The EIC Accelerator - Cumulative Data & Stats | Lira | Innovation Funding
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  • talkingpumpkin@lemmy.worldEnglish
    161·
    14 days ago

    I won’t comment on the obviously partial title (OP’s title, not the linked article’s) and on the fact that the article’s analyzes the investments done since 2021 (ie. when Israel didn’t kill people willy-nilly, not as much as it does now at least), but I would love to know why on earth the UK and (especially) Israel are included in the program.

    I mean, the EIC Accelerator funds come from the EU (IIUC - does Israel actually contribute?)… even if one were to ignore the ongoing mass extermination of Gazaui, why would an EU institution invest in Israel?

    • NeatNit@discuss.tchncs.deEnglish
      12·
      14 days ago

      [Edit: all is clear now, see my other reply]

      Speaking from Israel, I’m just as confused as you are. My best guess: Israel’s reputation (before the war) as a “Start-Up Nation” was well earned, a lot of technology and innovation was happening here. Arguably still is (hard to tell with all the war stuff). So generally it made sense to invest in Israeli startups simply to advance technology in general.

      But this is obviously an EU-centric program. All other countries listed are EU. So it’s still weird.

    • gnutrino@programming.devEnglish
      5·
      14 days ago

      AFAIK the funding ultimately comes out of the Horizon Europe pot of which Israel is a fully paid up associated member. I also wonder how they’re defining which country a given grant goes to - lots of Israeli headquartered companies have extensive operations in EU countries.

      • Szewek@sopuli.xyzEnglish
        7·
        14 days ago

        Yeah, Israel and UK contribute to the Horizon Europe’s budget, and are fully eligible to the grants under the program.

        The program is managed by the European Commission. Thus, in theory, the countries outside the EU pay but have no influence on the decision-making bodies. This can be a big disadvantage in more politically loaded processes. I suspect (from my experience with the ERC) that the selection process under Horizon Europe is build very much to focus on evaluating each project separately, not providing equity by country. Israel and the UK get a lot of funds since from there come project that, if not good, are at the very least popular. Or rather: That the decision boards, usually filled with specialists from the respective fields, find to have the highest feasibility times impact (figuratively, as, to the best of my knowledge, no such value is calculated).

        I see no conspiracy or a bypass to support Israel with extra money here. They were just good at writing grant proposal (or however you call it in the startup world), and they were allowed to be a part of EU’s research program as they have always been.

        They benefit from it nevertheless. And it is high time to end the collaboration. It is already being discussed. And it is good to know it would hurt indeed - thanks for the research, OP’s sources!

        https://efe.com/en/latest-news/2025-07-28/eu-suspension-israels-horizon-europe-gaza-attacks/