Every startup that needs funding and investment to develop its project, has its best shot with the EIC accelerator. But let’s start from the basis: 

What is the EIC accelerator 

“The EIC Accelerator supports individual Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), in particular Startups and spinout companies to develop and scaleup game-changing innovations. In some cases small mid-caps (up to 500 employees) are supported.” 

[Source: https://eic.ec.europa.eu/eic-funding-opportunities/eic-accelerator_en]

It provides substantial financial support with up to €2.5 million grant funding and direct equity investments up to €15 million managed by the EIC Fund for scale-up and other relevant costs. 

In addition to this, the companies that the EIC will select will benefit from coaching, mentoring, access to investors and corporates, and many other opportunities as a result of being part of the EIC community. 

All companies based in one of the EU countries are eligible to apply, or those associated with the Horizon Europe programme, especially startups and SMEs with female CEOs. 

The 155 pages EIC Work Programme can be downloaded from the Website: 

https://eic.ec.europa.eu/eic-funding-opportunities/eic-accelerator_en 

Those who wish to apply for the EIC Accelerator can do that any time through the EIC official platform: 

https://accelerator.eismea.eu/login?ReturnUrl=%2F 

But in order to do this, each candidate has to present a video pitch, a slide deck and respond to a short set of questions about your innovative idea and the team that currently works to develop it. 

Once the commission evaluates the proposal and decides that the application meets the criteria to access the funding – this process usually takes around four weeks – the candidate will have to prepare a full application to submit to one of the cut-off dates for Accelerator Open or Accelerator Challenge funding. 

The full application will be assessed by experts and if meets the criteria once again, the candidate will be invited to the face-to-face interview with an EIC jury as the final step in the selection process. 

The EIC Accelerator Open funding is for breaking through innovations in any field of technology and application, while the EIC Accelerator Challenge funding targets breakthrough innovations with major impacts on Strategic aDigital and Health technologies and  Green Deal innovations for the economic recovery. 

Also, 

Applications that meet all the criteria at the remote evaluation stage and are assessed positively by the EIC jury but not recommended for funding, will be awarded a Seal of Excellence to help them secure funding from other sources. Companies with a Seal of Excellence can also get support from EIC Business Acceleration Services. To be eligible for a Seal of Excellence you must give consent to sharing some basic information about your application with other funding and support organizations. 

Who are the experts that will evaluate the projects? 

Independent evaluators with different profiles will be in charge of deciding the sort of each proposal. All of them are carefully chosen to guarantee that each proposal is assigned to the right professional with adequate knowledge, technology, and/or sector expertise, as well, of course, like business and finance competence. 

In the first two stages of the selection process, the evaluation will be led by remote experts while, later on in the process, the proposals will be assessed by the EIC jury members. 

The list of the EIC jury members is available here: 

https://eic.ec.europa.eu/eic-jury-members_en 

Why consulting is needed: 

As you have learned from the paragraph above, preparing a satisfactory proposal is complicated. The first impression is vital and every candidate must possess a strong and convincing proposal to present: not only is it important to have a catchy video pitch and an exhaustive slide deck, but they will also need to answer a set of questions to explain the project and the team that will work on it. 

Having a good idea is not enough to obtain the funds needed. 

The first phase of the evaluation is only the beginning of the process: every candidate will have to practice their skill, therefore it is fundamental to have professionals coaching your journey to obtain the funds. 

The candidate must carry out a brilliant interview in order to pass the final evaluation, for which practicing is also fundamental. 

WHY CHOOSING AFS? 

Again, let’s start with the basis: 

  • Andriotto Financial Services team is an official advisors of the European Commission for Horizon 2020
  • AFS has a Centre of Excellence in Switzerland with some of the most skilled EU grant specialists, writing a successful proposal and supporting clients during the different implementation phases
  • AFS evaluate and select the best projects and enterprises around Europe to receive public funding
  • Our client portfolio includes some of the most important public institutions in Italy and in Europe
  • Participating in Horizon 2020 is an ambitious challenge; however, we have one of the highest success rates between our European competitors.

Down below, you can learn more about the individual services: 

https://www.andriotto.com/what-we-do/ 

How to know if the project is eligible for the consulting service: 

After filling an evaluation form with basic info about the company or the startup idea, our expert will send a feedback. If positive, then the company could be eligible for the funds and thus start a collaboration with AFS. 

The team of AFS is formed by professionals and experts that will coach each candidate throughout the whole process of application to the Horizon Europe Programme, helping the company with the description of the project, the pitch, and the video presentation. 

Once we move onto phase two of the proposal, AFS will also help the company with all the required elements, with the registration of the company in the register of beneficiaries of the European Commission and the presentation of the proposal itself.  

Throughout the whole journey, AFS will provide full support, coaching, and interview simulations with our European consultants.  

Besides, Mauro Andriotto, the CEO of the company, has great experience with the European Commission since he has been a jury member himself for the Horizon 2020 program. He personally worked with the European Commission from 2020 to 2021 as a jury member of EIC program. He also sits in different Advisory Boards around the world and he is the author of scientific publications in finance and risk management and he is a former quantitative leader at EY for the South Europe area. 

His impressive experience, and the team’s contribution – a heterogeneous ensemble with different experiences in several industries, of PhDs, MBAs, entrepreneurs, professors, bankers, engineers, big-4 consultants, executives, lawyers and professionists -, will certainly grant a top-of-the-line service.  

You can find more info about the AFS team here: 

https://www.andriotto.com/team/ 

HOW TO CONTACT AFS: https://www.andriotto.com/contact/