Women TechEU Open Call #4

The Women TechEU Open Call #4 is a funding initiative aimed at supporting women-led early-stage startups in the deep tech sector. This program, part of the Women TechEU project, is designed to empower women entrepreneurs and enhance their leadership roles in deep tech innovation across Europe. The total budget for this call is €3 million, and it intends to provide support to around 160 women entrepreneurs from EU Member States and Horizon Europe associated countries.

Eligible applicants must be established in an EU Member State or a Horizon Europe Associated Country. They must be early-stage startups with women recognized as founders or co-founders, who hold significant leadership positions (such as CEO or CTO) and at least 25% equity in the company. The startups should generally not be older than eight years and should have raised limited funding (up to €1 million in equity) before developing a high fidelity Minimum Viable Product.

Each selected startup will receive a non-dilutive grant of €75,000 along with access to a comprehensive six-month business development program that includes mentoring, investor outreach, pitch preparation, training in soft skills, sales strategy development, environmental impact assessment, and corporate networking opportunities.

The application process involves a single-stage submission through the Sploro platform. Applications must include sections on legal and contact information, impact, excellence, implementation, ethics self-assessment, and a declaration of honor. The evaluation follows three phases: eligibility check, experts' remote evaluation, and final selection based on scores.

The opening date for submissions is June 2, 2025, and the deadline is August 4, 2025, by 17:00 Brussels time. This call aims to distribute a total of €12 million over four competitive opportunities within two years. Historically, the success rate for this initiative has been low, with approximately 3.8% of applicants selected in previous rounds. The program aims to not only bridge gender disparities in tech but also prepare startups for scaling through further opportunities such as the EIC Accelerator.

In summary, Women TechEU Open Call #4 focuses on fostering women-led startups in deep tech by providing equity-free funding and extensive business support to enhance their growth and societal impact. Eligible startups must meet certain criteria, and the program actively seeks to create a more inclusive and diverse ecosystem for innovation within the region.

The Women TechEU Open Call #4 is a funding opportunity aimed at supporting women-led early-stage startups in deep tech. The call is part of the Women TechEU project, which seeks to empower women entrepreneurs and promote their leadership in deep tech innovation across Europe. The project plans to support 160 women entrepreneurs from the European Union and Horizon Europe associated countries by providing direct funding and a personalized business development program.

The opening date for submissions is June 2, 2025, and the deadline for submissions is August 4, 2025, at 17:00 (Brussels time). The call follows a single-stage submission model.

The total funding available for this call is 3,000,000 EUR. Successful applicants will receive 75,000 EUR in equity-free funding, along with access to a 6-month personalized business development program. The project acronym is Women TechEU, and the full name of the EU-funded project is Women Tech Europe Support Scheme. The grant agreement number is 101133528. The topic is HORIZON-EIE-2023-CONNECT-01-01, which focuses on the organization of the Women TechEU Scheme.

The submission process occurs through the official online submission platform linked to the WomenTechEU website. Only applications received through this platform will be considered eligible. The submission process is supported by a guideline for applicants and an online form to be completed via the Sploro platform. The online form is divided into six sections: (1) Legal and Contact Information of the applicants, (2) Impact section, (3) Excellence section, (4) Implementation, (5) Ethics self-assessment, and (6) Declaration of Honour.

The evaluation process consists of three phases:

1. Eligibility check: A semi-automatic filter will consider 10 criteria that all applicants must comply with to be eligible. The eligible proposals will then be assessed using a points system that emphasizes desirable criteria. Points will be awarded based on specific and measurable criteria, with only the highest-scoring applications proceeding to experts’ remote evaluation.

2. Experts’ remote evaluation: Proposals that pass the eligibility check and receive a high score will move to the remote evaluation stage. External and independent evaluators with entrepreneurial, investment, or innovation backgrounds will assess the applications. Two evaluators, one with a technical background and another with a commercial business background, will assess the proposals based on three evaluation criteria: Impact, Excellence, and Implementation. Score normalization will be applied to ensure a balanced distribution of scores and reduce biases. In case of a divergence greater than 20%, the two evaluators will hold a consensus meeting.

