EIT Digital is a Knowledge and Innovation Community of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT). Co-funded by the European Union (EU), EIT Digital builds the next generation of digital ventures, products, and services. In less than a year, the EIT Digital Venture Program takes you from idea to investment. Starting with a brilliant idea to a technical Minimum Viable Product (MVP), testing it on the market, and raising additional funding — with each accomplishment you unlock further benefits. Continue reading to explore what the 6th edition, EIT Digital Venture Program 2023, has in store for you and why you should apply right away. Applications close on 16th April!
Learn all About the Program Directly from EIT Digital Venture Program’s Lead, Mirko Tadic
We spoke to Mirko Tadic, EIT Digital Venture Program’s Lead, to provide you with all the information you need to apply for the program.
What differentiates this year’s program from its previous editions? Anything new?
Yes! The program keeps growing! In our 2023 edition, we have opened our program to 3 new regions. Teams based in Italy, Spain, and Hungary are now welcome to apply. With the addition of these three major markets, the EIT Digital Venture Program is now accepting applications from residents of 22 European countries (see list below).
What is in store for the winners of the program?
Selected teams will be offered an intensive eight-week pre-acceleration program; they will be coached, in particular, on how to develop their MVP, establish their startup company, and raise funds with investors.
At the final Pitch Days, teams will get the chance to validate their business solution by presenting it in front of early-stage investors, potential clients, and experts from the tech community.
All teams will receive an initial €5,000 tranche of support, to which €10,000 will be added for those who complete the program and incorporate their startup. Finally, the first ten ventures to raise at least €50,000 in funding from private investors by the end of November will be entitled to an additional prize of €10,000, bringing EIT Digital Venturd’s total support to €25,000.
Does EIT Digital Venture work with regional partners? If yes, could you mention a few?
Yes, we do! In Italy, Spain, and Hungary, the Venture Program will be executed with the support of Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (Spain), Dock3 (Italy) and Lunar (Hungary), which join a pre-existing group of seven regional partners: Found.ation in Greece, Techcelerator in Romania, KTP in Poland, JIC in Czech Republic and Slovakia, BGI in Portugal, University of Ljubljana (SEB) in Slovenia and LIC in Lithuania.
Who is eligible to apply for the program?
To apply for the EIT Digital Venture Program 2023, you must be:
- A multidisciplinary team of at least two individuals with an innovative business idea, PoC, or prototype in the fields of Digital Industry, Digital Tech, Digital Wellbeing, Digital Finance, or Digital Cities.
- A non-legal entity.
- Resident of any of the following 22 countries — Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Turkey, Ukraine.
Dive into EIT Digital Venture Program’s Successful Track Record
Since its launch 6 years ago, EIT Digital Venture has supported more than 200 entrepreneurs and launched 124 startups — several of which have quickly raised investment and signed outstanding clients.
At the end of September 2022, 31 teams from Central and Eastern Europe, the Baltics, and Southern Europe completed the pre-acceleration stage of the EIT Digital Venture Program. After developing their Minimum Viable Product and incorporating their startup, the teams started engaging with private investors. Less than 3 months later, 10 of them have raised close to €870,000 in private funding.
Some of the winning teams are:
Moreover, this is what some of the previous winners had to say about EIT Digital Venture Program:
“EIT Digital gave a chance to narrow down the business strategy and focus on product building.”
— Nikita Stepanovs, founder, Suhona AI
“The support of the EIT Digital Venture Program of 2022 led us to establishing our legal entity and transferred significant cross-domain experience towards the successful realization of our vision.”
— Christos PANAGIOTOU, Founder & CTO, Terra Plus
Submit Your Application in a Few Easy Steps
You fulfill the eligibility criteria and are excited about the program? Great! Follow these simple steps and apply by 16th April!
- Carefully go through the rules and regulations for application.
- Visit the application page.
- Select your country of residence.
- Describe your team.
- Explain the business model, the technology underlying your product/solution, and your innovative idea.
- Upload your pitch deck.
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