EU programmes · European Commission / European Innovation Council (EIC), managed by the European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency (EISMEA)
The EIC Accelerator is a flagship instrument under Horizon Europe (Pillar III) that provides grants, equity investment, and blended finance to individual SMEs and startups commercialising breakthrough deep-tech innovations at TRL 5–8. It operates via open calls and thematic challenge calls, with multiple application deadlines per year. Business Acceleration Services (coaching, investor access, ecosystem partners) complement direct financial support. From 2026, the programme is explicitly open to dual-use technologies and includes a dedicated STEP Scale-Up Defence call providing up to EUR 30m in direct equity for defence-critical scale-ups.
The EIC Accelerator is one of the largest single-company public funding mechanisms in Europe, combining non-dilutive grants with substantial equity tickets—making it highly relevant for capital-intensive deep-tech and dual-use defence companies that struggle to raise private rounds. The 2026 work programme marks a historic shift: for the first time an EU programme directly invests equity in defence companies via the STEP Scale-Up Defence call (EUR 100m envelope), opening a previously closed door for defence-tech SMEs. The streamlined application process (shorter forms, bi-monthly evaluations) further reduces the overhead cost of applying.
European Commission (DG DEFIS), with EUSPA and the EIF
Space is treated as dual-use across EU funding; CASSINI gives space-defence start-ups an equity pipeline and visibility instruments that stack with EDF and EUDIS applications.
European Investment Fund with the European Commission, under InvestEU
Not a programme you apply to as a company, but it determines which European VCs have fresh defence-mandated capital; track its fund commitments to know who can actually write you a cheque.
European Investment Bank Group
Debt, not grants: the EIB now finances defence companies that banks still avoid, and venture debt from its one-stop shop can extend runway without dilution once you have revenue or strong contracts.