3. Final Selection: All proposals are ranked based on their remote evaluation scores. In the event of a tie, a series of rules will be followed to reach a tiebreaker.

Eligibility criteria for applicants are as follows:

1. Established country: The applicant must be established in an EU Member State or a Horizon Europe Associated Country. A list of Horizon Europe Associated Countries is published by the European Commission on the date of the opening of the call.

2. Early-stage startup: The legal entity should be established at least six months prior to the opening of the call. A 'start-up' under Horizon Europe is defined as an SME in the early stage of its life cycle, including spin-offs from university research activities, aiming to find innovative solutions and scalable business models, and which is autonomous within the meaning of Article 3 of the Annex to EU recommendation 2003/361. An "autonomous enterprise" is any enterprise which is not classified as a partner enterprise or as a linked enterprise. Early-stage refers to the phase of startup development generally preceding the rapid growth phase. The following criteria will be considered, among others, to define an early-stage startup: Startups that have been established and operating for not more than 8 years counting backwards from the opening of the call date, startups that have raised limited funding (up to 1 M EUR in equity), and before reaching a high fidelity Minimum Viable Product.

3. Women leadership: Women must be legally recognized as founders or co-founders of the company. The founder or co-founder must also currently hold a top management position (CEO, CTO, or equivalent) within the same company. Women must hold at least 25% of the shares in the capitalization table of the company. Women TechEU supports women in all their diversity, including cis women and transgender women who are legally defined as women. The lead applicant of the submission must be a woman, and the means of verification will be the Identity Card issued by the country of their nationality.

4. Deep tech: Deep tech innovation aims to provide concrete solutions to societal problems by interacting with the most recent scientific and technological advances and by seeking to produce a profound impact in the targeted application areas. Sectors fertile for deep tech applications include life science, computing, food and agri-tech, aerospace, energy and clean-tech, industrial technologies, telecom, new materials, and chemistry. Deep tech also includes artificial intelligence, deep learning, and machine learning. Women TechEU welcomes applications from all deep tech fields of activity.

5. Not previously funded for the same activities by another EU Programme: To avoid double funding, the application or any of its parts must not have benefited from any other EU Programme such as the Women TechEU initiative or EIC Accelerator.

6. Not part of Women TechEU beneficiaries: Women TechEU consortium partners, their affiliated entities, employees, and subcontractors are not allowed to submit a proposal or receive financial support through the open calls.

Beyond the equity-free funding, Women TechEU provides a Programme of Service, which is a 6-month package where beneficiaries can select from the following services:

Service 1: Female mentors (one meeting per month during 5 months): Access to experienced women mentors who will provide guidance, support, and insights tailored to each founder. Matchmaking and mentorship sessions will be facilitated through the Sploro platform.

Service 2: Investor outreach and pitch preparation: Introductions to investor entities (business angels, VCs, funds) and pitch presentation review and rehearsal support.

Service 3: Investor and Export Readiness Check: Assessment of the startup's readiness for pitching to investors or presenting to potential clients, covering team, product, market, finance, operations, and IP. Connections with the EIT Food programme in internationalization RocketUp will be sought, when possible.

Service 4: Soft Skills Training: Development content on soft skills areas like public speaking, presentation, leadership skills, and improving productivity by using AI, through blended courses (mix of in-person and recorded sessions).

Service 5: Sales Strategy & Execution: Guidance on go-to-market strategy, lead generation, pipeline management, and pricing models.

Service 6: Environmental Impact Assessment: Climate impact projections to understand the environmental impact of innovations and design sustainable business models, leveraging an online tool based on the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) method.

Service 7: Corporate Access: A platform for women-led startups to connect with potential partners and customers, leveraging the network of corporates provided by EIT KICs.

At the time of submission, applicants will select their top three services from the Women TechEU project. During the execution of the Programme of Services, selected services from the EIC Business Accelerator Service will also be offered.

