A pan-European Networked Acceleration Programme to expand acceleration ecosystems and foster the scalability potential of European business

Project Information

AccelerAction

Grant agreement ID: 101072073

DOI

10.3030/101072073

Project closed

EC signature date 4 July 2022

Start date 1 September 2022

End date 28 February 2025

Funded under

• European innovation ecosystems

Total cost

No data

EU contribution

€ 996 243,75

Coordinated by

JO CONSULTING SRL
Italy

Periodic Reporting for period 2 - AccelerAction (A pan-European Networked Acceleration Programme to expand acceleration ecosystems and foster the scalability potential of European business)

Reporting period: 2024-03-01 to 2025-02-28

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

The European innovation landscape remains geographically unbalanced, with less-connected business ecosystems facing weaker entrepreneurial activity, scarcer investments, and lower employment opportunities. In contrast, startups in better-connected innovation hubs ("strong innovators" and "innovation leaders") benefit from access to more local accelerators, greater funding opportunities, and higher-quality business support services, while those in "moderate" and "emerging" ecosystems continue to face significant challenges.
The mission of the AccelerAction project is to lay the foundations to reverse this trend by contributing to making moderate and emerging innovation ecosystems more attractive to international companies interested in setting up their businesses outside the established centres and generating a more balanced business activity across Europe. To this end, AccelerAction aims to create more connected and efficient innovation ecosystems in the sector of advanced technologies, supporting the scaling of companies, encouraging innovation and stimulating cooperation among national, regional and local innovation actors through a pan-European Networked Acceleration Programme.
The project was focused on four core objectives: (1) assessing gaps in DeepTech ecosystems, (2) creating a comprehensive stakeholder database spanning all 27 EU countries, (3) establishing peer learning and capacity building, and (4) enhancing network connectivity for long-term collaboration.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

Key activities and achievements of the AccelerAction project included assessing gaps and challenges faced by business acceleration entities in less connected innovation ecosystems and strong innovation hubs, with a particular focus on DeepTech and barriers faced by female entrepreneurs. It included surveys and interviews across 21 EU countries and resulted in a benchmarking tool and report.
The combined analysis and insights directly informed the development of the Pan-EU Networked AccelerAction Programme (EU-NAP), crafted through extensive research and collaborative consultation, engaging 116 organisations from 32 countries, including from 27 EU Member States. It aims to improve peer cooperation, enhance the quality of business acceleration services, and expand network outreach and scale-up support. Peer-to-peer mentoring gatherings, called Collab Events, bridged the gap between emerging and established DeepTech ecosystems, fostering knowledge exchange and collaboration. Additionally, the Grow Programme, a transformative 3-month journey across 6 European countries empowered 10 DeepTech startups with the tools, networks, and knowledge necessary for scaling their operations and thriving in international markets.
The project also established the DeepTech ACT platform, a virtual ecosystem connecting startups, accelerators, investors, and stakeholders across 27 EU countries and beyond, with over 745 subscribers.
Over 12,000 stakeholders were engaged through outreach and events, facilitating collaboration, knowledge sharing, and capacity building. Efforts to enhance connectivity and collaboration were further reinforced through four workshops on ethics, unconscious bias, EU funding, and interconnected innovation ecosystems. Furthermore, the project delivered policy recommendations emphasizing sustained funding, cross-border collaboration, and gender equality, while proposing a pan-European coordinating body to harmonise best practices and improve connectivity.
The project’s initiatives collectively improved business acceleration services via the EU-NAP, empowered startups through tailored support, and promoted diversity by prioritising inclusivity and gender equality. These efforts strengthened alliances and contributed to a more cohesive and efficient European DeepTech innovation ecosystem.

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

The AccelerAction project has delivered 3 Key Exploitable Results:
1. The Benchmarking Tool is a comprehensive framework designed to evaluate the status, gaps, and challenges faced by business accelerators in less connected innovation ecosystems. It focuses on three critical dimensions—service provision, internal capacity, and brand visibility—to assess the quality of service delivery, operational effectiveness, and outreach efforts. By providing actionable insights, it aims to improve the support accelerators offer to startups, enhance their networks, and strengthen their scale-up capabilities. Additionally, it serves as a self-assessment tool, enabling accelerators to strategically understand and address their weaknesses to align with best practices and foster innovation.
2. CONNECT (Pan-European Networked Acceleration Programme) is designed to drive growth and innovation in the European DeepTech ecosystem by fostering collaboration, providing tailored resources, and empowering stakeholders, particularly in less-connected and emerging innovator countries. The programme comprises three distinct, yet interconnected components, each contributing to its overall impact:
(1) Initiate Library: A rich digital resource library containing a collection of materials such as case studies, frameworks, videos, and articles serving as a reference for DeepTech players to address business challenges, improve operations, and scale effectively.
(2) Collab Events: are Peer-to-peer events tailored for DeepTech players across Europe. These events facilitate learning, networking, and exchanging best practices, leading to meaningful insights and growth opportunities.
(3) Grow Programme: An intensive three-month acceleration initiative designed to equip DeepTech startups with the tools, networks, and knowledge necessary to scale their operations, access international markets, and achieve impactful growth.
CONNECT offers a comprehensive support system designed to empower DeepTech entrepreneurs to innovate and scale effectively. It will be made available on the Horizon Results Platform to facilitate dissemination, uptake, and replication.
3. The DeepTech ACT platform (deeptechact.acceleraction.eu) facilitates knowledge exchange, shared resources, and synergies to enhance capacity building and networking. It promotes balanced business opportunities, fosters innovation, and helps reduce fragmentation, creating more interconnected and efficient innovation ecosystems across Europe. DeepTech ACT connects key stakeholders such as accelerators, startups, experts, and investors, creating a hub for learning, networking, and matchmaking within the European DeepTech sector. By the conclusion of the project, the platform had over 745 members and has continued to grow since.

final-partner-meeting-january-2025.jpg

NEIA event picture, Bruxelles 26 January 2023

Kick-off Meeting, Catania 21-22 September 2022

Work group picture, Catania 22 September 2022