EIC Forum : policy orientations.
Date: 2022-12-06
Institutions: Directorate-General for Research and Innovation
Subjects: EU research policy, EU strategy, innovation, knowledge economy, research and development

 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
EIC Forum — Policy orientations of the EIC Forum - 2022 

European Commission 
Directorate-General for Research and Innovation 
Directorate A - Era & Innovation 
Unit RTD.A5 – Innovation Policy & Access to Finance 
Contact   Andras Inotai 
Email  

EISMEA-RTD-EICFORUM@ec.europa.eu@ec.europa.eu  
RTD-PUBLICATIONS@ec.europa.eu 

European Commission 
B-1049 Brussels 

Manuscript completed in December 2022 
1st edition 

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EUROPEAN COMMISSION 

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 Directorate-General for Research and Innovation 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Table of contents 

EIC FORUM POLICY ORIENTATIONS .............................................. 3 

1.  EIC Forum Working Group on Innovation Policy ................................. 4 

2.  EIC Forum Working Group on Innovation Procurement...................... 6 

3.  EIC Forum Working Group on Data ...................................................... 8 

4.  EIC Forum Working Group on EIC Plug In scheme to the EIC 

Accelerator ............................................................................................. 10 

5.  EIC Forum Working Group on EIC Prizes Alumni network ................. 12 

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EIC FORUM POLICY ORIENTATIONS  

The  EIC  Forum  brings  together  “Member  States  and  Associated  Countries”  public 
authorities  and  bodies  in  charge  of  innovation  policies  and  programmes,  with  the  aim  of 
promoting  coordination  and  dialogue  on  the  development  of  the  EU's  innovation 
ecosystem.”1  

In the EIC Forum, representatives of Member States and Associated Countries, as well as 
other  relevant  stakeholders,  share  and  discuss  innovation  related  policies.  It  is  a  place  to 
collect, discuss and test new ideas from stakeholders and their possible uptake and scaling up at 
European  level.  Policy  orientations  of  the  EIC  Forum  can  also  support  the  programming  of 
Horizon Europe, while fully respecting the role of the relevant programme committee(s).   

The  EIC  Forum  Plenary  has  endorsed  on  23  November 2021  five  Working  Groups  (WG), 
namely  on  i)  Innovation  Policy;  ii)  Innovation  Procurement;  iii)  Data  iv)  Plug-in  scheme  to 
the  EIC  accelerator;  and  v)  EIC  Prizes  Alumni  network.  The  WGs  have  met  regularly 
throughout 2022.  

The  EIC  Forum  Policy  Orientations  2022  presents  the  activities  and,  where  relevant,  the 
policy  orientations  of  the  five  working  groups,  which  emerge  as  the  outcome  of  the 
discussions  and  exchanges  among  the  members  of  the  groups  throughout  2022.    It  does 
not  necessarily  reflect  the  views  of  individual  public  authorities  and  bodies  in  charge  of 
innovation policies and programmes in the Member States and Associated Countries. 

1 Horizon Europe Specific Programme https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-
content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:32021D0764&from=EN  

3 

 
 
 
 
1.  EIC Forum Working Group on Innovation Policy   

The objective of the EIC Forum Innovation Policy Working Group  was to foster a dialogue 
with  Member  States  and  Associated  Countries  on  the  New  European  Innovation  Agenda 
(NEIA).  The  Working  Group  contributed  to  promoting  coordination  and  dialogue  on  the 
development  of  the  Union’s  innovation  ecosystem  and  the  alignment  of  national  R&I 
agendas with Union efforts. The scope of the Working Group covered priority policy areas 
identified in the EIC Forum’s 2022 policy orientations, in synergy with other WGs. 

The first meeting of the EIC Forum Working Group on Innovation Policy  resulted in a joint 
reaction to the call for evidence on the NEIA that the Commission published in  July 2022. 
Aside from dedicated comments on the flagships, Working Group members highlighted the 
need  to  refer  to,  take  into  account,  and  support  existing  EU  instruments,  to  articulate  the 
NEIA  in  relation  to  other  EU  initiatives,  and  to  ensure  synergies  and  complementarities 
between the different flagship actions. 

The  second  meeting  of  the  EIC  Forum  Working  Group  on  Innovation  Policy  held  on  21 
September 2022  focused  on  developing  and  connecting regional  innovation valleys  under 
the  third  flagship  of  the  NEIA  on  promoting  innovation  ecosystems  and  tackling  the 
innovation divide. By looking at key experience of regional stakeholders and authorities, the 
Working Group looked to elicit best practice to serve as models for other regions in trying to 
develop  and  connect  regional  innovation  valleys.  These  presentations  focused  on  two 
themes,  firstly,  on  successful  regional  innovation  ecosystems,  and  secondly,  on  steps  to 
connect regional innovation valleys. 

For  the  first  theme,  the  best  practice  case  of  the  water  technology  centre,  WaterCampus  
Leeuwarden,  was  presented.  This  centre  encourages  cooperation  between  businesses, 
knowledge institutes and governments within the water technology sector, in order to create 
synergies to allow world-class innovation, education and entrepreneurship to take place. In 
doing  so,  it  offers  a  complete  interconnected  research  and  technology  infrastructure  and 
meeting point for scientists and companies in the field from across Europe.  

