Women Tech.EU initiative

The Women TechEU initiative is part of Horizon Europe and aims to support early-stage women-led deep-tech startups across EU Member States and Horizon Europe Associated Countries. The program targets startups established for at least six months and co-founded or led by women in top management roles such as CEO or CTO. The funding provided is a non-dilutive grant of €75,000 per startup, with a total budget of €15 million allocated for the year 2025.

The initiative seeks to enhance gender representation in tech, specifically focusing on deep-tech sectors including artificial intelligence, biotechnology, sustainable energy, and more. The application process is open and follows a single-stage submission format, with the call opening on April 1, 2025, and closing on September 2, 2025.

Applications can be submitted by consortia, which are expected to allocate at least 75% of their budget to financial support for the startups, ensuring a minimum of 151 grants will be distributed. In addition to financial aid, applicants will also receive non-monetary support such as mentoring and coaching through the Business Acceleration Services.

Successful applicants are meant to utilize the grants for product or service evaluations, business model improvements, and market validation. The program is positioned to not only provide immediate financial assistance but also to prepare startups for further funding opportunities like the EIC Accelerator.

The call emphasizes transparency, equal treatment, and clear communication throughout all stages, with requirements for publicizing proposals and outcomes according to EU standards. The overall goal of this initiative is to bridge the gender gap in the tech sector, foster innovation, and cultivate a diverse startup ecosystem.

The HORIZON-EIC-2025-WOMENTECH call, under the Horizon Europe program, aims to implement the Women TechEU initiative. This initiative supports early-stage women-led deep-tech startups, addressing the gender gap in the tech industry and fostering a more diverse startup ecosystem across Europe. The call falls under the HORIZON-CSA (Coordination and Support Actions) type of action with a budget of 15,000,000 EUR for the year 2025. The call adopts a single-stage submission process, opening on April 1, 2025, and closing on September 2, 2025, at 17:00:00 Brussels time. Approximately 151 grants are expected to be awarded.

The selected consortium is expected to ensure the sound design, organization, and management of Women TechEU, implement calls for proposals, organize proposal evaluations, and award support to successful applicants, using the same evaluation criteria as the EIC Accelerator where appropriate. It also involves creating linkages with the Business Acceleration Services (BAS) for the Women Leadership Programme and EIC Community Platform, implementing project reviews for awardees to access the Fast Track to the EIC Accelerator, communicating and promoting the scheme, organizing landmark events, promoting cooperation among women entrepreneurs in deep tech, promoting diversity in geographical participation and technological areas, and reporting on the scheme's implementation to the European Commission.

The Women TechEU initiative supports European early-stage deep tech start-ups registered and established in an EU Member State or Horizon Europe Associated Country for at least six months at the time of submission. These start-ups must be founded or co-founded by women holding a top management position such as CEO, CTO, or CSO. All deep tech domains are eligible, with emphasis on gender balance within the start-up. The call supports companies that have not received substantial financial support previously.

The project duration should be considered for two years, with a possible one-year extension based on achieving key milestones. The consortium should plan for at least two calls for proposals each calendar year and is encouraged to consider multiple cut-off dates. Proposals should include a strong promotion and communication strategy, branding the scheme as an EIC initiative through various channels like information events, press events, and roadshows, especially in underrepresented Member States.

The consortium will provide financial support to third parties in the form of grants, allocating at least 75% of the total proposed budget to this support. The maximum grant amount for each third party is EUR 75,000. These grants should finance activities such as evaluating and refining products/services, design, user experience, upgrading business models, updating business plans, growth strategies, finding partners and investors, and market validation. Women TechEU third parties will also be eligible for mentoring and coaching under the Women Leadership Programme provided by the BAS.

Admissibility conditions, proposal page limits, eligible countries, other eligible conditions, financial and operational capacity, exclusion criteria, award criteria, submission and evaluation processes, indicative timeline, and legal and financial setup are detailed in Annex 2 of the EIC Work Programme 2025. The granting authority can fund a maximum of one project.

Specific conditions for financial support to third parties include publishing open calls widely, adhering to EU standards for transparency, equal treatment, conflict of interest, and confidentiality. All calls must be published on the Funding & Tenders Portal and beneficiaries' websites, remain open for at least two months, and any changes to submission deadlines must be announced promptly. Projects must publish the outcomes of the calls, including descriptions of third-party projects, award dates, durations, legal names, and countries of establishment. The calls must also have a clear European dimension.

