EIT Jumpstarter

EIT Jumpstarter

Offers pre-seed entrepreneurship support in Lithuania through national selection and EIT-linked innovation pathways.

⚠ This may reflect a past cycle — verify the current call on the funder's site.

EIT Jumpstarter 2026 is an annual pre-seed program run by the European Institute of Innovation and Technology — an EU body — with Innovation Agency Lithuania serving as the national hub and coordinator for Lithuanian participants. The program targets early-stage teams including students, researchers, scientists, and pre-seed startups across nine thematic domains: health, food systems, energy, raw materials, manufacturing, digital, urban mobility, climate innovation, and creative industries. Teams must have a minimum of two members and are not required to be incorporated as a company at the point of application. The program is open to participants from EU member states and EIT target regions, making it internationally accessible beyond Lithuania alone.

The program runs for approximately six to seven months in a hybrid format combining online sessions and in-person physical events across Europe, including mentoring, bootcamps, business model development, MVP prototyping guidance, market analysis, and investor readiness training. Access to the broader EIT network and potential follow-on EIT investment pathways are part of the value proposition. The primary financial instrument is an in-kind offering — participants receive training, mentoring, and network access at no cost. Cash prizes of up to EUR 10,000 are awarded to the best-performing teams at the final international pitch event. The 2026 cohort application deadline was 8 May 2026.

Selection criteria assess innovation novelty and technical soundness, team competence, market potential and scalability, problem relevance, and commercialization potential. All program activities are conducted in English, and active participation throughout the full program duration is required. Winning teams should demonstrate a credible path from idea to market and the capacity to leverage EIT network connections. The next cycle is expected to open annually — prospective applicants should monitor eitjumpstarter.eu for the 2027 cohort announcement.