This  interconnected  approach  was  also  emphasized  in  the  second  presentation  on  the 
Green  Transition  and  Bioeconomy  Platform  in  Lower Austria.  The  strategy  of  the  platform 
focuses on an integrated approach with a view to providing an information and networking 
hub  to  spread  acquired  know-how,  while  providing  a  central  contact  point  for  business, 
science  and  policy  making,  and  combining  the  platform  with  industrial  clusters  and 
technopoles in the region. 

The second theme focused on steps to connect regional innovation valleys. Presentations 
focused on Partnerships for Regional Innovation (PRI) and on lessons from projects funded 
under the European Innovation Ecosystems (EIE) Work Programme. The Partnerships for 
Regional  Innovation  represent  an  initiative  coordinated  by  the  Joint  Research  Centre  but 
involving  the  Committee  of  the  Regions,  DG  REGIO  and  DG  RTD.  The  strong  message 
based on experience of the initiative to date is on a strategic approach to innovation-driven 
territorial transformation, centred on the experience of Smart Specialisation, and linking EU 
priorities with national plans and place-based opportunities and challenges.  

On the lessons learnt from EIE Work Programme projects, the key messages were based 
on  experiences  from  two  separate  projects,  on  life  sciences  and  healthcare  innovation 
ecosystems (INNAXE) and on developing a common European data space in the European 
health  sector  (EDAH).  These  messages  centred  on  having  an  in-depth  knowledge  of  the 
ecosystems concerned, being aware of the cross-sectorial synergies and opportunities, and 

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being  adaptive  to  trends  and  transformation  drivers.  Both  projects  align  closely  with  the 
challenges and flagships of the New European Innovation Agenda. 

In addition, Working Group members emphasized the importance of an in-depth knowledge 
of  the  ecosystem  concerned,  particularly  in  the  cases  of  strong  sectoral  expertise,  often 
coinciding  with  cluster  organisations  and  regional  smart  specialisation  strategies.  The 
challenges for the future include being able to connect with ecosystems stakeholders, while 
policy  makers  need  to  be  flexible  and  creative  regarding  the  development  and  use  of 
instruments.   

From  a  policy  perspective,  it  was  noted  that  factors  beyond  specific  funding  opportunities 
can be critical, including contacts, information flows, and access to relevant infrastructure. 
The collaboration of all actors was emphasized, where businesses are organised to attract 
new  partners  for  potential  collaborations,  including  through  the  networks  such  as  the 
Enterprise  Europe  Network,  cluster  organisations,  innovation  agencies  and  support 
organisations, including third country technological offices in an international context. 

This  coincides  with  the  need  to  promote  innovation  ecosystems  and  to  take  account  of 
regional variations in innovation performance. In particular, the need for policy initiatives in 
this area to accelerate innovation and unlock pockets of excellence across the EU through 
various  tools  was  emphasized.  The  focus  should  be  on  creating  and  connecting  regional 
innovation  valleys,  particularly  involving  regions  with  lower  innovation  performance, 
particularly by building on key smart specialisation strategies and regional priorities. 

The  issue  of  prioritising  relative  comparative  advantages  at  regional  and  European  level 
was a point made by members of the Working Group in the context of connecting regional 
ecosystems.  A  main  challenge  is  often  to  find  suitable  partners  and  develop  long-term 
action plans in this context, where timing can often be a significant constraint. Connections 
and ensuring information flows are critical to success. It is important to focus on combining 
transnational  value  chain  activities  with  scale  up  activities,  particularly  in  industries  where 
existing companies play a big role in the ecosystem. A framework for collaboration should 
be  developed  at  the  outset.  Key  innovation  initiatives  devoted  to  main  priorities  is  also 
crucial, as well as enabling dialogue with stakeholders at regional level. 

With  regard  to  support  to  cooperation  at  regional  level,  the  Joint  Research  Centre,  for 
example,  has  developed  a  ‘playbook’  for  partnerships  for  regional  innovation,  which 
provides  a  toolbox  of  key  elements  for  regions  and  stakeholders  to  facilitate  exploration, 
experimentation,  learning  and  co-creation.  Work  is  currently  ongoing  with  different  PRI 
consortia to identify the lessons learnt which will be shared at the end of the pilot phase. 

In  terms  of  policy  coordination,  and  in  order  to  maximise  the  impact  of  investment 
opportunities, the EIC Forum Working Group on Innovation Policy  considered that funding 
opportunities  should  focus  on  leveraging  regional  specialisations  while  coordinating 
between  the  regions  and  value  chains  concerned,  thus  helping  to  align  areas  of 
specialisation  and  develop  complementary  capabilities.  In  terms  of  EU  investment,  for 
example,  this  approach  is  being  implemented  through  coordinated  actions  under  Horizon 
Europe and the Interregional Innovation Investment (I3) instrument funded by the European 
Regional  Development  Fund.  In  these  instances,  interregional  collaboration  activities  will 
involve cooperation between regions at different levels of innovative development. 