Application and evaluation forms are available in the Submission System, along with standard application and evaluation forms. Guidance is provided in the HE Programme Guide and Model Grant Agreements (MGA). Additional documents include the HE Main Work Programme 2023-2025, HE Framework Programme 2021/695, HE Specific Programme Decision 2021/764, EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509, rules for legal entity validation, LEAR appointment, financial capacity assessment, EU Grants AGA, Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual, Terms and Conditions, and Privacy Statement.

Partner search announcements are available, and LEARs, Account Administrators, and self-registrants can publish partner requests. Support is available through the Online Manual, Horizon Europe Programme Guide, Funding & Tenders Portal FAQ, Research Enquiry Service, National Contact Points (NCPs), Enterprise Europe Network, IT Helpdesk, European IPR Helpdesk, CEN-CENELEC Research Helpdesk, ETSI Research Helpdesk, and the European Charter for Researchers.

In summary, this call is a significant opportunity for consortia to implement the Women TechEU initiative, providing crucial support and funding to early-stage, women-led deep tech startups across Europe. It aims to address the gender gap in the tech industry, promote diversity, and enhance the competitiveness of women-led companies, ultimately paving the way for their participation in future EIC calls. The selected consortium will be responsible for managing the initiative, organizing calls for proposals, evaluating applications, providing financial support, and offering mentoring and coaching opportunities to the selected startups. The call emphasizes transparency, equal treatment, and a clear European dimension in all activities.

Eligible Applicant Types: The eligible applicant type for this opportunity is a consortium.

Funding Type: The primary financial mechanism is a grant, with financial support to third parties in the form of grants.

Consortium Requirement: A consortium of multiple applicants is required.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The geographic eligibility for the Women TechEU initiative itself is for early-stage deep tech start-ups registered and established in an EU Member State or Horizon Europe Associated Country. The call for proposals to implement the Women TechEU initiative is open to consortia.

Target Sector: This program targets the deep tech sector, with all deep tech domains being eligible. It specifically aims to support women entrepreneurs in the deep tech field.

Mentioned Countries: EU Member States and Horizon Europe Associated Countries are mentioned as the geographic scope for the start-ups that will be supported by the initiative.

Project Stage: The project stage targeted is early-stage deep tech startups.

Funding Amount: The total budget for the HORIZON-EIC-2025-WOMENTECH call is EUR 15,000,000. The maximum amount to be granted to each third party (women-led deep tech startup) by the selected consortium is EUR 75,000.

Application Type: The application type is an open call, with a single-stage submission process.

Nature of Support: Beneficiaries (women-led deep tech startups) will receive money in the form of grants. They will also receive non-monetary services such as mentoring and coaching through the Business Acceleration Services (BAS) Women Leadership Programme.

Application Stages: The application process is single-stage.

Success Rates: The indicative number of grants to be awarded is around 151.

Co-funding Requirement: The information provided does not explicitly state a co-funding requirement for the consortium applying to implement the Women TechEU initiative. However, the consortium must allocate at least 75% of the total proposed budget to financial support to third parties.

Summary:

This opportunity, HORIZON-EIC-2025-WOMENTECH, is a call for proposals under the Horizon Europe program, specifically targeting the implementation of the Women TechEU initiative. The Women TechEU initiative aims to support early-stage women-led deep-tech startups by addressing the gender gap in the tech industry and fostering a more diverse startup ecosystem across Europe. The selected consortium will be responsible for designing, organizing, and managing the Women TechEU initiative, including implementing calls for proposals, evaluating applications, awarding support to successful applicants, creating linkages with relevant business acceleration services, implementing project reviews, promoting the scheme, organizing events, fostering cooperation among women entrepreneurs, promoting diversity in participation, and reporting to the European Commission.

The call is open to consortia, and the selected consortium will receive a grant to implement the Women TechEU initiative. A significant portion of the budget (at least 75%) must be allocated to financial support for third parties, which are the women-led deep tech startups. These startups can receive a maximum of EUR 75,000 each to finance activities such as product/service evaluation, design, user experience improvements, business model upgrades, business plan development, finding partners and investors, and market validation. The supported startups will also have access to mentoring and coaching through the Business Acceleration Services Women Leadership Programme. The project duration is expected to be two years, with a possible one-year extension. The call for proposals has a single-stage submission process, with an opening date of April 1, 2025, and a deadline of September 2, 2025. The granting authority intends to fund only one project, and the indicative number of grants to be awarded to women-led deep tech startups is around 151.