific cost, that same cost cannot also be claimed under the R&D tax credit. In practice, this means keeping clear records of which expenditure is grant-funded and which is not, so that your R&D tax credit claim reflects only eligible costs. This is worth discussing this with an adviser before submitting a claim.

Applying for Funding

The EIC Accelerator is indispensable when it comes to the EU’s transformation towards a healthier, more innovative and sustainable vision. The EIC Accelerator encourages innovative SMEs to seize the opportunity for large-scale market transformation.

At Myriad, we have over 30 wins at EIC and have been ranked #1 in European grant funding applications three times. We’ve supported some of the EIC Accelerator’s biggest success stories to scale their projects. If you have a project that you know could change the world for the better, get in touch with our team.