European Innovation Council allocates €1.8 billion for startups and deep tech in 2027

The European Commission has adopted the 2027 Work Programme of the European Innovation Council (EIC), setting aside €1.8 billion for deep tech startups, scale-ups and researchers across Europe. The EIC is an EU body that funds innovative technologies from early-stage research through to commercialisation. The programme is the last EIC funding package under Horizon Europe, the EU's research and innovation framework for 2021–2027. It also aims to improve access to investment for women-led and defence technology companies.

Access to capital

A large part of the programme concerns growth capital. It completes the €1 billion commitment to the Scaleup Europe Fund, which was launched in 2026 and is managed by the investment firm EQT. The fund seeks to attract at least €4 billion from other investors and to back European technology companies with investments averaging more than €100 million. In parallel, the EIC will keep supporting startups through its STEP Scale Up scheme, aimed at companies developing strategic technologies.

The 2027 programme also completes the allocation of €200 million for defence investments and €25 million for the Advanced Innovation Challenges pilot, both introduced in 2026. These measures belong to the EU Startup and Scaleup Strategy and the Competitiveness Compass.

Women-led startups and first customers

Under a redesigned Women TechEU initiative, individual grants will double to €150,000. A new European Prize for Women Innovators in Quantum will complement the existing European Prize for Women Innovators.

EIC-backed startups will also get help finding their first customers: new measures will link them with public and private procurers so they can test emerging technologies. Support for dual-use and defence technologies continues, and the Commission intends to reduce administrative complexity.

Results so far

The EIC was established in 2021 with a budget above €10 billion for 2021–2027. It has supported more than 800 companies and nearly 700 research projects. Its investment arm, the EIC Fund, has put close to €2 billion into more than 375 deep tech startups, attracting roughly 3.5 times that amount in co-investment.

Ekaterina Zaharieva, European Commissioner for Startups, Research and Innovation, said the programme puts the Startup and Scaleup Strategy into action by mobilising more capital, stimulating customer deals and cutting complexity.