# EIC 2026 Pathfinder Open
EUACC page: https://www.euacc.ai/calls/HORIZON-EIC-2026-PATHFINDEROPEN
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## Public content

**topic id:** HORIZON-EIC-2026-PATHFINDEROPEN
**call id:** HORIZON-EIC-2026-PATHFINDEROPEN
**title:** EIC 2026 Pathfinder Open
**programme:** Horizon Europe
**cluster:** EIC
**status:** closed
**deadline date:** 2026-05-12T00:00:00+00:00
**deadline model:** single-stage
**start date:** 2026-02-05T00:00:00+00:00
**url:** https://ec.europa.eu/info/funding-tenders/opportunities/portal/screen/opportunities/topic-details/HORIZON-EIC-2026-PATHFINDEROPEN
**description:** Expected Impact:
The expected output of your project is the proof of principle that the main ideas of the envisioned future technology are feasible, thus validating its scientific and technological basis. Project results should include top-level scientific publications in open access. While your vision is expected to be worthwhile because of its potential for future impact, for instance to create new markets, improve our lives, or provide solutions for global challenges, these are not expected to be achieved in the course of your EIC Pathfinder Open project. However, you are expected to take the necessary measures in the course of the project to allow future uptake to take place. This includes: an adequate formal protection of the generated Intellectual Property (IP), a plan for future exploitation and an assessment of relevant aspects related to regulation, certification, and standardisation.
In addition, you are encouraged to involve and empower in your team key actors that have the potential to become future leaders in their field such as excellent early-career researchers or promising high-tech SMEs, including start-ups. Your project should reinforce their mind-set for targeted research and development aimed at high impact applied results. This will strengthen Europe’s capacity for exploiting the scientific discoveries made in Europe throughout the steps to market success or for solving global challenges. You are particularly encouraged to empower female researchers in your project and to achieve gender balance among your work package leaders.
Objective:
The overall objective of the EIC Pathfinder for advanced research is to develop the scientific basis to underpin breakthrough technologies. It provides support for the earliest stages of scientific, technological or deep tech research and development. Pathfinder projects aim to build on new, cutting-edge directions in science and technology to disrupt a field and a market or create new opportunities by realising innovative technological solutions through:
 ‘EIC Pathfinder Open’, open to support projects in any field of science, technology or application without predefined thematic priorities.
 ‘EIC Pathfinder Challenges’ to support coherent portfolios of projects within predefined thematic areas with the aim to achieve specific objectives for each Challenge.
Scope:
Do you have an ambitious vision for a novel future technology that could make a real difference to our lives?
 Do you see a plausible way of achieving the scientific breakthrough that will make this technology possible?
 Can you imagine collaborating with an interdisciplinary team of researchers and innovators to validate the scientific basis of the future technology, realise a proof of principle, and explore paths to impact?
If the answer to each one of these questions is ‘yes’, then EIC Pathfinder Open may be the right call for you.
You should apply if you are looking for support from EIC Pathfinder Open to realise an ambitious vision for radically new technology, with potential to create new markets, respond to societal needs and/or to provide solutions for global challenges. EIC Pathfinder Open supports early-stage development of such future technologies (e.g., various activities at low Technology Readiness Levels from 1 to 4), based on high risk/high-gain science-towards-technology breakthrough research ( ‘deep tech’). This research must provide the foundations of the technology you are envisioning. EIC Pathfinder Open may support your work, especially if it is highly risky: you may set out to try things that will not work; you may be faced with questions that nobody knows the answer to yet; you may realise that there are many aspects of the problem that you do not master. On the contrary, if the approach you want to follow is incremental by nature or known, EIC Pathfinder Open will not support you. Before applying to this call, you should verify that your proposal meets all the following essential characteristics (‘Gatekeepers’):
 Convincing long-term vision of a radically new technology that has the potential to have a transformative positive effect to solving a challenge in our economy and society.
 Concrete, novel and ambitious science-towards-technology breakthrough, providing advancement towards the envisioned technology.
 High-risk/high-gain research approach and methodology, with concrete and plausible objectives.
EIC Pathfinder Open involves interdisciplinary research and development. By bringing diverse areas of research together, often with different perspectives, terminologies and methodologies, within individual projects and within a portfolio of projects, really new things can be generated, and entirely new areas of research can be opened up. It is up to you to compose the team that you need, that you can learn from, and that you can move forward with.
**conditions:** General conditions
1. Admissibility Conditions: Proposal page limit and layout
The call is open for collaborative research. Your proposal must be submitted by the coordinator, on behalf of a consortium including as beneficiaries, at least three legal entities, independent from each other and each established in a different country as follows:
• at least one legal entity established in a Member State; and
• at least two other independent legal entities, each established in different Member States or Associated Countries.
The legal entities may for example be universities, research organisations, SMEs, startups, industrial partners or natural persons. The eligibility of associated countries and third countries is detailed in Annex 2. The standard admissibility and eligibility conditions are detailed in Annex 2.
Proposal page limits and layout: described in Part B of the Application Form available in the Submission System.
Sections 1 to 3 of the part B of your proposal, corresponding respectively to the award criteria Excellence, Impact, and Quality and Efficiency of the Implementation, must consist of a maximum of 22 format A4 pages.
Excess pages will be automatically made invisible and will not be taken into consideration by the evaluators.

