Open Call for New Ventures in Creative Tech (Spark)
Horizon Europe · Cascade funding
Summary
Not an R&D call a Polish company can use, by Scindu's rule.
Individuals and teams without a registered company implementing their concept receive funding and incubation to establish scalable creative-technology ventures.
- Who can apply
- Companies cannot apply: individual.
- Amount
- €30K per projectTotal budget €1
- Deadline
- 16 Nov 2026 18:00 CETin 23 days
- Status
- Openopened 7 Oct 2026
Machine-classified from the call text; check eligibility at the source.
Description
The Open Call for New Ventures in Creative Tech (Spark) supports early-stage founders and multidisciplinary teams in transforming validated business concepts into new, scalable and legally established ventures.
The 2027 cohort focuses on tech-centric solutions in Materials & Built Environment, particularly Fashion and Architecture. Applicants should already be testing, building or validating their business concept and must not have an existing registered company implementing the concept submitted under the call.
Selected applicants will receive up to EUR 30,000 in financial support under an actual-cost model and participate in a structured venture creation pathway consisting of an in-person Startup Sprint followed by a 9-month Spark Incubation Programme. The programme provides coaching, mentorship, business model development, company formation support, market validation and access to the EIT Culture & Creativity ecosystem.
Up to 35 venture concepts may be selected for the 2027 cohort.
Maximum financial support: up to EUR 30,000 per selected venture concept, corresponding to up to 100% of eligible actual costs incurred, reported and accepted in accordance with the Call Guidelines and the applicable Subgrant Agreement. No co-funding is required.
The call is open to early-stage founders, either individuals or multidisciplinary teams, developing a tech-centric business concept in Materials & Built Environment, with a focus on Fashion and Architecture. Applicants must not already have a registered company implementing the business concept submitted under this call.
Applications and all mandatory supporting documents must be submitted in English.
Selected applicants will participate in an in-person Startup Sprint followed by the 9-month Spark Incubation Programme. Selected applicants are required to incorporate a new legal entity by Month 3 in order to continue participating in the programme and receiving the remaining financial support.
Further details, the Call Guidelines, application documents and the official contact form are available on the EIT Culture & Creativity call webpage.
Please note that the call was originally opened on the EIT Culture & Creativity website on 6 October 2026. The corresponding notice on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal was published on 7 October 2026.
Who can apply, in detail
- Applicant types
- Individual
- Purpose
- Research and innovation
- R&D relevance
- 2 of 3
- Poland eligible
- Yes
- Country limit
- EU Member States and Horizon Europe associated countries
- Region
- Any
- Consortium
- Single applicant
- Readiness level (TRL)
- —
- Per project
- €30K
- Topics
- Creative technology
- Materials innovation
- Built environment
- Fashion technology
- Architecture
- Venture creation
Machine-classified from the call text; check eligibility at the source. 23 Oct 2026
Conditions
Typed facts extracted from the source documents by Scindu's grant-data review. Each value keeps its own conditions. Unknown means unstated, not zero or unlimited.
- Applicant type
- The call targets early-stage founders applying as individuals or multidisciplinary teams who have not yet registered a company implementing the submitted concept; legal entities are not eligible at application.
- Application restriction
- The official Spark call page lists applications from 6 October 2026 through 16 November 2026 at 17:00 CET (Berlin time).
- Applications closed
- No
Captured 23 October 2026, before the stated deadline.
- Eligible geography
- Individuals and multidisciplinary teams must be registered in an EU Member State or Horizon Europe–associated country.
- Eligible project scope
- The 2027 cohort focuses on tech-centric solutions in Materials & Built Environment, particularly Fashion and Architecture.
- Other condition
- By Month 3 the selected applicants must incorporate a new company for the selected venture, retain at least 50% combined ownership and effective control, obtain a PIC, and complete entity validation and contractual transition.
- Other condition
- At least one founder must commit 10–15 hours per week to programme activities, and at least one founder must have at least one year of relevant domain experience evidenced by education, professional practice, or relevant programmes.
Founder time is required programme participation, not an employee-hours requirement or evidence of paid employment.
- Other condition
- The current call page lists up to 35 business concepts/applicants for the 2027 cohort.
- Other condition
- The call foresees two prefinancing payments of EUR 12,000 each, subject to start/Month 3 contracting checkpoints; actual eligible costs are assessed at final reporting, with accepted contribution capped at the awarded amount and excess prefinancing recovered.
These are advances, not cost reimbursements or earned fixed awards. Final balance depends on accepted actual eligible costs.
- Expected project duration
- 9 month
Programme duration; 2027 cohort dates are described as tentative/indicative.
Amounts and costs
- Indicative budget
- €1
Topic budget as stated in the portal's budget table. Lump-sum and per-project limits are in the call conditions.