In  conclusion,  members  of  the  EIC  Forum  Working  Group  on  Innovation  Policy 
acknowledged  the  importance  of  certain  key  elements  for  the  successful  creation  and 
development of regional innovation valleys, arguing that these will benefit from coordination 

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and  alignment  to  maximise  impact  at  EU  level.  The  involvement  of  different  regions  at 
varying levels of innovation performance can also contribute to overcoming the innovation 
divide  and  promote  state-of  the-art  innovation  ecosystems.  The  Working  Group  also 
suggests to continue its activities in 2023. 

2.  EIC Forum Working Group on Innovation Procurement  

In  the  aftermath  of  the  COVID-19  pandemic  and  in  a  period  of  geopolitical  turbulence, 
innovation is essential to drive Europe’s competitiveness and to ensure the health and well-
being  of  its  citizens.  The  capacity  of  innovation  to  shape  markets,  transform  economies, 
stimulate substantial changes in the quality of public services and achieve the overarching 
objectives of the twin green and digital transition, as it has been also recently articulated in 
the  new  European  Innovation  Agenda,  demonstrates  that  many  existing  challenges  could 
be addressed with the deployment of innovative solutions. 

In this context, Europe needs to leverage the role of the public sector as a lead customer 
who  could  shape  markets,  deliver  improved  and  accessible  services,  crowd  in  private 
investment  and  provide  innovative  start-ups  with  a  vital  first  customer.  With  a  combined 
annual  purchasing  power  of  2.0  trillion  Euros  or  14%  of  the  EU  GDP,  the  acquisition 
decisions of the EU’s public sector have a major impact. By using innovation procurement 
more  strategically,  the  public  sector  could  guide  the  change  in  many  different  areas. 
Specifically,  by  acting  as  an  early  adopter  that  fuels  wider  deployment  of  new  solutions, 
innovation procurement empowers the EU’s public sector to reap more quickly the benefits 
that  cutting-edge  solutions  can  offer  to  speed  up  the  economic  recovery,  building  a  more 
sustainable  and  resilient  EU.  Innovation  procurement  has  the  capacity  to  make  the  EU 
economy  more  competitive  at  global  level,  and  reinforce  the  EU  strategic  autonomy  by 
opening up new business opportunities to innovative businesses in the EU that create new 
high-quality jobs and growth in our continent. 

Several  steps  have  been  taken  to  upgrade  the  role  of  innovation  procurement  among  the 
Member States but despite the legal reforms and incentives, this field is still characterised 
by  a  risk-averse  approach.  In  certain  Member  States  innovation  procurement  is  slowly 
gaining  pace,  but  other  administrations  still  resist  to  the  use  of  a  more  innovation-attuned 
approach,  which  recognises  that  there  might  be  different  possible  solutions  to  problems, 
rather than just the incumbent technology or process. 

The  EIC  Forum  Working  Group  on  innovation  procurement,  established  under  the  EIC 
Forum, the place where Member States, Associated Countries and stakeholders can share 
experience  and  collect,  discuss  and  test  new  ideas  and  proposals  aiming  to  coordinate 
innovation  policy  and  support  the  programming  of  Horizon  Europe,  has  initiated  a 
discussion  to  identify  the  most  important  challenges  which  hamper  the  promotion  of 
innovation procurement practices.  

The EIC Forum Working Group on innovation procurement indicates the lack of knowledge 
and the existing risk-averse and fearful culture as the main and most persisting challenges 
for  the  deployment  of  innovation  procurement,  whereas  the  legal  framework  and  the 
funding  appeared  to  play  second  fiddle.  It  puts  forward  that  in  public  procurement, 
procurers  are  reluctant  in  front  of  “basic  innovation”.  Particularly,  the  EIC  Forum  Working 
Group  on  innovation  procurement  recommends  that  in  order  to  procure  something 
innovative there must be a serious effort to raise awareness for innovation procurement and 
ensure  calibration  on  what  innovation  is.  Moreover,  it  suggests  that  feedback  loops 
between innovation ecosystems and public procurers should be operational and open, and 

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best  available  technologies  should  be  always  at  the  forefront  showing  that  links  between 
innovation and research systems are powerful. 

The  EIC  Forum  Working  Group  on  innovation  procurement  also  recommends  that  the 
contracting  authorities  should  develop,  in  the  early  steps,  the  culture  to  cooperate,  to  risk 
and to use the competitive procedures and knowledge, utilising the space given for public 
procurer to use competitive public procedures, the existing tools which derive from the legal 
framework  and  the  available  funding  opportunities  but  they  need  the  political  and  legal 
support  to  do  so  as  well.  Public  procurers  also  have  to  develop  a  culture  which  shows 
commitment  (new  processes, 
innovation 
procurement  in  order  to  be  successful.  Furthermore,  it  is  put  forward  that  trustworthiness 
and education schemes in relation to innovation procurement should be improved, as their 
deficiency  contributes  negatively  to  the  existing  knowledge  gap  and  risk-averse  culture. 
Finally,  the  EIC  Forum  Working  Group  on  innovation  procurement  advises  to  further 
facilitate  the  flow  of  information  towards  policy  makers  in  order  to  ensure  that  all  the 
relevant insights will reach the appropriate recipient within the Member States. 

formation  of  employees, 

time)  of  doing 

The  strategic  potential  of  innovation  procurement  is  immense,  especially  in  supporting 
technological development in and by the public sector. Companies, and particularly SMEs 
and mid-caps, may depend on sales to the public sector and public demand could motivate 
innovation.  In  this  context,  the  EIC  Forum  Working  Group  on  innovation  procurement 
reflects on the potential actions which could be considered in order to overcome the before-
mentioned obstacles. 

