EUDIS Business Accelerator
Call For Applications
Cohort 3 (Fall 2026)
EUDIS Business Accelerator 2026 is your gateway to scaling your business within the European defence industry.
This exclusive 8-month programme is designed to support innovative companies based in EU Member State or Norway eager to expand their footprint or enter the defence industry.
If you're ready to shape the future of defence innovation in Europe, we encourage you to apply today!
We offer you the opportunity to book a 1:1 session with our team to discuss the call for applications and the programme process in more detail -
Book here (limited spots availability)
Access our
Application Guidelines for Companies to learn more about the selection process and selection criteria.
Finally, please use the
template provided by the commission to complete your declaration of ownership.
You have until
Saturday 30 May at 23:59 CET to submit your application.
Which theme are you applying for?
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Please select the theme that best aligns with your application. More details on the themes can be found
here.
This helps us categorise your submission appropriately, and we strongly encourage you to position within one of the first six themes. Only where the proposal genuinely does not fit any of these themes should the “Open Topic – Disruptive technologies for Defence Superiority” be selected.
Does your business focus only on the defence market or have also civilian applications (dual-use)?
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What is the defence domain of your company?
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Describe your value proposition in one sentence
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Company Information & Eligibility Check
What is your company legal name?
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Provide the official legal name of your company as it appears on legal documents
When was your company founded? (year only)
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01/01/YYYY - Only year is required
How many FTEs are currently working in your company?
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How many FTEs are currently working in your company?
Is your company established in an EU Member State or Norway?
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The target group companies of the Business Accelerator shall be established in the EU Member States or Norway.
Is your company established in an EU Member State or Norway?
In which country is your company registered?
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Please specify the country where your company is legally established.
What is your company website?
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Include the full URL of your official website
What is your company's registration address?
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Provide the full legal address of your company.
What is your company's registration number?
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Enter your official company registration number, as provided by the relevant government authority.
Does your company qualify as a Start-up or a Scale-up?
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Start-up: An SME in the early stage of its life cycle, including those that are created
as spin-offs from university research activities, which aims to find innovative solutions and scalable business models, and which is autonomous.
Scale-up: An enterprise that have achieved significant growth in employment and/or turnover. Scale-ups are one step ahead in maturity/development compared to a start-up.
Could you confirm that your company is solely subject to control by country/entity established in the EU or Norway?
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To be eligible, your company must not be subject to control by any country or entity that is not established in the European Union or Norway (i.e. any non-associated third country).
For the purposes of this requirement, “control” means the ability to exercise decisive influence over the company, whether directly or indirectly, including through one or more intermediate entities, and whether in law (de jure) or in practice (de facto). It is not necessary for this influence to be exercised, as just having the ability is sufficient to be considered control (please refer to
guidance-participation-in-dep-he-edf-cef-dig-restricted-calls_dep-he-edf-cef-dig_en.pdf).
To ensure companies meet this eligibility requirement, an Ownership and Control Assessment (OCA) is conducted. The OCA is based on a declaration submitted by each company as part of the application, which provides information about its ownership structure, entities that exercise control, among other control-related details.
By way of exception to this eligibility criterion, a company established in the EU or Norway that is controlled by a non-associated third-country entity may still be eligible to participate if it has obtained a guarantee approved by the country in which it is established for participation in the European Defence Fund (EDF). This guarantee must be granted in accordance with Article 9(4) of Regulation (EU) 2021/697 (EDF Regulation).
Could you confirm that your company is solely subject to control by country/entity established in the EU or Norway?
Please share your declaration of ownership and control
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This declaration should include detailed information about your company’s ownership structure, any foreign ownership and the entities that exert control over the company.
Please use our Ownership and Control Declaration (clickable link) template. Point of Contact Information
What is the first name of your company's point of contact?
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What is the last name of your company's point of contact?
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What is the job title of your company's point of contact?
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Mention the official role of the contact person within your company
What is the LinkedIn profile of the point of contact?
Please provide the LinkedIn profile URL of the main contact person for your company
What is the email address of your company's point of contact?
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Financial maturity and targets
Which funding stage are you currently at?
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Angel: Initial investment from individuals to support early-stage start-ups
Pre-seed: Funding to develop a minimum viable product (MVP) or validate a business idea
Seed: Capital to launch a product, conduct market research, and build a team.
Series A: Investment to scale the business, optimise the product, and expand the user base
Series B: Funding to grow the company rapidly, expand market reach, and achieve profitability
Series C: Capital to support major expansions, acquisitions, or prepare for an IPO
How much funding (dilutive and non-dilutive) did you acquire so far?
