EIC selects 27 projects to receive funding; 3 are from the Netherlands

The European Innovation Council (EIC) has announced that 27 projects have been selected from the September 2023 EIC Transition cut-off. Out of the total, three are from the Netherlands.

These successful proposals were chosen from 257 eligible submissions and will each receive a grant of up to €2.5M. Participants from 16 EU Member States and Horizon Europe-associated countries have been selected.

EIC Transition funding provides additional funding for successful projects previously funded by EIC Pathfinder, FET (Future and Emerging Technologies), and European Research Council Proof of Concept.

Transition Challenges provided support to predefined thematic areas to achieve specific objectives, while the Open funding scheme awarded projects without predefined thematic priorities.

The selected projects will receive EIC Business Acceleration Services, including coaching, mentoring, and partnering events. They are also eligible for the fast-track scheme to access the EIC Accelerator to support commercialisation and scaling-up phases.

According to EIC, the 27 selected projects consist of:

• 12 under the Open funding;
• 10 under the “Micro-Nano Bio devices” Challenge;
• 1 under the “Environmental Intelligence” Challenge;
• 4 under the “Chip-scale optical frequency combs” Challenge.

EIC: Supporting game-changing innovation

The European Innovation Council (EIC) has been established under the EU Horizon Europe programme. 

It has a budget of €10.1B to support game-changing innovations throughout the lifecycle from early-stage research, to proof of concept, technology transfer, and the financing and scale-up of start-ups and SMEs.

Under the 2024 work programme, the next cut-off date for EIC Transition applications is 18 September. 

We have listed some innovative projects and companies from the Netherlands selected in the current cut-off. You can check out the entire list of 27 startups here.

Scope Biosciences

HQ: Wageningen

Proposal: SCOPE – Leveraging CRISPR-Cas fast and accurate point-of-care diagnostics. 

Scope Biosciences develops CRISPR-Cas-based molecular diagnostics based on the pioneering work of Professors John van der Oost and Raymond Staals at Wageningen University. CRISPR-Cas is widely known for its precise gene editing capabilities. It enables bio-engineers, scientists, and experts to rapidly and accurately detect genetic materials for molecular diagnostics of infectious diseases, genotyping, and other applications.

Flowbeam

HQ: Enschede

Proposal: iSENS – Integrated needle-free injection and sensing using opto-microfluidics. 

FlowBeams is developing a needle-free injection technology that promises to transform multiple industries, including pharmaceutics and cosmetics. Through this solution, the Dutch company aims to address the shortcomings associated with traditional needle-based methods, which include needle phobia, environmental pollution, and safety concerns.

Sync Biosystems

HQ: Leiden

Proposal: Dypha – Adding the dimension of time to cell culture, a process by which cells are grown under controlled conditions outside of their natural environment. 

Sync Biosystems was founded in 2022 to improve biological assays with advanced engineering. Its goal is to bring Organs-on-Chips and Microphysiological Systems to real-world applications. They create a bridge between in vitro biology, microfluidics, and mechatronics, making drug testing and disease modeling easier and more reliable.