The EIC Forum Working Group on innovation procurement proposes to improve the culture 
of  public  procurers  regarding  the  adoption  of  innovative  solutions  by  diminishing  their 
resistance  to  change  and  risk-averse  perceptions.  To  that  extent,  both  the  public 
administration  and  the  market  have  to  raise  awareness  and  improve  the  communication 
channels.  It  is  vital  to  connect  public  buyers  and  innovators  in  order  to  deploy  public  and 
private partners’ collaboration in the co-design processes, to match their needs and finally, 
identify  existing  technologies  that  could  result  in  procurement  of  innovation.  In  this  effort, 
the  EIC  Forum  Working  Group  on  innovation  procurement  recommends  that  Competence 
Centres  could  support  the  public  sector  by  i)  developing  more  forward-looking,  concerted 
approach  to  develop  common  answers  to  challenges,  ii)  reducing  fragmentation  of  public 
sector  demand  iii)  increasing  opportunities  for  the  supply  side  to  present  the  potential  of 
innovative  solutions  to  the  demand  side,  iv)  connecting  public  procurers  with  innovative 
companies  and  v)  organising  training  activities  for  people  with  multidisciplinary  skills,  as 
they  could  act  as  innovators  in  the  innovation  management  proceses.  Moreover,  the  EIC 
Forum  Working  Group  on  innovation  procurement  suggests  that  the  promotion  of 
successful  examples  of  best  practices  and  on  new  opportunities  should  be  continuously 
promoted and communicated as they could decrease the persisting risk-averse perceptions 
and  channels  of  communication  between  public  buyers  and  innovators  would  be 
guaranteed. 

The  first-mover,  risk-demonstrators  and  evaluation  of  outputs  are  considered  very 
important,  together  with  the  co-design  of  actions  and  certification  of  standards.  In  this 
context, the EIC Forum Working Group on innovation procurement proposes that procurers 
need  to  understand  standards  in  more  detail  to  co-develop  and  co-design  within  an 
ecosystem whereas the reach and benefits of innovation procurement procedures, in terms 
of results and outputs, should not be limited to the direct beneficiaries, but spill-over widely, 
exceeding the regional and/or national context.  

Concluding,  the  EIC  Forum  Working  Group  on  innovation  procurement  acknowledges  the 
need to reverse the slow uptake of innovation procurement practices for buying innovative 

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solutions  over  traditional  ones,  and  to  spur  the  underpinning  research  and  innovation 
activities  by  SMEs,  start-ups,  and  industry  providers  enabling  innovative  services  and 
outcomes  of  innovation  process  to  enter  the  market.  It  is  important  to  ensure  further 
engagement  of  all  the  relevant  innovation  procurement  stakeholders  from  all  the  different 
domains  as  cooperation  at  EU  level  will  be  a  key  to  mainstream  innovation  procurement 
across  the  EU.  In  this  context,  it  is  proposed  that  the  EIC  Forum  Working  Group  on 
innovation procurement will be endorsed by the EIC Forum plenary to continue its activities 
within 2023. 

3.  EIC Forum Working Group on Data 

Despite facing a series of dramatic challenges in the past two years, Europe is committed 
to “build forward” towards more sustainable, more digital, more resilient and more sovereign 
society.  Innovation  is  driven  by  data,  and  data  on  European  innovation  ecosystems  are 
sometimes  missing,  fragmented  or  collected  according  to  different  methodologies  and 
definitions,  hence  impeding  policy-makers  from  making  informed  decisions.  In  order  to 
effectively grasp a large amount and variety nature of innovation related data, particularly in 
the  area  of  startups  and  scaleups,  which  are  often  coming  from  different  sources  beyond 
national  statistical  offices,  there  is  an  urgent  need  for  determining  common  standards, 
which do not exist at the European level now. 

Data  is  an  essential  resource  for  economic  growth,  competitiveness,  innovation,  and 
societal  progress.  Data  is  an  important  part  of  the  EU's  digital  transformation  and  an 
integral part of the digital services that shape our everyday lives and the economy. Reliable 
data  is  also  necessary  for  empirical  analysis  and  research  to  evaluate  and  support 
policymaking in the field of innovation.  

