EIC Summit 2025: Europe’s Leading Event Focused on Deeptech and Policy

The EIC Summit 2025, held at Tour & Taxis in Brussels, gathers innovators, policymakers, and business leaders to discuss Europe's innovation landscape. It features EIC-funded projects, networking opportunities, and the prestigious EIC Prizes. Speakers include Henna Virkkunen (Executive Vice-President for Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy), Ekaterina Zaharieva (Commissioner for Startups, Research and Innovation), and more.

The European Innovation Council (EIC) Summit 2025 takes place at Tour & Taxis venue in Brussels, where innovators, policymakers, and business leaders from across Europe gather to explore the intersection of deeptech and policy. This event serves as a pivotal occasion for collaboration, learning, and discussions surrounding Europe’s innovation landscape.

The EIC Summit 2025 spans two days. The first day, 2 April, is dedicated to EIC beneficiaries, with invitation-only workshops focused on key topics such as investments, intellectual property, and scaling businesses. On the second day, 3 April, the flagship event offers a wider audience the opportunity to engage in plenary sessions, panel discussions, and networking opportunities, as well as the awarding of the EIC Prizes.

Keynote speakers and thought leaders

The summit will feature a diverse and dynamic lineup of speakers, including representatives from the European Commission, commissioners, innovators, programme beneficiaries, and EIC board members. These thought leaders will share their insights on the evolving landscape of innovation in Europe and the role of policy in shaping the future of technology.

Notable speakers include:

Henna Virkkunen (Executive Vice-President for Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy), Ekaterina Zaharieva (Commissioner for Startups, Research and Innovation), Enrico Letta (Dean, IE University and President, Jacques Delors Institute), Carlos Moedas (Mayor of Lisbon), Marc Lemaître (Director-General, Directorate General for Research and Innovation - RTD), Michiel Scheffer (EIC Board President), Jean-David Malo (Acting Director for ERA & Innovation, DG Research & Innovation), Cornel Amariei (CEO & Founder, .lumen), Ioannis Arapakis (Head of Telefónica Scientific Research - Discovery, Telefónica Innovación Digital), Miguel Arias (General Partner, Kfund), Gonzalo Sánchez Arriaga (Co-founder, PERSEI SPACE), Eva Baltar (Tech to Market Project Adviser, EISMEA), Helene Banner (Founder, "Let's Just Be Imperfect, Ladies"), Ana Barjasic (CEO, Connectology; EIC Board Member), Mali M Baum (CEO & Founder, WLOUNGE; EIC Board Member).

Becks Bart (Chairman, EURACTIV; Chairman, E-Health Valley; Co-founder, BeCentral; EIC Board Member), Marián Belko (Head of Entrepreneurship Education, European Institute of Innovation & Technology - EIT), Jan Bjaalie (Dean of Research and Innovation at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Oslo), Kat Borlongan (Chief Impact Officer, Contentsquare; EIC Board Member), Darina Botsova (Programme Coordination Manager, EISMEA), George Brik (CEO & Co-founder, Hydrovolta; EIC Ambassador), Inge Buffolo (Director of Business Development Department, European Union Intellectual Property Office), Giovanni Burgio (Investment Manager, European Investment Bank), Nicolas Burkardt (CFO, Marvel Fusion), Olav Carlsen (Innovation Manager, SPRIND-the German Federal Agency for Breakthrough Innovation), Ana Casaca (Global Director of Innovation, Galp).

Hélène Casaert (Scientific officer, European Medicines Agency’s SME Office), Vincent Clot (Space Business Catalyst Director, Thales Alenia Space), Andre Convents (Innovation Director, Procter & Gamble), Teresa Cunha (EIC Scaling Club Coordinator), Carsten Dreher (Professor for Innovation Management, Freie Universität Berlin; EIC Board Member), Falk Ehmann (Head of the Innovation and Development Accelerator, European Medicines Agency), Alberto Figoli (Director of the Institute on Membrane Technology, National Research Council of Italy), Lars Frølund (Lecturer at MIT in the Field of Innovation Ecosystems and Deep Tech Ventures; EIC Board Member), Antonios Fysekidis (Programme Coordination Manager, EISMEA), Mark Ferguson (Member of the high-level expert group - Heitor group).

Sonia M. García Blanco (Co-founder, ALUVIA Photonics), Lluís Gimeno-Fabra (Adviser to the Vice-President Patent Granting Process, European Patent Office), Anne Glover (Chief Executive & Co-founder, Amadeus Capital Partners), Valeria Grazu (Entrepreneur; Co-founder, PROMETHENZ), Ellen Gunning (Chief Executive Officer, Mettacomms), Jussi Hätönen (Head of the EIC Division, European Investment Bank), Maria Victoria Hernandez Valcarcel (Board of Directors - Non-Executive Director, CaixaBank Payments & Consumer), András G. Inotai (Acting Head of the Taskforce on Startups and Scaleups & Head of the Innovation Policy and Access to Finance Unit, Directorate General for Research and Innovation - RTD), Angela Ivanova (Co-founder & CEO, LAM'ON; EIC Ambassador), Véronique Jacq (Head of Digital Venture team, Bpifrance).

