The CDTI Innovation allocates 22 million to 11 Spanish SMEs with European Seal of Excellence to bring their innovations to the global market

The Center for Technological Development and Innovation (CDTI Innovation), the state innovation agency of the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities, has published the resolution of Seal of Excellence, a call for direct granting of aid to 11 projects of Spanish SMEs that have previously obtained the Seal of Excellence in different calls of the “Accelerator” instrument of the European Innovation Council (EIC Accelerator) of the Horizon Europe program. In total, the call will allocate 22 million euros in grants, which represent 69% of a global budget of 32 million, for projects with a maximum duration of up to four years and an average of around 25 months.

These grants, co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), are articulated as a strategic public policy action: they allow Spain to take advantage of the European recognition of these projects —all evaluated as excellent by the European Commission— and turn it into direct investment in business innovation in the national territory. In this way, it prevents proposals of very high potential from being left without financial support due to a lack of Community budget and strengthens the international positioning of Spanish innovative companies.

Rewarding excellence and accelerating the arrival to the market

The EIC Accelerator is one of Horizon Europe’s most competitive instruments. Its objective is to support SMEs and emerging companies with transformative technologies, helping them to scale and reach the market through a combination of subsidies and venture capital investment through the EIC Fund. Within this framework, the Seal of Excellence is a recognition that the European Commission grants to those proposals that, although having successfully exceeded all evaluation quality thresholds, cannot be financed by budgetary constraints. It is therefore a “quality badge” that certifies that the project has been considered excellent, viable and aligned with the strategic priorities of the European Union.

The CDTI Innovation has been deploying, since previous editions, specific programs to finance Spanish SMEs with the Seal of Excellence of the EIC Accelerator. These grants in direct concession are aimed at R&D projects that allow them to validate their technology in relevant environments, fine-tune their business model and strengthen their structure for a subsequent industrial and commercial escalation.

With this new resolution, the agency consolidates a line of action that connects European excellence with national public action, turning a result of European evaluation into a lever of industrial policy and innovation in Spain.

11 projects, 32 million and shared regional leadership

The approved resolution includes 11 projects carried out by SMEs, with a duration of up to four years and an average execution of around 25 months. The volume of resources mobilized amounts to 32 million euros, of which 22 million are channelled as grants, which means an average aid intensity of 69% on the bankable budget.

The territorial analysis also reveals a very significant map of excellence:

• The Valencian Community is the region with the highest volume of aid, with 3 projects totaling 5.82 million euros of subsidy, 26% of the total
• Galicia also occupies a prominent position, with 3 projects and 5.81 million euros of grant, another 26% of the total
• Andalusia is next, with 2 projects, 4.71 million euros and 21% of the aid
• Castilla y León, La Rioja and Region of Murcia complete the list, with a project approved in each autonomous community

This distribution highlights two relevant trends: on the one hand, the consolidation of regional innovation ecosystems that are succeeding in competing successfully in top-level European calls; on the other, the extension of the programme’s impact to communities with emerging ecosystems, which find in this type of instrument an opportunity to take a leap of scale.

Public policy to avoid losing excellent projects

The philosophy of this aid is clear: no excellent project should be left without support merely because of a problem with the European budget quota. The Seal of Excellence certifies that the proposal has passed the demanding evaluation phases of the EIC Accelerator; the intervention of the CDTI Innovation and the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities allows, from there, to transform that recognized excellence into real investment in the field.

From a public policy perspective, this action fulfils several strategic functions:

1. Protect the pipeline of high-potential projects: by financing proposals that have already been rated as excellent, the risk of losing technology, talent and industrial property that could move to other countries with more agile support mechanisms is reduced.
2. Multiplying the impact of Horizon Europe in Spain: the European framework programme Horizon Europe is the EU’s main instrument for promoting R&D&I, with a budget of over EUR 95 billion for 2021-2027. By using the Seal of Excellence as a criterion for deploying national resources and ERDF, Spain maximizes the scientific, technological and economic return of its participation in the program.
3. Strengthening the international positioning of SMEs: the projects financed are at high levels of technological maturity (TRL 5-8), with a clear orientation to the market. National support complements European opportunities and makes it easier for SMEs to make the leap from technological validation to commercial scaling, expanding their presence in global value chains.
4. Coherence with national science and innovation strategies: the measure is part of the Spanish Science, Technology and Innovation Strategy 2021-2027, which aims to strengthen the competitiveness of the productive fabric through R&D and to increase Spain’s participation and leadership in European programs.

The role of CDTI Innovation in the international projection of companies

The CDTI Innovation is the state innovation agency responsible for channeling public funding to R&D and business innovation projects, both with national funds and within the framework of international programs, especially Horizon Europe. Since 1977, it has developed an intense work of financial support, advice and accompaniment to companies of all sizes, facilitating their access to complex and highly competitive instruments.

In the specific area of the EIC Accelerator, the CDTI Innovation not only manages the national grants associated with the Seal of Excellence, but also deploys a set of advanced services:

• Programs such as NEOTEC, certified by the EIC itself to facilitate the access of Spanish technology startups to the Accelerator.
• The Plug in CDTI philosophy, which connects national innovation support instruments with the EIC Accelerator ecosystem, generating chained funding pathways.
• Specialized services such as EIC interview drills, which help companies invited to the final evaluation phase in Brussels to prepare both their business presentation and their communication strategy to the expert panels.

This comprehensive approach—which combines funding, advice, support and preparation services for European instruments—places CDTI Innovation as a key player in the international positioning of Spanish innovative companies, especially technology-based SMEs and startups.

In parallel, the budgetary reinforcement of the CDTI Innovation in recent years, with almost 2 billion euros planned in 2025 alone for grants, soft loans, investment and risk capital and instruments of early demand for R&D as a public business R&D purchase, consolidates its role as an engine of the innovation ecosystem and as a fundamental instrument at the service of the industrial and technological policy of the country.

More innovation, more market, more Europe

The 11 projects supported by this new resolution add to the previous editions of aid to SMEs with a Seal of Excellence, configuring a portfolio of highly innovative, knowledge-intensive business initiatives with the capacity to generate new technological solutions for very diverse sectors: from health and biosciences to advanced industry, energy, space or digitalization.

The expected impact is articulated in several planes:

• Technological: consolidation of advanced capabilities around frontier technologies, aligned with the European Union’s green, digital and resilient transition priorities.
• Economic: improving the productivity and competitiveness of beneficiary SMEs, which will be able to accelerate their arrival on the market and strengthen their attractiveness for private investors and venture capital funds.
• Territorial: distribution of projects by different autonomous communities, supporting the geographical diversification of innovation and the development of internationally connected regional ecosystems.
• European: greater weight of Spain in an emblematic instrument such as the EIC Accelerator, reinforcing the visibility and recognition of Spanish companies in the Community context.

Altogether, the granting of these grants demonstrates how well-designed public action can turn the excellence evaluated in Europe into growth, employment and technological leadership in Spain, placing the CDTI Innovation and the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities as central pieces in the construction of an economic model based on knowledge, innovation and the international projection of the business fabric.

CDTI Innovation

The Center for Technological Development and Innovation, CDTI E.P.E. It is the innovation agency of the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities, whose objective is the promotion of technological innovation in the business environment. The mission of the CDTI is to ensure that the Spanish business fabric generates and transforms scientific and technical knowledge into globally competitive, sustainable and inclusive growth. In 2024, within the framework of a new strategic plan, the CDTI provided more than 2.3 billion euros of support to Spanish companies and startups.

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