2. Eligible Countries
Described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes.
A number of non-EU/non-Associated Countries that are not automatically eligible for funding have made specific provisions for making funding available for their participants in Horizon Europe projects. See the information in the Horizon Europe Programme Guide.

3. Other Eligible Conditions
Described in Annex 2 of the EIC Work Programme 2026.

4. Financial and operational capacity and exclusion
Described in Annex 2 of the EIC Work Programme 2026.

5a. Evaluation and award: Award criteria and scoring thresholds
Described in section II of the EIC Work Programme 2026 (p.30-31).

5b. Evaluation and award: Submission and evaluation processes
Described in section II of the EIC Work Programme 2026 and the Online Manual.

5c. Evaluation and award: Indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement
Described in EIC Work Programme 2026 and in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes.

6. Legal and financial set-up of the grants
Please refer to the the Lump Sum Model Grant Agreement (Lump Sum MGA) used for Lump Sum EIC actions under Horizon Europe and Annex 2 of the EIC Work Programme 2026.

Specific conditions
 

Call documents:
 EIC 2026 work programme - European Innovation Council
EIC Frequently asked questions - European Innovation Council
List of Pathfinder Open Descriptors

Application and evaluation forms and model grant agreement (MGA):
 

Evaluation form templates — will be used with the necessary adaptations
Standard evaluation form (HE EIC PATHFINDER OPEN)
Guidance
HE Programme Guide
Model Grant Agreements (MGA)
Lump Sum MGA
Call-specific instructions
Detailed budget table (HE LS) 
Information on clinical studies (HE) 
Information on security issues/Security section (HE)
Guidance: "Lump sums - what do I need to know?"

Additional documents:
 HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 15. General Annexes
HE Programme Guide
HE Framework Programme 2021/695
HE Specific Programme Decision 2021/764
EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509
Decision authorising the use of lump sum contributions under the Horizon Europe Programme
Rules for Legal Entity Validation, LEAR Appointment and Financial Capacity Assessment
EU Grants AGA — Annotated Model Grant Agreement
Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual 
Funding & Tenders Portal Terms and Conditions 
Funding & Tenders Portal Privacy Statement
**action type:** HORIZON EIC Grants
**budget:** 
  **budget Years Columns:** 
    - 2026
  **budget Topic Action Map:** 
    **112745:** 
      -         **action:** HORIZON-EIC-2026-PATHFINDEROPEN - HORIZON-EIC HORIZON EIC Grants
        **budget Year Map:** 
          **2026:** 166039670
        **deadline Dates:** 
          - 2026-05-12
        **deadline Model:** single-stage
        **expected Grants:** 50
        **max Contribution:** 4000000
        **min Contribution:** 1000000
        **planned Opening Date:** 2026-02-05
**keywords:** HORIZON-EIC-2026-PATHFINDEROPEN, HORIZON-EIC-2026-PATHFINDEROPEN
**last synced at:** 2026-11-09T17:23:17.403+00:00

## Review record

No independent verification record is available.

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