The  EIC  Forum  Working  Group  on  Data  is  the  place  for  Member  States,  Associated 
Countries  and  other  stakeholders  to  share  their  experience  and  discuss  ideas  on  data 
policy,  what  their  needs  are,  what  is  missing  and  how  this can  be  overcome.  Discussions 
and  exchanges  between  the  members  identified  main  obstacles,  namely  to  be  the  data 
definitions and access of data: e.g., common definitions and taxonomies on topics such as 
firm  classifications,  including  startups  and  scaleups,  or  ST&I  sectors.  Another  obstacle  is 
the conflict of data definitions, which prevents comparable analyses. Analysing the conflict 
of  data  definitions  should  be  a  priority  in  order  to  work  with  data  in  a  coherent  way. 
Members also emphasised the need to gather inputs from all stakeholders to get joint data 
definitions.    This  is  in  line  with  the  New  European  Innovation  Agenda  calls  for  the 
production  and  utilization  of  comprehensive,  comparable  data  sets  and  a  common  data 
repository  that  would  inform  EU-wide  policies  at  all  levels.  An  exploratory  study  on 
European definitions related to start-ups, scale-ups and deep tech innovation is underway 
for completion in early 2023. 

The  members  also  indicated  the  need  to  have  coherent  and  centralised  way  of  defining 
data,  collecting  and  storing it,  and  using  it  at  the  European  level.  This  could  be  facilitated 
with the promotion of data-driven knowledge sharing, research and peer-learning via open 
data  exchanges,  as  well  as  the  formation  of  partnerships  for  developing  comparative  and 
collaborative  analytics  between  the  EIC  and  Member  States,  as  well  as  other  external 
stakeholders. 

The members recommended that analysing conflicting data definitions should be a priority. 
This  would  reduce  many  obstacles  public  administrations,  research  entities  and  private 
sector are facing. Members also referred to the European Innovation Council (EIC) which is 
continuously  collecting  relevant  data  on  their  applicants,  start-ups  and  beneficiaries.  The 

8 

 
EIC  is  invited  to  make  this  data  available  for  external  stakeholders,  possibly  through  the 
new ‘Innospace’ platform, an action that is a part of the New European Innovation Agenda. 
This  AI-based  open  data  platform  will  support  the  circulation  of  ideas  and  access  to 
research  results,  highlight  the  demand  and  supply  of  innovative  solutions,  and  connect 
stakeholders  to  facilitate  collaboration.  In  this  context,  close  collaboration  with EIC  should 
take place, in particular through the mapping, designing and implementing an experimental 
pilot  of  two  to  four  data-driven  case  studies.  One  case  study  could  be  based  on  a  cross-
comparison  with  external  data  sets  from  regional  or  national  innovation  agencies  across 
Europe or from global inter-governmental organizations. Another case could be developed 
in cooperation of relevant academic researchers. 

Despite  the  obstacles,  the  members  of  the  group  believe  that  it  is  feasible  to  collect 
harmonised  data  on  start-ups  at  the  European  level.  Some  of  the  barriers  that  were 
presented  were  primarily  the  difficulty  in  having  a  harmonised  definition  and  the  lack  of 
available data in Member States.  

In this context, the members of the group reflected on the potential actions, which could be 
considered  in  overcoming  the  aforementioned  obstacles.  The  members  recommended 
having common definitions at the European level. It is crucial to involve all stakeholders into 
the  discussion,  including  different  agencies  in  the  Member  States  and  making  cross 
comparison  among  them.  They  also  recommended  collaborating  with  the  EFRAG 
(https://www.efrag.org/)  and  their  relevant  accounting  standards,  as  they  already  work 
across  all  countries  in  Europe.  Additionally,  European  Startup  Nations  Alliance  (ESNA)  is 
an  initiative  that  could  be  involved  in  collecting  fresh  and  operational  data  on  startup 
companies. All relevant stakeholders who are willing to share this type of data with EIC and 
other stakeholders would be welcomed.  

Finally,  promotion  of  ‘’best  practices’’  from  the  Member States  on  data  collection,  storage 
and use should be continuously communicated to foster the cross-country cooperation and 
serve as a way forward in their own countries, where data centres are not established.   

To  conclude,  our  use  of  electronic  devices  is  increasing  and  production  processes  are 
becoming  ever  more  digitalised.  This  means  that  vast  quantities  of  digital  data  are 
generated  daily  in  the  economy  and  by  people's  personal  and  social  activities.  The 
European  Commission  forecasts  the  total  global  amount  of  data  will  grow  530%  by  2025 
compared to 2018. This means that Member States, together with stakeholders will have to 
work  on  data  standardization,  efficient  and  accurate  use  and  analysis  of  them,  so  they 
could  be  used  to  serve  citizens,  boost  economies,  and  improve  societies  through 
technology  and  innovation.  Actions  are  needed  to  unlock  the  full  potential  of  data  and  its 
impact  on  our  lives.  In  this  context,  further  engagement  of  all  the  relevant  stakeholders 
working with data should be ensured.  

Members  of  the  EIC  Forum  Working  Group  on  Data  recommend  the  continuation  of  the 
Working Group in 2023 and identified the following potential topics of work: 

1.  Exploration  of  available  data,  both  externally  in  regular  data  registries,  and  internally 
related  to  startups,  scale-ups  and  deep  tech  innovation,  including  the  findings  of  the 
report on data definitions and taxonomy planned for Q1 of 2023 under the NEIA. 

