Discovery tool, not advice. Every figure is the published rule, not a decision on your case.

Grants

European Innovation Ecosystems - CONNECT and INNOVSMES strands

European Innovation Ecosystems (EIE)

Status

Status not published

Calls are published annually. One call open at verification: HORIZON-EIE-2026-03-CONNECT-01 (technology transfer offices), deadline 22 September 2026, 17:00 CET.

Check with the funder

Amount

Not published

Grants to direct beneficiaries cover 'up to 100% of costs (Coordination & Support Actions) or 30-50% for Co-funded actions'. No single per-project amount is published on the programme page. Startups are usually not direct beneficiaries: they benefit indirectly through cascade grants (financial support to third parties) redistributed by the funded intermediaries.

Funder

European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency (EISMEA), under Horizon Europe

public · supranational

Deadline: annual_call — Calls are published annually. One call open at verification: HORIZON-EIE-2026-03-CONNECT-01 (technology transfer offices), deadline 22 September 2026, 17:00 CET.

Your odds

Not published

This funder does not publish a success rate. We rank it using the rate observed across similar programmes and label it as an estimate rather than implying we know.

Effort

moderate

Moderate — a form and supporting documents.

Who can apply

Stage: pre_seed, seed, series_a
Locally registered entity required

Direct beneficiaries are 'national or regional innovation agencies, funding bodies, higher education institutions, research & technology organisations' and other intermediaries; 'Companies benefit indirectly through cascade grants'. This is a common trap for aggregators: EIE call pages are not startup application routes.

How to apply

Identify the relevant EIE strand (CONNECT for interconnected ecosystems; INNOVSMES, the European Partnership on Innovative SMEs, delivering Eurostars, Innowwide and Fast Track to EIC). — link
As a startup, look for cascade funding open calls run by EIE-funded projects rather than applying directly. — link
As an intermediary (agency, university, RTO), submit a consortium proposal via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal. — link

What you will need

Proposal Part A and Part B

Apply on the funder's site

Source. https://eismea.ec.europa.eu/programmes/european-innovation-ecosystems_en — checked 2026-08-14

"aims to create more connected, inclusive, and efficient innovation ecosystems and support the scaling of companies ... up to 100% of costs (Coordination & Support Actions) or 30–50% for Co-funded actions"