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List existing funding sources, amounts and types. Briefly explain ownership and control impact if applicable.
Precise if you have raised more or less than EUR 200 000 in the past year
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Precise if you have raised more or less than EUR 200 000 in the past year
Precise if you have a YoY revenue higher or lower than EUR 200 000
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Precise if you have a YoY revenue higher or lower than EUR 200 000
What are your upcoming fundraising targets (ticket size, timeline)?
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Explain your funding requirements and the stage of funding you are seeking
Self-assessment of readiness levels
What is your current TRL (Technology Readiness Level)?
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Insert your TRL between 1 and 9
TRL 1 : Idea TRL 5: Technology Validation TRL 9: Fully deployed
What is your current CRL (Customer Readiness Level)?
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Insert your CRL between 1 and 9
CRL 1 Early commercial hypothesis CRL 5 Validated market traction CRL 9 Full commercial maturity
What is your expected TRL (Technology Readiness Level)?
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Insert your TRL between 1 and 9
TRL 1 : Idea TRL 5: Technology Validation TRL 9: Fully deployed
What is your expected CRL (Customer Readiness Level)?
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Insert your CRL between 1 and 9
CRL 1 Early commercial hypothesis CRL 5 Validated market traction CRL 9 Full commercial maturity
Relevance for EUDIS Business Accelerator
Why do you want to join this programme?
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Share a brief explanation why you want to participate in less than 200 characters
What commercial challenges within defence industry are you currently facing in your business activities that you need support with (e.g., engaging with investors, etc.)?
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Evaluation Deck - mandatory
Please upload your evaluation deck - Maximum 15 slides
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PDF format recommended Your deck should include the following key elements:
Describe the technology used and the unique advantage of your solution.
Explain how your technology aligns with the objectives and targets of the EUDIS Business Accelerator.
Highlight how your solution supports European defence capabilities and priorities, particularly the funding priorities of the European Defence Fund.
Explain how your solution aligns with EUDIS Business Accelerator technology themes.
Clearly define the value proposition of your solution.
Explain its fit within the defence market and its estimated market size.
Identify the market segment, the problem your solution addresses, and the associated benefits/costs.
Provide an overview of existing alternatives and competitors.
III. Go-To-Market Strategy
Outline your Go-To-Market strategy and how you plan to enter the defence industry.
Detail your growth strategy and overall development plan.
Indicate whether you already established partnership with end-users or already have public and/or private customers (specify the names, the type of partnership and related products/technologies, etc.)
IV. Financial Information
Provide an overview of your sales and revenues in 2025 and your target for 2026
Provide an overview of your team, including number of employees.
Highlight the technical, business, and defence expertise within your team.
Showcase the diversity within your team (gender, background, origin).
Outline formal relationships with non-commercial customers (e.g. governments, NGOs) and commercial end-user engagement progress
Please ensure that your pitch deck does not exceed 15 slides, otherwise, your application will not be considered.
The purpose of this video is to give evaluators an opportunity to assess, beyond the written application, your company’s motivation, spirit, and clarity of intent in joining the EUDIS Business Accelerator programme.
Guidelines
In a maximum of two minutes, recorded in English with clear sound and proper lighting, you should address three points:
I. Present your company’s value proposition and explicitly connect it to European defence strategic objectives such as resilience, operational effectiveness, secure systems, or critical infrastructure protection. Specify the capability gap you address and the differentiators that make your solution relevant.
II. Identify the technology theme you selected and justify its relevance. Describe the core technology, why it is strategically important, and how it supports concrete defence use cases in the European context. If you selected the open call Disruptive Technologies for Defence Superiority, briefly indicate how your solution delivers a disruptive advantage in the industry.
III. Explain your motivation to join the EUDIS BA programme. Detail what you aim to gain in terms of acceleration, market access, or technical and business validation, and state the outcomes you intend to achieve during the programme.
Access to the recording platform
To record the video, please click on the link and follow the steps:
Video Recording Platform (clickable link). Make sure to use the
same full name and email address as in the Point of Contact section.
Click
here to access the Video Recording Platform.
To validate that you have completed the video, please add a screenshot of the confirmation email you received after submitting the interview.
Commitment to the programme
If you are selected, are you confirming your availability to participate in an 8-month programme starting in September 2026, including five on-site bootcamps (2-3 days each) of mandatory attendance?
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By selecting "Yes", you understand the importance of this commitment and hereby agree to make your best efforts to fulfill this obligation
If you are selected, are you confirming your availability to participate in an 8-month programme starting in September 2026, including five on-site bootcamps (2-3 days each) of mandatory attendance?
How did you learn about the EUDIS Business Accelerator initiative?
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