Summary

The purpose of the third and final call of Open Horizons is to identify and select promising women-led, digital and deep-tech startups in Europe, specifically at the early stages, offering them a unique opportunity to participate in a tailored open innovation programme. Designed to upscale the capabilities of innovative startups, the programme provides structured pathways to access significant investment and growth opportunities.

Submission & evaluation process

The submission will happen through the official online submission platform. Only applications received directly through the online submission platform will be considered eligible.

The submission process is supported by the following documents:

·Guideline for applicants and all its annexes: all the information you need to know before applying.

·Online Form: completed via Sploro platform and divided into six sections (1) Legal and Contact Information of the applicants, (2) Eligibility self-declaration, (3) Project description (excellence, implementation, impact), (4) Startup’s information, (5) Ethics self-assessment, (6) Declaration of Honour, (7) Personal Data Protection information.

The evaluation process consists of six phases:

1.Eligibility check: A semi-automatic filter will consider 12 criteria that all applicants must comply with to be eligible.

2.Automatic red flags: This step involves an automated filtering process to assess whether startups align with the programme's objectives.

3.Experts’ remote evaluation: The proposals that pass the eligibility and alignment check will move to the remote evaluation stage. Applications will be assessed by a group of external and independent evaluators with an entrepreneurial, investment, or innovation background. Two evaluators, one with a technical and another one with a commercial business background, will assess the proposals based on 3 different evaluation criteria (Impact, Excellence, and Implementation).  

4.Score normalisation: This method ensures a more balanced distribution of scores and reduces the possibility of biases and distortions.

5.Interview: Up to 32 of the highest-ranked startups from the remote evaluation will be invited to an online interview.

Final Selection: All proposals are ranked based on their remote evaluation and interview scores. Up to 16 startups will be preselected for funding. In the event of a tie, a series of rules will be followed that will make it possible to reach a tiebreaker.

Prior to contracting the top ranked applicants, the consortium will seek the approval of European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency (EISMEA), and the list of selected startups will be submitted to EISMEA for final screening.

For more detailed information, please consult the Guidelines for applicants available on the project website .

For any questions about the process, there is a general email address available at [email protected].

Open Horizons is an EU-funded Horizon Europe project aimed at accelerating the growth of women-led startups in the digital and deep-tech sectors through open innovation. It connects startups with leading corporations to pilot tailored solutions to real-world challenges.

Over 26 months, the programme will award €1.2 million in equity-free funding. Selected startups follow a two-phase path: (1) a 1-month Inception Stage, with mentoring and a €10,000 grant to co-develop a pilot roadmap; and (2) a 5-month Piloting Stage, involving the implementation of the solution with the corporate partner and up to €45,000 in additional funding. Only half of the initial cohort progresses to the second stage.

Eligible applicants must:

·Be established in an EU Member State or Horizon Europe Associated Country.

·Qualify as early-stage startups by the Horizon Europe criteria.

·Be an Autonomous SME as per the Horizon Europe criteria.

·Be led by women (cis or trans) who are legally recognised founders/co-founders, and hold top management roles,

·All women in the company should cumulatively own at least 25% of shares.

·Operate within the digital or deep-tech domains (e.g., AI, advanced computing, life sciences, robotics, etc.).

Ineligible entities include foundations, associations, or applicants with past convictions or bankruptcy procedures. Key tasks cannot be subcontracted (e.g., external developers or research centres).

The Programme of Services includes training, corporate matchmaking, mentoring, and investor exposure. Post-pilot, startups enter a 3-month Follow-on Stage to scale up through CVC engagement, strategic partnerships, and commercialisation support led by INNOVX and MIGROS.

Each startup may receive up to €55,000 across both programme phases, with funding linked to KPIs, deliverables, milestone achievement, final reporting, and Demo Day participation.