The EIC Accelerator is the most impactful and coveted funding instrument that the EC has at its disposal to fund high-risk deep-tech innovation. The funding decisions made by the EIC in the coming years will durably shape the future of European deeptech, with €7 billion currently allocated to the EIC Accelerator to fuel the next European champions in strategic domains such as quantum, bioinformatics, high-performance computing, cybersecurity, cleantech, healthcare, etc.

As part of the revamp of the EU Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) presented in June by the European Commission, the EIC is now in line for an extra €2.6 billion for the Accelerator programme to provide, via the EIC Fund, additional equity funding of €15-50 million to support scale-up of companies in three strategic areas: deeptech, cleantech and biotech.

The EAIC commends the European Commission for this proposed reallocation of budget as access to sufficient capital post-initial funding will allow the selected scale-ups to continue their R&D efforts, scale their operations, and maintain a steady growth trajectory without resorting to non-European investors.

However, early-stage startups are not targeted by this new EIC Fund compartment: they will have to rely on the normal EIC Accelerator budget, which will see a significant decrease in 2024, from €1.09 billion in 2023, to €563 million in 2024 available for new EIC Accelerator laureates.  

​We are pleased to announce the election of our new Executive Board during the Annual General Meeting held on 26-27 June 2023. The elected board members will play a pivotal role in guiding the association's strategic direction, representing the interests of its members, and driving initiatives to foster growth and innovation within the industry.

​The newly elected Board comprises accomplished professionals with diverse backgrounds and extensive experience in Innovation Consulting. EAIC congratulates the following individuals on their election:

• Luc Ragon, CEO,  Benkei, France – EAIC President
• Xavier Aubry, Founder & Managing Partner, Zaz Ventures, Belgium
• Nathalie Brossier, General Delegate, Association des Conseils en Innovation (ACI), France
• Alicja Grzegorzek, Co-Founder, Polite Europe, Poland
• Irene Larroy, Partner, Ernst & Young (EY), Spain
• Marie Latour, European Affairs Director, Euro-Funding, Spain Louis Papaemmanuel, Managing Partner, My EU Consulting, Belgium
• Virginie Robin, CEO, Euronovia, France
• Diego Soro, Executive Partner, Soros Gabinete, Andorra
• Apostolina (Lina) Tsaltampasi, CEO, OECON Group, Greece
• Eeva Viinikka, Principal Consultant, Spinverse Oy, Finland
• Magdalena Zawadzka, Partner, Crido, Poland

The newly elected Executive Board members will collaborate closely with the association's secretariat to increase awareness of the benefits that EAIC members deliver to the European research and innovation ecosystem and advance the innovation consulting industry in Europe.  
 
The Executive Board would also like to express gratitude to the outgoing President, Pekka Koponen, and members for their significant contributions and tireless efforts in advancing the goals of EAIC. Their commitment has been instrumental in positioning the association as a prominent voice within the industry.