2.  Contribution and engagement of the members of the Working Group into the work on 
establishing  a  set  of  innovation  ecosystem  specific indicators  supported  by  consistent 
sources  of  data  to  embrace  the  development  of  methodological  approaches  to  track, 

9 

 
analyse and model innovation ecosystems policies at regional, national and European 
level with a specific focus on start-ups. 

3.  Discussion  and  proposal  on  how  to  promote  data-driven  knowledge  sharing,  peer 
learning,  research  and  partnerships  for  comparative  and  collaborative  analytics, 
centred on available EIC data, or pointing at cross-comparisons between EIC, national 
and/or regional innovation agencies. 

4.  Exchange  of  best  practice  between  the  WG  members  and  ESNA,  Joint  Research 

Centre, OECD and other organisations and stakeholders. 

5.  Obtain  an  overview  of  any  material  legal  obstacles  towards  implementing  a  common 

and shared European data strategy. 

4.  EIC Forum Working Group on EIC Plug In scheme to the EIC 

Accelerator 

The Plug In scheme is a novelty under Horizon Europe and a specific process applicable to 
the  EIC  Accelerator.  It  provides  for  a  specific  treatment  of  applications  that  result  from 
existing national and/or regional programmes. With the Plug In scheme, applicants do not 
apply  directly  to  the  Accelerator.  Instead,  the  responsible  funding  body  at  national  or 
regional  level  carries  out  a  project  review  to  assess  the  innovation  or  market  deployment 
potential  of  results  stemming  from  an  existing  project.  Based  on  the  project  review,  the 
responsible  funding  body  will  decide  whether  the  project  is  suitable  for  support  under  the 
Accelerator.  

During  its  pilot  phase,  the  Plug  In  scheme  will  be  implemented  with  a  limited  number  of 
national  and  regional  programmes  that  were  submitted  by  Member  States  and  were 
certified  by  the  Commission  –  after  having  been  assessed  by  a  group  of  independent 
experts  (appointed  by  the  Commission).  Initially,  only  public  programmes  –  both  national 
and  regional  –  are  considered  for  certification  in  order  to  guarantee  the  effective 
implementation of the pilot phase. 

In September 2021, the Terms of Reference (ToR) for the European Commission group of 
experts on the implementation of the EIC Plug In pilot were agreed with the Plug In national 
contact points and the formal process for MS to submit their national and regional schemes 
for the assessment exercise was launched. The deadline was set to 17 October 2021.  

At  the  beginning  of  2022,  the  European  Innovation  Council  and  SMEs  Agency  (EISMEA) 
continued the assessment exercise of national and regional schemes, which has started in 
November 2021. 

10  experts  were  evaluating  52  programmes  submitted  by  17  MS  and  Norway.  The  initial 
deadline  for  the  experts  to  assess  the  schemes  was  end  of  December  2021.  During  this 
exercise,  some  experts  indicated  that  they  would  need  more  information  for  some  MS’ 
templates that were too vague or incomplete. Dedicated bilateral meetings between those 
MS and EISMEA took place to request this information and further clarifications. Therefore, 
due  to  the  new  information  received,  the  deadline  for  the  experts’  assessments  was 
extended until mid-January 2022.  

In  January  2022,  EISMEA  analysed  the  assessments  from  the  independent  experts, 
comments,  conclusions,  and  quality.  In  case  of  divergent  views  on  a  particular  scheme, 

10 

 
EISMEA asked the experts to review each other’s assessments, and organised consensus 
meetings to agree on the final opinion and content of the report. All assessments of national 
and  regional  schemes  for  this  first  certification  exercise  were  finalised  in  February  2022. 
Following  the  assessment,  experts  decided  to  certify  31  schemes  with  no  conditions,  to 
certify 5 schemes with conditions and not to certify 16 schemes. 

These results were briefly presented to the Horizon Europe EIC/EIE Programme Committee 
on 31 March 2022. They were officially communicated to Member States mid-April. Member 
States, whose programmes were not certified or certified with conditions received a detailed 
feedback. Those that were certified with conditions received experts’ recommendations on 
their  programmes  and 
these 
informed 
they  were 
recommendations will be assessed in future rounds of assessments. 

implementation  of 

that 

the 

On  4  May,  a  dedicated  meeting  of  the  EIC  Forum  WG  on  the  Plug  In  pilot  to  the  EIC 
Accelerator (the WG) took place to share, present these results in more details, and discuss 
the next steps of the implementation. 

The  first  round  of  certifications  described  above  showed  a  significant  variation  in  the 
number  of  programmes  approved  by  Member  State.  Indeed,  while  a  country  like  Spain 
obtained certification for eight of its programmes (the highest number), 11 Member States, 
including  10  Widening  Countries,  do  not  yet  have  certified  programmes  (either  because 
they did not submit any during the first round of certifications or because the programmes 
they  submitted  were  unsuccessful).  Moreover,  apart  from  Norway,  Associated  Countries 
were not included in this first exercise because their full accession to Horizon Europe had 
not yet taken.  

