Open call for proposals Innovation projects
Horizon Europe · Cascade funding
Summary
A Polish company can use this call for R&D.
Companies advance creative-sector innovations from TRL 7 to market deployment through preparation funding and implementation projects requiring a commercialisation partner.
- Who can apply
- Companies can lead: startup, SME, large company, research org, university, other.
- Amount
- €900K per projectTotal budget €10,500,000
- Deadline
- 30 Oct 2026 18:00 CETin 6 days · +1 later cut-off
- Status
- Openopened 25 Sept 2026
Machine-classified from the call text; check eligibility at the source.
Description
The Innovation Projects call supports high-impact, close-to-market innovations at TRL 7, enabling their progression towards TRL 9 and full market deployment in the Architecture, Audio-Visual Media and Fashion sectors. Projects should demonstrate a credible commercialisation pathway and contribute to EIT Culture & Creativity objectives and KPIs, including market deployment and intellectual property generation.
Selected Stage 1 applicants receive a EUR 20,000 fixed lump sum during a six-week preparatory phase to develop a Business Development Plan covering areas such as market validation, IP and regulatory mapping and commercialisation strategy. Following Stage 2 evaluation, up to 11 projects may receive up to EUR 900,000 each for an 18-month implementation phase focused on technical development to TRL 9, validation and pilot deployment, market entry, commercialisation, investment readiness and scaling. EIT Culture & Creativity financial support may cover up to 70% of the eligible project costs used to establish the project-based lump sum.
Applicants may submit questions through the EIT Culture & Creativity Contact Form. Questions received during the submission period may be anonymised and published on the call webpage to ensure equal access to information.
An online information session will take place on 7 October 2026, 10:00–12:00 CEST, covering the call scope, topics, requirements, submission process and evaluation procedure. Registration is required and the session will be recorded and subsequently published on the EIT Culture & Creativity website. Applicants are encouraged to consult the call webpage regularly for updates.
Who can apply, in detail
- Applicant types
- Startup, SME, Large company, Research org, University, Other
- Purpose
- Research and innovation
- R&D relevance
- 3 of 3
- Poland eligible
- Yes
- Country limit
- Horizon Europe funding eligibility rules; Russia, Belarus and non-government-controlled territories of Ukraine generally excluded
- Region
- Any
- Consortium
- Required
- Readiness level (TRL)
- 7-9
- Per project
- €900K
- Topics
- Architecture
- Audiovisual media
- Fashion technology
- Pilot deployment
- Innovation commercialisation
Machine-classified from the call text; check eligibility at the source. 23 Oct 2026
Conditions
Typed facts extracted from the source documents by Scindu's grant-data review. Each value keeps its own conditions. Unknown means unstated, not zero or unlimited.
- Applicant restriction
- Entities established in Russia, Belarus or non-government-controlled territories of Ukraine are generally ineligible in any capacity; justified case-by-case exceptions may apply.
- Applicant restriction
- Research organisations, universities and cultural institutions may participate at Stage 2 when their contribution is primarily focused on commercialisation; they cannot be sole Stage 1 applicants.
- Applicant type
- Stage 1 applicant must be a single startup, scale-up, SME or larger company operating in or directly serving the three focus sectors.
- Consortium required
- Yes
Stage 2 consortium; participant 1 is the Stage 1 applicant/coordinator, participant 2 is the required commercialisation partner, participant 3 is optional.
- Eligible geography
- Funding eligibility follows Horizon Europe country rules. Other-country entities may be funded if EIT deems them essential; non-fundable entities may be associated partners where allowed.
- Other condition
- Applicants selected from Stage 1 receive a EUR 20,000 fixed lump sum as full pre-financing to prepare the Business Development Plan; this does not guarantee Stage 2 implementation funding.
- Other condition
- Project plan and budget must include at least three international trips per year for two participants and one consortium representative per year at an ecosystem event.
- Other condition
- Stage 2 funded projects must sign an RSA as FSM. The guide states 3.5%-5% of qualifying net commercialisation revenue for 48-60 months; specific terms are agreed with EIT.
- Other condition
- Applicants must demonstrate appropriate staffing and operational resources. The call gives no specific required hires, job titles, role qualifications, pay rates or employment terms.
- Other condition
- Stage 1 receives no financial support; it consists of submitting the initial short proposal.
- Other condition
- Stage 1 must meet each individual criterion threshold and score at least 23/30 overall.
- Other condition
- Stage 2 must meet individual criterion thresholds and score at least 70/90 overall before portfolio selection.
- Partner requirement
- The required Stage 2 commercialisation partner must bring demonstrable deployment, scaling or revenue capacity; the guide lists startups, scaleups, SMEs, larger companies, business support organisations, accelerators and industry associations.
Amounts and costs
- Indicative budget
- €10,500,000
Topic budget as stated in the portal's budget table. Lump-sum and per-project limits are in the call conditions.
- Call allocation
- €10,500,000
Maximum across preparatory and implementation phases; conditional on formal EIT approval.
- Call allocation
- €9,900,000
Implementation pool; up to 11 projects at EUR 900,000 each.
- Call allocation
- €600,000
Stage 2 preparatory pool; up to 30 projects at EUR 20,000 each.
- Eligible cost limit
- 30
Participant-level cap; the sentence also sets a distinct project-level cap of 15%.
- Eligible cost limit
- 15
Project-level cap; the sentence also sets a distinct participant-level cap of 30%.
- Funding intensity
- 70
Implementation phase only; remaining share comes from own resources or other eligible sources; rate is 70% for each participant.
- Ineligible cost
- Costs already funded by other EU programmes or sources cannot be reimbursed.
- Project funding, maximum
- €900,000
Stage 2 selected project only; up to 18 months.
Source documents
Call facts
- Opens
- 25 Sept 2026
- Deadlines
- 30 Oct 2026 18:00 CET
- 15 Mar 2027 18:00 CET
- Deadline model
- Multiple cut-off
- Programme
- Horizon Europe · 2021 - 2027
- Call
- Open call for proposals Innovation projects
- Types of action
- —
- Source
- ec.europa.eu
- Checked
- 24 Oct 2026
- Portal updated
- 14 Oct 2026
- Review status
- Partial review
- Reviewed
- 22 Oct 2026
This is a summary of the source page, not the official text. Eligibility, conditions and the submission system are at the source.