Supporting deep tech start-ups led by women
The fourth open call launched by the EU-funded Women TechEU(opens in new window) project to support women-led deep tech start-ups received 1 107 applications from female entrepreneurs across Europe. From this record-breaking number, 40 selected winners now have the opportunities, resources and support needed to grow into tomorrow’s tech leaders.
The means of empowerment
This fourth and final call serves Women TechEU’s goal to create a more gender-balanced entrepreneurial ecosystem and put women at the forefront of deep tech in Europe. Each winner is awarded a EUR 75 000 non-dilutive grant – funding that does not require them to give up any equity or ownership stakes – to scale up their deep tech solutions. Added to this, the innovators receive a personalised business development programme that includes mentoring, coaching and targeted training. The project targeted early-stage deep tech start-ups founded or co-founded by women holding a top management position. At the time of submission, women had to hold at least 25 % of the shares in the company to be eligible. The majority of the 40 winning start-ups – 47.5 % – are active in the field of AI and machine learning, including big data, and are pursuing data-driven innovation across sectors such as manufacturing and digital services. This is followed by the biotechnology, life sciences and agritech sector at 35 % and sustainable energy, clean technologies and green tech at 17.5 %. The winners are also focusing on advanced materials (15 %), advanced manufacturing (7.5 %) and advanced computing/quantum computing (5 %). Other fields of interest include cybersecurity and data protection (2.5 %), electronics and photonics (2.5 %), the Internet of things, the World Wide Web Consortium and the Semantic Web (2.5 %), and robotics (2.5 %). The selected start-ups represent 20 European countries, with an impressive number – seven in total – from France. This is followed by the United Kingdom with five, Spain with four, Germany and Sweden with three each, and Denmark, the Netherlands and Romania with two each. The remaining 12 winners come from Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Estonia, Greece, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Norway, Portugal and Serbia. “This broad geographical reach reflects the project’s dedication to promoting inclusivity and empowering women innovators from diverse ecosystems, particularly within widening countries,” states a news item(opens in new window) posted on the website of the European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency. Detailed profiles of the fourth call winners are available on the project’s updated DataHub(opens in new window). The platform helps to boost the visibility of the women-led start-ups and fosters greater collaboration within the deep tech community. While the Women TechEU (Women Tech Europe Support Scheme) project ends in May 2026, plans are underway to continue supporting female entrepreneurs in deep tech with a new project expected to begin early in 2026. For more information, please see: Women TechEU project website(opens in new window)