Against this background, it has been agreed that the Plug In pilot for certified programmes 
to  transmit  companies  shall  occur  once  two  thirds  of  Member  States  (at  least  18)  have  a 
certified  programme.  Therefore,  EISMEA  planned  and  launched  an  accelerated  second 
round of certifications.  

The  decision  and  the  process  was  discussed  and  agreed  during  a  meeting  of  the  Plug  In 
Working  Group  organized  on  11  October,  to  which  all  Member State  and  Horizon  Europe 
Associated Countries were invited (representatives of 23 Member States and 3 Associated 
countries NO, RS and MK attended). 

On that occasion, participants also agreed that the second certification exercise would build 
on the experience from the first round of certifications, using the same Expert Group (same 
mandate) and templates. Applications would be limited to Member States without a certified 
programme and Associated Countries (other than Norway). The assessment process would 
therefore be faster but would allow sufficient time for Countries to submit programmes.  

Following the WG meeting, a request has been sent to request submission of programmes 
from eligible countries by 1 December. The aim is then for the independent expert group to 
assess  the  submitted  programmes  and  conclude  on  the  outcome  (with  consequential 
certification  of  the  programmes  that  pass  the  assessment)  by  mid-January.  On  the 
expectation that this second round of certifications will result in two thirds of Member States 
(so  at  least  18)  having  a  certified  programme,  countries  could  start  to  submit  Plug  In 
companies from end January 2023. 

Other points agreed during the meeting on 11 October were:  

11 

 
 
-  Member  States  and  Associated  Countries  would  nominate  a  single  Plug  In 
Coordinator  at  national level  to  submit  information  on  the  proposed  companies  to 
EISMEA; 

-  During a pilot phase of the Plug In (in 2023), there will be limitations on the number 
of  Plug  In  applications  admitted:  maximum  per  programme  (20)  and  overall 
maximum per country (number of EP seats, if over 20). The quotas will be subject 
to review following the pilot; 

-  Member  States  and  Associated  Countries  received  a  comprehensive  Guidance 
document on the implementation of the Plug In scheme developed by EISMEA;  

-  EISMEA announced the intention to organize a technical workshop on Plug In (and 
Fast Track) in November. The workshop was held on Wednesday 30 November;  

The above mentioned approach and timeline received general support by participants.  

Working  Group  members  recommend  to  continue  the  operation  of  the  Working  Group  in 
2023. 

5.  EIC Forum Working Group on EIC Prizes Alumni network 

From  research  and  development  phase  until  experimentation,  demonstration,  and  uptake, 
innovation  faces  many  challenges  along  the  way.  Whilst  there are  extensive  programmes 
for  innovation  development,  the  implementation  phase  is  often  decentralised  and  not  well 
coordinated  on  the  ground.  The  importance  to  include  all  stakeholders  and  citizens  in 
particular  in  the  innovation  wave,  the  existence  of  the  innovation  divide  across  Member 
States,  the  need  to  retain  talent  and  attract  investments,  or  defining  the  appropriate 
framework  to  boost  the  breakthrough  start-ups,  are just some  of  the  challenges  to  ensure 
European sustainable growth and its internal cohesion. 

The  EIC  prizes  aim  to  tackle  these  challenges  by  recognising,  supporting  and  targeting 
various  innovators:  cities,  procurers,  women,  and  social  innovators.  The  EIC  Forum 
Working Group (WG) on EIC Prizes Alumni Network is a dedicated space for the winners 
and  finalists  of  the  EIC  Prizes2  to  interact,  cooperate,  exchange  knowledge,  and  share 
policy insights. This Alumni network aims to boost their efforts and to promote transversal 
synergies that, at the end, will benefit and energize the European innovation ecosystem. 

In  2022,  during  its  pilot  phase,  the  WG  gathered  the  representatives3  of  the  European 
Capital of Innovation Awards (iCapital).  

The  Coronavirus  (COVID-19)  pandemic  and  the  current  geopolitical  context  have 
demonstrated  the  important  role  cities  play  in  innovation  demand  and  implementation. 
While  cities  only  take  up  4% of  the  EU’s  land  area,  they  produce  about  72%  of  all  global 
CO2 emissions and account around 65% of global energy consumption. At the same time, 

2  The  European  Capital  of  Innovation  Awards  (iCapital),  the  European  Prize  for  Women  Innovators  (WIP),  the  European 

Innovation Procurement Awards (EUIPA), and the European Social Innovation Competition (EUSIC). 

3  Amsterdam,  Barcelona,  Cascais,  Cluj-Napoca,  Dortmund,  Dublin,  Espoo,  Helsingborg,  Leuven,  Malaga,  Nantes,  Paris, 

Umea, Valencia, and Vantaa.   

12 

 
 
 
city  populations  keep  growing.  In  Europe,  it  is  estimated  that  by  2050  almost  85%  of 
Europeans will be living in cities. The capacity of cities to absorb this increasing demand of 
services  and  consumption  of  resources  will  be  key  to  ensure  their  sustainability  and 
resilience.  

