Open Call Analysis: Ready2Scale Accelerator 2nd Cutoff

2nd Cutoff of the Ready2Scale Accelerator Programme to close on the 30th of November. This 6-month programme offers startups an exclusive chance to fast-track their growth with expert-led capacity-building activities and up to €60,000 in funding.

About Ready2Scale

The Ready2Scale Acceleration Programme is a 6-month long acceleration programme aiming to support digital or deep tech startups, with a focus on widening countries. The programme comprises two essential components: capacity building and financial support.

Capacity-building activities will cover three aspects of scaling: investment readiness, expansion to new markets and access to EIC financing. In addition, during this second cut-off, 10 startups will receive up to €60,000.

Why Apply to Ready2Scale?

During the Ready2Scale Acceleration Programme, startups will:

Fully engage in dynamic, hands-on activities designed to accelerate their growth
Innovate their products up to the MVP stage, achieving a TRL 7+
Receive tailored guidance on becoming investment-ready, positioning their business for future funding success
Explore new markets with expert support, identifying untapped opportunities to expand their reach
Gain valuable insights to strengthen their application for EIC funding
Join a Market Discovery Mission, connecting with key industry players and potential partners.

Who Can Apply?

Applications are open to European Digital and Deep-Tech (DTT) startups with a technology maturity level of TRL5 or higher. To be eligible, startups must meet the following criteria:

Be a legal entity (financing is granted to legal persons only)
Have at least one full-time employee
Not be undergoing liquidation or bankruptcy
Be based in an EU Member State (including overseas countries and territories or an eligible non-EU country, including Associated Countries (Albania, Armenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Faroe Islands, Georgia, Iceland, Israel, Kosovo, Moldova, Montenegro, New Zealand, North Macedonia, Norway, Serbia, Türkiye, Tunisia, Ukraine)

In addition, startups must meet at least one of the following:

Be a DTT startup that has received support from the EIC to scale in Europe
Or be a DTT startup not yet supported by the EIC but has already secured private investment or EU funding (e.g., through Horizon Europe or the Digital Europe Programme).

How to Apply to READY2SCALE

The application process consists of two steps: Step 1: Short Proposal Submission– Applicants will first submit a brief proposal, including the project’s goal, a team description, the solution description and a 2-minute video showcasing the team and their idea. Step 2: Full Proposal and Interview– Out of all applicants, 25 participants will be invited to submit a full proposal. This includes filling out a form with a timeline and action plan for the financial support (Grant justification form). Startups that meet the evaluation threshold will be interviewed by external evaluators. Interested startups must submit all documents in English via the web form available on the Ready2Scale website. Out of the 25, only 10 will be selected to participate in the accelerator programme.

Evaluation and Selection Process for Ready2Scale

The application process will follow a pre-selection stage, led by an internal selection committee made up of representatives from the Ready2Scale partners. This committee will review the short proposals and video pitches to identify the top 50 startups.

Applications that pass the eligibility check will move forward to the next stage, where Ready2Scale Consortium experts will evaluate them, scoring each section on a scale of 1 to 5 (1 = Poor, 5 = Excellent).

Based on the overall rankings, the top 25 startups from the second cutoff will be invited to submit a full proposal. In line with the project’s focus, at least 15 of these 25 startups must be from Widening Countries.

These selected startups will receive an email with the full proposal template, which they will need to complete and submit within 5 working days. Full proposals will be assessed by a selection committee, consisting of Ready2Scale consortium representatives and supported by external experts.

Finally, the committee will select 10 successful full proposals, and these startups will be invited to sign Subgrant Agreements to participate in the programme.

Important Dates

Short Application Submission Deadline: 30^th of November at 17:00 CET
Final proposal submission: 24th-31st January 2025
Ready2scale Acceleration Programme: 13^th February -13^th August 2025

The acceleration programme will have the following structure:

Payment and Funding

Selected startups will sign a sub-grant agreement with Civitta, unlocking access to funding in three stages:

1st Payment: Up to €15,000, released within 10 days after both parties sign the contract.
2nd Payment: Up to €30,000, awarded 10 days after successfully passing the mid-review and submitting the feedback form.
3rd Payment: Up to €15,000, provided 20 days after submitting the final report and feedback form.

The Ready2Scale Grant eligible costs have been divided into 3 categories: travel (Up to €5.000), expertise (Up to €5.000) and product development (Up to €50,000).

Additional Support Beyond Funding

The programme is designed to support and fast-track the growth of digital and deep-tech startups. Apart from equity-free funding, the programme offers:

Investment Readiness Programme: Personalised guidance through 1:1 mentoring sessions and group training.
Capacity-Building Training: Access expert-led online sessions through the Ready2Scale Academy
Market Discovery Mission: A 4-day mission to explore new markets, with 2 days of training on local business culture and 2 days of meetings with key stakeholders
Future Founders Club Event: Exclusive event to connect with other founders
Ongoing Mentoring Sessions

More Information

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Open Call Analysis: Ready2Scale Accelerator 2nd Cutoff – Apply by November 30th for €60,000 Funding and Expert Support