Selected firms receive EUR120,000 in funding each to accelerate their technologies.  

The European Commission has opened applications for smaller companies to join an eight-month accelerator programme focused on supporting growth, a 16 December commission announcement has revealed. 

The programme, dubbed the ‘EU Defence Innovation Scheme (EUDIS) Business Accelerator’, is looking to recruit 20 companies to start receiving “high-intensity support” from March 2026.  

An initial 20-strong cohort of defence startups and scale-ups already joined the programme in May 2025.  

The programme, initially launched in February 2025, is designed to provide support to smaller defence companies over an eight-month period structured around five technical and business bootcamps, embedded in key defence industrial ecosystems across Europe. 

It focuses on six themes which include: information and decision superiority; autonomous systems and robotics; counter-UAS; sovereign and resilient defence infrastructure; training and protection; scalable manufacturing; and disruptive technologies. 

“Participating companies gain operational insight into end-user needs, refine their business development and go-to-market strategies, and benefit from targeted training and one-to-one coaching delivered by sector specialists”, the commission said. 

The programme also offers networking opportunities, opportunities to engage with investors, and exposure to different stakeholders.  

Selected companies receive a EUR120,000 “seed-financing voucher” to accelerate their commercial and technological trajectory, the commission said, with top performing companies receiving additional funding. 

As well as startups and scale-ups, the commission invites experts, practitioners, and “ecosystem enablers” from across the European defence landscape to apply as coaches and trainers to support the programme. 

Applications to join the EUDIS Business Accelerator’s second cohort will close on 25 January 2026.  

Companies from the first cohort of the programme include on-board computing solutions company Edge Aerospace, electromagnetic detection company Elwave, and Nordic Air Defence, a drone interceptor platform.