In summary, the Women TechEU Open Call #4 is a funding and support program designed to empower women-led startups in the deep tech sector. It offers equity-free funding, mentorship, investor outreach, skills training, and other valuable services to help these startups succeed and make a significant impact in their respective fields. The program aims to address the underrepresentation of women in the tech industry and foster a more inclusive and diverse innovation ecosystem in Europe. Eligible startups must be based in EU member states or associated countries, be in the early stages of development, have women in leadership positions with significant equity, and be working on deep tech innovations that address societal challenges. The application process involves a detailed online form and a multi-stage evaluation process to select the most promising startups for funding and support.

Eligible Applicant Types: The eligible applicant types are early-stage startups that are women-led. Specifically, the applicant must be an early-stage startup established in an EU Member State or a Horizon Europe Associated Country. The startup must have women legally recognized as founders or co-founders, and the founder or co-founder must hold a top management position (CEO, CTO, or equivalent) and hold at least 25% of the shares in the company's capitalization table. The legal entity should be established at least six months prior to the opening of the call. The startup should be an SME in the early stage of its life cycle, aiming to find innovative solutions and scalable business models, and be autonomous. Early-stage refers to the phase of startup development generally preceding the rapid growth phase. Startups should have been established and operating for not more than 8 years counting backwards from the opening of the call date and have raised limited funding (up to 1 M € in equity) before reaching a high fidelity Minimum Viable Product.

Funding Type: The primary financial mechanism is a grant, specifically non-diluting finance. In addition to the grant, beneficiaries receive non-monetary services through a business development program.

Consortium Requirement: The opportunity is for a single applicant, not a consortium.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The geographic eligibility includes EU Member States and Horizon Europe Associated Countries.

Target Sector: The program targets deep tech startups. Sectors most fertile for deep tech applications include life-science, computing, food and agri-tech, aerospace, energy and clean-tech, industrial technologies, telecom, new materials, and chemistry. Deep tech also includes artificial intelligence, deep learning, and machine learning. The program welcomes applications from all deep tech fields of activity.

Mentioned Countries: The opportunity is open to EU Member States and Horizon Europe Associated Countries, but no specific countries are explicitly named in the provided text.

Project Stage: The project stage should be early-stage startup, specifically before reaching a high fidelity Minimum Viable Product.

Funding Amount: The funding amount is €75,000 per startup in non-diluting finance. The total budget for the call is €3,000,000.

Application Type: The application type is an open call.

Nature of Support: Beneficiaries receive both money (€75,000 grant) and non-monetary services through a 6-month business development program. The program of services includes: Female mentors, Investor outreach and pitch preparation, Investor and Export Readiness Check, Soft Skills Training, Sales Strategy & Execution, Environmental Impact Assessment, and Corporate Access.

Application Stages: The application process consists of three phases: Eligibility check, Experts’ remote evaluation, and Final Selection.

Success Rates: The success rates are not explicitly mentioned in the provided text.

Co-funding Requirement: Co-funding is not explicitly mentioned as a requirement. The funding is described as equity-free, suggesting that co-funding is not mandatory.

The Women TechEU Open Call #4 is a funding opportunity designed to support women-led early-stage startups in the deep tech sector. The program aims to empower women entrepreneurs by providing them with financial support in the form of a €75,000 grant, along with a comprehensive 6-month business development program. This program offers a range of services, including mentorship, investor outreach, readiness checks, soft skills training, sales strategy development, environmental impact assessment, and corporate access.

To be eligible, the startup must be based in an EU Member State or a Horizon Europe Associated Country, be led by women who hold significant leadership positions and equity in the company, and be focused on deep tech innovation. The startup should be in its early stages, generally operating for no more than 8 years and having raised limited funding. The call specifically targets deep tech sectors such as life sciences, computing, food and agri-tech, aerospace, energy, clean-tech, industrial technologies, telecom, new materials, chemistry, artificial intelligence, deep learning, and machine learning.

The application process involves submitting an online form through the Sploro platform, which includes sections on legal and contact information, impact, excellence, implementation, ethics self-assessment, and a declaration of honor. The evaluation process consists of an eligibility check, remote evaluation by experts, and a final selection based on the evaluation scores. The program aims to distribute a total of €12 million in non-diluting finance over four different competitive calls within two years. This call, the third in the series, has a budget of €3,000,000. The opening date for submission is June 2, 2025, and the deadline is August 4, 2025, at 17:00 Brussels time.