Saurabh Joshi (Postdoctoral researcher at the University of Bremen), Sara Jud (Project Adviser, EISMEA), Bindi Karia (European Innovation Expert & Advisor, Connector of People and Businesses; EIC Ambassador), Hedi Karray (EIC Programme Manager for Artificial Intelligence, EISMEA), Stavriana A. Kofteros (Founder & Partner, W11 Ventures; Cofounder & Chair, Startup Cyprus; EIC Ambassador; EIC Jury Member), Anita Krohn (CEO, DSD AS Group; Vice-Chair, EIC Board), Michaela Kr?ková (Former Chief Innovation Officer, EIC Board Member), Eliza Kruczkowska (Director of Innovation Development at the Polish Development Fund - PFR).

Minna Leisvuori (Investment Officer & Advisor to the EIC Fund, European Investment Bank), Katarzyna Lenart (Deputy Director in the Department for Development of Innovative Programme Management Methods, National Centre for Research and Development - Poland), Christoffer Levandowski (Public Funding and Innovation Program Manager, Heart Aerospace), Laura Lizama (CEO & Co-founder, heecap), Theodore Marescaux (Co-founder & Chief Product Officer, Swave Photonics), Francesco Matteucci (EIC Ambassador; former EIC Programme Manager), Lucio Milanese (Co-founder & COO, Proxima Fusion), Ed Mitchell (Head of Business Development Experiments Division, ESRF – The European Synchrotron - France), Franc Mouwen (EIC Programme Manager for Architecture Engineering Construction Technologies, EISMEA), Teresa Neves (Co-founder of BioNanoPhotonics A/S, EIC Board Member), Samira Nik (EIC Programme Manager for Quantum Tech and Electronics, EISMEA), Philippe Notton (Founder & CEO, SiPearl).

Angelo Nuzzo (Austrian National Contact Point, European Innovation Council), Klaus Nyengaard (CEO, Seaborg Technologies), Alberto Onetti (Chairman, Mind the Bridge and Full Professor of Entrepreneurship, University of Insubria), Verónica Orvalho (Founder and CEO, Didimo, EIC Ambassador), Karl Pärtel (Co-founder, RAIKU), Viorel Peca (Head of Unit of EIC Transition, EISMEA), Théau Peronnin (CEO & Co-founder, Alice & Bob), Claudia Pfander (Strategic Business Developer of Euro-BioImaging and Coordinator of the Euro-BioImaging Industry Board), Mariana Popescu (Assistant Professor of Digital Fabrication at TU Delft), Perrine Pottevin (Enterprise Europe Network Advisor, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Enterprises), Francesco Profumo (Rector, Open Institute of Technology - OPIT; EIC Board Member), Nuno Quental (Project Adviser, EISMEA).

Armand Raudin (Head of Video & Innovation Program, SNCF Security Directorate), Nikolaus Raupp (Principal, HTGF), Gilles Requena (Chief Patent Research and Policy Officer, European Patent Office), Martin Richter (Head of the Microdosing Systems department at the Fraunhofer EMFT), Giuseppe Rizzo (Programme Manager, LINKS Foundation), Marie Rogne (Co-founder, Pioneer Research), Olivier Rousseaux (Director Venture Development, imec), Giulio Ruffini (CEO, Starlab; CTO, Neuroelectrics), Anne-Marie Sassen (Head of Unit of the “Programme Managers Office”, EISMEA), Simon Schaefer (CEO, Factory), Neringa Šeperien? (CEO and Co-founder of BrachyDOSE; Ready2Scale participant), Keith Sequeira (Head of EIC Unit in Directorate General for Research and Innovation), Uljan Sharka (Founder & CEO, iGenius), Lucilla Sioli (Director AI Office, DG CONNECT). 

Josemaria Siota (Executive Director, IESE Business School's Entrepreneurship and Innovation Center), Matt C. Smith (Public speaker, podcaster and athlete), Martha Sommer (Team Leader & Principal Investigator, ISAR Bioscience - Munich), Agnieszka Stasiakowska (Head of Sector of EIC Business Acceleration Services Global Offer, EISMEA), Ivan Stefanic (EIC Programme Manager for Food Chain Technologies, Novel & Sustainable Food, EISMEA), Špela Stres (Head of the Technology Transfer and Innovation Center, Jožef Stefan Institute; EIC Board Member), Mikko-Jussi Suonenlahti (Business Builder, Chairperson of privately held tech businesses), Orsolya Symmons (EIC Programme Manager for Health and Biotechnology, EISMEA), Milie Taing (Founder & CEO, Lili.AI), Andreea Ticheru (Policy officer, Directorate General for Research and Innovation - RTD).

