EIT Culture & Creativity Acceleration and Post-Acceleration programmes 2025

EIT Culture & Creativity launches its 2025 call for applications for two tailored business support programmes designed to accelerate the growth of promising start-ups and scale-ups in Europe’s cultural and creative sectors and industries (CCSI).

With a focus on five key sectors — fashion, architecture, cultural heritage, audio-visual media, and gaming — this call offers high-potential ventures the opportunity to scale their impact, compete for financial prizes, prepare to raise funds, and expand across international markets.

Learn more through our upcoming webinar on 15 May. Register here.

To help applicants in preparing and submitting their proposals, EIT Culture & Creativity previously hosted two information sessions covering the different aspects of the call. These webinars aimed to ensure open, free, and fair access to all interested stakeholders.

• Webinar 1: Introduction to the call, focus & scope. Watch the recording here.
• Webinar 2: Application demonstration. Watch the recording here.

Application deadlines:

• Cohort 1: 23 May 2025, 17:00 CET
• Cohort 2: 11 July 2025, 17:00 CET

Programme start:

• Cohort 1: Mid-July 2025
• Cohort 2: Mid-September 2025

Programme duration: 8–10 weeks

Demo Days:

• Cohort 1: October 2025
• Cohort 2: December 2025

Top-performing participants in each cohort may receive:

Shape Programme: total prize budget €330,000

• 3 prizes of €30,000
• 3 prizes of €15,000
• 4 prizes of €7,500

Scale Programme: total prize budget €660,000

• 3 prizes of €60,000
• 3 prizes of €30,000
• 4 prizes of €15,000

Who can apply?

Start-ups and scale-ups operating in one or more CCSI sectors, legally established in an EU Member State or a Horizon Europe-associated country (this includes the UK). Applicants must meet the SME criteria, have at least 2 years of operations, and a product or service on the market.

How to apply: 

• Read the full call guidelines and check eligibility. 
• Submit your application via the EIT Culture & Creativity platform, here.

Scope

The call for Acceleration (Shape) and Post- Acceleration (Scale) programmes support start-ups, scale-ups and SMEs in their growth plans through group training, expert coaching, investment readiness and more. It also provides beneficiaries with the opportunity to access financial prizes of up to €60,000. Projects must tackle challenges in at least one of EIT Culture & Creativity’s priority areas: audio-visual media, fashion, architecture, gaming or cultural heritage.

The expected outcome is to provide advanced support, mentorship, and strategic guidance, ensuring that the selected companies can thrive, secure funding, and achieve significant market impact in the competitive landscape of the CCSI.