Cities are the natural playground for innovation, giving space to reflect, propose, test new 
ideas  and  products,  and  thus  improve  the  quality  of  their  inhabitants’  lives.  They  can  be 
catalysts  of  flourishing  innovation  ecosystems  not  only  within  a  given  city  but  also  in  the 
surrounding regions and across Europe.  

Members of the network have been jointly working4 on an in-depth policy report aimed to 
illustrate the obstacles encountered by their cities in achieving innovation excellence and to 
demonstrate the strategies to overcome them. The results will be transformed into a toolbox 
helping  other  cities  to  excel  in  implementation  of  innovation  strategies.  The  final  report 
delivery is expected in Q1/Q2 of 2023. 

So far, the WG has focused its work on analysing how iCapital cities nurture the needs of 
the  main  actors  that  build  their  local  innovation  ecosystem  during  their  efforts  toward 
achieving innovation excellence. 

During  workshops  in  Helsingborg  and  Malaga,  the  city  representatives  analysed  and 
discussed  challenges  related  to  establishing  their  innovation  ecosystems.  The  Group 
members agreed that there are common issues, regardless of their geographical situation, 
size, or budget. The ambition of the workshops was also to identify concrete solutions and 
policy replies to these common challenges innovative cities are facing.  

Following  these  workshops,  main  action  areas  identified  in  the  upcoming  report  for  cities 
nurturing  and  establishing  their  innovation  ecosystems  are:  1)  Defining  innovation 
ecosystems;  2)  Mapping  innovation  ecosystems;  3)  Engaging  innovation  stakeholders;  4) 
Identifying individual innovation challenges; 5) Identifying internal organisational burdens to 
implement  innovation;  6)  Implementing  digitalisation  of  services;  7)  Identifying  barriers  for 
innovation experimentation.  

Innovation  uptake,  in  the  public  policy  context,  at  the  European  level  is  generally 
characterised by being risk averse, but even more at the local level. Participants identified 
lack of local political leadership, insufficient branding of the city as a top innovation player, 
internal governance resistance, or the lack of ownership and accountability are issues faced 
by municipalities that hinder their efforts.  

Moreover, when defining “innovation”, cities must consider the local specific context. A clear 
and  non-ambiguous  definition  should  set  the  necessary boundaries  of  the  ecosystem  and 
its key actors who would advocate for it.  

Furthermore,  it  is  crucial  to  establish  a  systematic  methodology  to  map  and  engage  all 
innovation stakeholders. One of the priorities is to create stakeholder committees focused 
on  collaboration  and  the  elaboration  of  innovation  agenda.  It  would  include  defining 

4  Meetings  held:  kick-off  meeting  on  27  April,  1-2  June  (Helsingborg,  Sweden),  19-20  September  (Malaga,  Spain),  11 

individual surveys, and two panel discussions. 

13 

 
 
 
concrete  goals,  priorities,  and  processes  to  assign  ownership  and  responsibility  for  the 
development of mission-oriented strategies, the establishment of “innovation city funds”, or 
the reinforcement of digital training. These are just some examples of initiatives put forward 
by cities to boost innovation culture which already bring concrete results.  

The Group members are eager to further discuss new agile methodologies with a structured 
approach  to  collaboration  that,  by  involving  citizens,  make  smoother  and  faster  the 
connection between needs and actions. 

Therefore,  in  2023,  should  the  mandate  of  this  WG  be  renewed,  Members  will  focus  their 
efforts  on  two  trends.  First,  on  analysing  how  iCapitals  are  deploying  and  exploiting  the 
benefits  of  the  innovation  ecosystem,  namely  fostering  talent,  entrepreneurship,  and 
investment.  Second,  they  will  focus  on  how  iCapitals  expand,  share,  and  transfer  their 
innovation  excellence  beyond  the  local  boundaries  with  a  focus  on  inclusiveness,  public 
procurement, and collaboration. 

Along with further developing the report, members defend the importance of establishing a 
dynamic “social iCapital network”. It would serve to create an online repository of ongoing 
and  completed  innovation  projects,  initiatives,  including  top  lessons  learnt.  It  would  be 
reinforced by thematic physical sessions around selected topics (e.g., digitalisation, energy, 
sustainability,  mobility  and  transport,  diversity)  to  enhance  the  professional  collaboration 
and personal interconnections, resulting in new cross-city projects. Additional thematic and 
temporary subgroups to analyse concrete topics could be established.   

14 

 
GETTING IN TOUCH WITH THE EU 

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− 

The EIC Forum Policy orientations 2022 document looks at 
the overview of challenges and proposed actions of the five 
established EIC Forum working groups for 2022, in 
particular: Innovation Policy, Innovation Procurement, Data, 
EIC Plug In scheme to the EIC Accelerator, and EIC Prizes 
Alumni network. The EIC Forum Annual Report presents the 
policy orientations of the 5 distinctive working groups’ areas, 
which emerge as the outcome of the discussions and 
exchanges among the members of the groups throughout 
the year. It includes the identification of challenges and 
specifities in the dedicated areas and puts forward possible 
solutions and alternatives for future initiatives. 

Studies and reports