Stella Tkatchova (EIC Programme Manager for Space Systems & Technologies, EISMEA), Rene Tõnnisson (Co-founder & CEO, Baltic Innovation Agency), Vassilis Tsanidis (Innovation Procurement Advisor, EISMEA), Patrick Van Deven (CEO, VaultSpeed), Dimitar Vasilev (Co-founder and Board Member of Startup Europe Networks; EIC Board Member), Daniel Vera (Chief Marketing Officer, MYSPHERA), Sarah Verhulst (Professor, Ghent University), Peter Vesterbacka (Founder, FinEst Bay Area), Kaja Vidic (Chief Business Development Officer, Check Point Care Ltd.), Laurent Volle (Director of the Enterprise Europe Network, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry - CCI Bourgogne-Franche-Comté), Yousef Yousef (CEO, LG Sonic; EIC Board Member), Noemi Zabari (CEO, Astroteq.ai; EmpoWomen participant), Federica Zanca (EIC Programme Manager for Medical Imaging and AI in Healthcare, EISMEA).

Highlights of the EIC summit 2025

The summit’s agenda includes a rich array of sessions, including inspiring plenary speeches, insightful panel discussions, and the prestigious EIC Prizes awards ceremony. Notable events include:

Day 1: EIC Beneficiaries Day (2 April 2025): This exclusive, invitation-only day will be fully dedicated to EIC beneficiaries. It will feature workshops focusing on critical topics such as investments, intellectual property (IP), and scaling up companies. This day offers valuable insights and guidance to those who have benefitted from EIC funding and support.

Day 2: Flagship Event (3 April 2025): The second day of the summit will be open to all interested stakeholders, providing opportunities to immerse in visionary insights from leaders in the innovation and deeptech sectors. The day will culminate with the exciting EIC Prizes awards, which recognise the most innovative European projects.

Networking and exhibition opportunities

The EIC Summit provides extensive networking opportunities, allowing participants to engage with key players from the innovation and policy sectors. Upon registration, attendees can access the dedicated EIC Summit networking app to schedule meetings and connect with industry leaders.

In addition to the networking opportunities, the summit will feature an exhibition showcasing 23 EIC-funded projects and six EU stands highlighting support services and funding opportunities. A standout project in the exhibition will be Lumen, a visual tool designed to help visually impaired people by simulating virtual reality glasses.

Satellite events at EIC summit 2025

The EIC Summit 2025 features a series of satellite events, providing participants with additional opportunities to engage, learn, and network around key themes of innovation and technology. 

• EIC Community Training on AI Tools for Innovators (1 April 2025)
• Innovate in Latvia and Europe Networking Event for Latvian start-ups (2 April 2025)
• Pathfinder Challenges Info Day (4 April 2025 at Borschette)
• Future Tech Week 2025 online event (7-11 April 2025)

The EIC prizes and awards

The EIC Prizes will be awarded during the summit, celebrating excellence and innovation. On 2 April 2025, the European Innovation Procurement Awards will recognise outstanding procurement projects. The European Prize for Women Innovators will follow on 3 April 2025, acknowledging the crucial contributions of women in the innovation and technology sectors.

The European Capital of Innovation Awards recognise cities that promote innovation in their communities, fostering ecosystems that encourage entrepreneurship and create opportunities for residents, driving economic and social change.

The European Prize for Women Innovators celebrates women-led ventures that significantly impact Europe’s innovation landscape, inspiring future female innovators.

The EIC Horizon Prizes reward innovative solutions addressing societal challenges like climate change and health. Meanwhile, the European Social Innovation Competition highlights early-stage ideas focused on social impact and sustainable development.

The European Innovation Procurement Awards and European Prize for Humanitarian Innovation recognise leadership in procuring innovative solutions and enhancing humanitarian aid efficiency.

EIC summit 2025 exhibition

The EIC Summit 2025 will feature an exceptional exhibition, offering attendees a unique opportunity to explore pioneering projects funded by the European Innovation Council (EIC) and various EU support services. The exhibition will consist of two main components: the EIC projects exhibitors and the EU stands exhibition, both of which provide valuable insights into the latest innovations and the funding opportunities available for European start-ups and innovators.

EIC projects exhibitors: The EIC Summit 2025 exhibition features 23 EIC-funded projects, each offering innovative solutions across industries such as biotechnology, medical technology, clean energy, aerospace, and more. Among the standout projects are ANATOLIA, a biotech start-up focused on smart nanomedicines for targeted therapies, and ARCHANGEL, which combines AI-powered telemedicine and wearables for remote patient care. .lumen, a Romanian start-up, develops glasses for the blind, while EarDiTech is advancing precision hearing diagnostics. EyeControl aims to transform ICU care, and other notable projects include FlexiForm, HELIOS (SiPearl), HYDROCOW, HYPERION (ION-X), Neosonics® (Kriba), QualE-fly, QustomDot, RoboAiWeeder, Rocksolid AR, SatelLiFe, TheCoroRevolution (Coroflo), and WATCHPLANT.

EU stands exhibition: The exhibition also showcases six EU stands, offering information about EU initiatives and support services for innovators and entrepreneurs. Key stands include Access2EIC, which offers guidance on applications and partner search services, and EEN2EIC, which supports EIC Accelerator applicants. The European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) promotes pan-European partnerships, while InvestEU facilitates sustainable investment and job creation. The IP and Innovation Support Services assist with intellectual property protection, and EU Initiatives for Women in Business supports women entrepreneurs with 10 EU-funded projects.