Women TechEU: €75,000 Equity-Free for Deep-Tech Startups With Female Founders

What to expect in this issue

• Deep Dive - €75,000 equity-free for female deep-tech founders
• StartMatch News - 100 companies are already working with StartMatch
• FörderRadar - New and expiring grants

🤿 Deep Dive: Women TechEU - €75,000 Equity-Free for Deep-Tech Startups With Female Founders

In the Deep Dive we regularly present a financing or funding topic in detail. Today: Women TechEU, €75,000 equity-free for deep-tech startups with female founders.

Women-led deep-tech companies are still heavily underrepresented in Europe. Closing the gap between women-led and men-led deep-tech companies could unlock a value of €181 billion, according to Women TechEU. That is exactly where the EU program comes in, and it is now entering its third edition (2026-2028).

What Do You Get?

• €75,000 as a non-repayable grant, entirely equity-free, you give up no shares
• A personal business development program: 1:1 mentoring, training, matchmaking with investors and corporates, networking
• A total of 160 startups will be funded from a pot of €12 million

Who Can Apply?

The criteria are stricter than they look at first glance. A female CEO alone is not enough, your startup has to meet every one of these requirements:

• Founded or co-founded by a woman who holds the position of CEO, CTO, CSO or a comparable top management role and owns at least 25% of the shares
• At the eligibility cut-off at least 6 months and no more than 5 years old, an autonomous SME and a commercial company (no foundation or NGO)
• Deep-tech innovation at TRL 4-6, still ahead of a high-fidelity MVP
• Less than €1 million in equity raised so far
• No prior funding for the same technology through Women TechEU or the EIC Accelerator

How Does the Application Work & By When?

New in this round is the two-stage process: first you submit a short eligibility application, which is decided on weekly, every Tuesday at 17:00. Only then comes the full application with four submission dates. The eligibility phase runs until 13.07.2027. Women TechEU recommends doing the eligibility check early: that way you know quickly whether the work on the full application is worth it at all. 40% of the funds are reserved for so-called widening countries.

Why Is This Relevant?

In the last rounds the success rate was below 4%, partly because many applications did not meet the criteria in the first place. The new structure with fast eligibility feedback is meant to fix exactly that. Since 2021, 344 companies have already been funded, and the program combines capital with mentoring and access to investors. If you run a deep-tech startup that meets the criteria, or know a female founder who does: take a look and apply.

All information is available here: Women TechEU

🗞️ StartMatch News: 100 Companies Are Working With StartMatch

A milestone we are genuinely proud of: as of this month, 100 companies in Austria are working with StartMatch.

From the two-person startup to the public limited company, from grant search through complete funding strategies and applications all the way to the retroactive research premium.

Our vision is unchanged: nobody should lose weeks in the funding jungle just to get money they are entitled to. The fact that 100 companies have already chosen to trust us on that path means a lot to us!

Thank you to every single one of you, for the trust, for the feedback and for the many ideas from your responses that have made their way into our product. And we are looking forward to the next 100 companies we get to support. 🚀

📡 FörderRadar: New and Expiring Grants

These Grants Can Be Submitted Now

Women TechEU
Equity-free grant plus mentoring for deep-tech startups with female founders. Up to €75,000 as a lump sum, eligibility submission on a rolling basis with weekly cut-offs until 13.07.2027.

FFG Multilaterale Eureka Leichtbau Ausschreibung
Transnational R&D in lightweight construction, in Austria only with a mobility focus. Up to €750,000, funding rate up to 80% for startups and small companies, submission until 12.10.2026, the international Eureka application must already be on file by 08.10.2026.

FFG Go!Tech Praktika
Lump-sum funding for internship placements for high school graduates in scientific and technical fields. €3,800 for three months, €7,100 for six months, continuous submission until 04.11.2026 at 12:00 noon.

FFG AI Ökosysteme
Cooperative R&D in the focus areas Hybrid AI and Green AI, a cooperation between the partners is mandatory. Up to €1 million, submission until 06.10.2026 at 12:00 noon.

FFG Energieforschung
R&D around generation, storage, hydrogen, CCUS and flexible energy systems, open to companies of all sizes, startups and research institutions. Up to €2 million, submission until 30.09.2026 at 12:00 noon.

FFG Mission Klimaneutrale Stadt
R&D and demonstration projects for climate-neutral, resilient cities, districts and buildings. Up to €2 million for demonstration projects, submission until 01.10.2026 at 10:00.

These Grants Are Expiring Soon

AI-BOOST AI Challenge Competition
EU competition for GenAI projects in robotics, engineering, clinical data and mobility, open to individuals and startups as well. Up to €100,000 main prize plus five Spark prizes of €28,500 per challenge. Submission deadline for challenges 3 and 4 only until 08.09.2026.

FFG Mobilitätswende: Mobilitätstechnologie
Vehicle technology, automated mobility and digital solutions in line with the Mobility Master Plan 2030. Up to €4 million for flagship projects. Submission deadline only until 30.09.2026 at 12:00 noon.

FFG Energieforschung
R&D around generation, storage, hydrogen, CCUS and flexible energy systems. Up to €2 million. Submission deadline only until 30.09.2026 at 12:00 noon.

FFG AI Ökosysteme 2026
Cooperative R&D projects in Hybrid AI and Green AI, a consortium of at least two companies is required. €100,000 to €1,000,000, funding rate up to 85%. Submission deadline only until 06.10.2026.

Best of luck with your projects!

Best regards,
Robert & your StartMatch Team 👋