- Call allocation
- €1,050,000
The maximum call allocation of EUR 1,050,000 is conditional on formal EIT approval. Any unspent first-cohort allocation may carry over to a later cohort.
- Cost item funding, maximum
- €7,500
Eligible purchase/service costs, not staff payroll; remains within the EUR 30,000 project maximum including indirect costs.
- Cost item funding, maximum
- €15,000
Category-level eligible-cost ceiling over nine months, not a salary rate or entitlement; remains within the EUR 30,000 project maximum including indirect costs.
- Cost item funding, maximum
- €5,000
Services/subcontracting, not staff payroll; also limited to no more than 15% of total eligible project costs; remains within overall project ceiling.
- Cost item funding, maximum
- €7,500
Category-level eligible-cost ceiling over nine months; remains within the EUR 30,000 project maximum including indirect costs.
- Eligible cost
- The call directs applicants to Annex V, the relevant Project Agreement, and the applicable EIT Culture & Creativity Grant Agreement Article 6 expenditure rules for eligible budget costs.
- Eligible cost
- For direct contracts and paid secondments, the referenced Project Agreement template requires a rate based on actual costs incurred and not significantly different from employee costs for similar work.
No numerical rate or individual pay amount is given.
- Eligible cost
- For employees or equivalent personnel under the referenced Project Agreement template, the daily rate is calculated from annual personnel costs divided by 215 and multiplied by identifiable day-equivalents worked on the action; this is a calculation method, not a quoted salary amount.
- Eligible cost
- Before the Month 3 contractual transition, eligible costs must be incurred and documented by the initial recipient; after transition, by the new company. The same costs cannot be claimed by both recipients or shifted between reporting periods for eligibility.
- Eligible cost
- Under the referenced Project Agreement template, an individual may not declare more than 215 day-equivalents across EU grants in one year, reduced by parental-leave time.
This is an annual personnel-cost reporting limit; it does not state a required job duration or FTE.
- Eligible cost
- For personnel receiving project-based supplementary payments, the referenced agreement requires rates to reflect actual remuneration for action time, stay at or below the beneficiary’s national-project reference, use objective entitlement criteria, and follow usual consistent practice.
The template provides no call-specific pay amount or bonus rate. The current call ceiling is the separate EUR 15,000 category-level limit.
- Eligible cost
- Subcontracting uses actual incurred costs and usual purchasing practices ensuring best value for money and no conflict of interests; it may cover only a limited part of the action, with tasks and estimates set out in the agreement.
Subcontracting/service costs, not personnel payroll; Annex V separately caps the category at EUR 5,000 and 15% of project eligible costs over nine months.
- Eligible cost limit
- 25
Flat-rate indirect costs included in, not additional to, the EUR 30,000 maximum; base is determined under Article 6 of the applicable agreement.
- Eligible cost limit
- 15
Subcontracting is also capped at EUR 5,000 over the nine-month category period; this ratio is not a personnel-pay percentage.
- Funding intensity
- 100
Actual eligible costs; conditional on eligibility, documentation and acceptance.
- Project funding, maximum
- €30,000
Actual eligible costs only; the maximum is not automatic entitlement, includes applicable indirect costs, and is subject to the final Subgrant Agreement.
Personnel and services
Other role
Staff cost the grant can fund
Conditional on the referenced agreement terms: assignment to the action, employee-like working conditions, result belonging to the beneficiary, and actual cost not significantly different from comparable employee work. Category ceiling is shared with total personnel cost category. The referenced template requires a day rate based on actual annual personnel costs divided by 215 times documented action day-equivalents; no fixed person rate or individual entitlement is stated.
Other role
Staff cost the grant can fund
Call Annex V establishes a nine-month personnel cost-category ceiling; the referenced template describes employees/equivalent working for the beneficiary under an employment contract and assigned to the action. No job title, required hire, headcount, FTE, qualifications, or numerical person salary/rate is specified.
Other role
Budget estimate rule only
This is an accounting unit-cost treatment for qualifying owners/beneficiaries who do not receive a salary, not a wage entitlement or employee hiring rule. The template’s exact method/amount and its final call-specific signed version were not separately verified.
Source documents
Call facts
- Opens
- 7 Oct 2026
- Deadline model
- Single-stage
- Programme
- Horizon Europe · 2021 - 2027
- Call
- Open Call for New Ventures in Creative Tech (Spark)
- Types of action
- —
- Source
- ec.europa.eu
- Checked
- 23 Oct 2026
- Portal updated
- 14 Oct 2026
- Review status
- Partial review
- Reviewed
- 23 Oct 2026
This is a summary of the source page, not the official text. Eligibility, conditions and the submission system are at the source.