Money you do not give equity for.

Vinnova's standing grant for very young Swedish companies to develop and verify an innovative idea. The amount is small but there is no equity and no co-financing requirement stated. Most Swedish hardtech founders apply here first.

Next deadline 12 Jan 2027

A staged ladder of grants for energy technology companies: concept development, verification with a customer, pilot and demonstration, then international launch and capital raising support. The concept and verification calls open twice a year. For a Swedish hardtech company in energy, this is the main sector specific source.

No published deadline right now

Almi's innovation loan finances prototype building, testing and verification before a product reaches the market, with interest set individually and 3 to 5 years repayment. The verification grant pays for external services such as market analysis, novelty search or a simple MVP. Small tickets, but fast and available across Sweden.

Rolling applications

Klimatklivet funds physical investments in Sweden that measurably reduce greenhouse gas emissions, covering everything from industrial process conversion to charging infrastructure and biogas plants. For hardtech companies building decarbonization hardware, it can co-fund the capital cost of a first industrial installation or pilot plant.

Next deadline 6 Nov 2026 (14 days)

A phased path for Norwegian startups: a small grant for customer and market learning, a larger grant for technical and commercial clarification, then a startup loan for commercialisation. Innovation contracts fund development done together with a demanding pilot customer, which fits hardware well. All schemes take applications continuously.

Rolling applications

Funds R&D heavy innovation projects in companies, 12 to 48 months long, with a significant element of industrial research or experimental development. Thematic calls cover industry and services, energy and transport (including CO2 capture and storage), oceans, food and enabling technologies. Larger than Innovation Norway's grants and suited to a hardtech company with a real research component.

Rolling applications

CLIMIT Demo gives grants for development, pilot and demonstration of CO2 capture, transport and storage technology. It covers feasibility studies, pilot-scale testing and semi-industrial demonstration plants. For hardtech teams building physical carbon capture and handling systems, it can pay for the expensive step of testing hardware under real industrial conditions.

Rolling applications

Enova funds late-stage technology development, piloting, first commercial use, and industrialisation of energy and climate solutions across sectors including maritime, industry, hydrogen and biogas. It is a portal to several separate calls, each with its own scope, criteria and deadline, rather than a single program, so hardtech companies need to pick the specific call that fits their project.

Rolling applications

Norsk katapult funds a national network of industry test centres where hardware and industrial companies get subsidized access to equipment, labs and expertise for testing, simulation and verification. For hardtech teams this closes the gap between a concept and a demonstrable, qualified product without needing to buy the equipment themselves.

Rolling applications

Nysnø is the Norwegian state's climate investment company. It takes minority equity stakes in early-stage Norwegian climate technology companies, in the same round and on the same terms as private investors. For hardtech founders it works as public co-investment that adds to a privately led seed or growth round.

No published deadline right now

Innobooster co-finances knowledge based development projects in Danish SMEs, including hours, external knowledge partners and equipment. Innoexplorer funds the pre-company phase for university and hospital researchers. Together they cover a Danish hardtech idea from lab to SME development project.

No published deadline right now

EIFO is the Danish state's financing arm. For startups it offers a Match Loan that doubles a private investment without dilution, direct loans and guarantees for companies that already sell, and equity co-investment alongside private investors. It is capital, not a grant, so it complements Innobooster.

Rolling applications

EUDP is Denmark's national grant scheme for developing and demonstrating new energy technologies, run by the Danish Energy Agency. It funds pre-commercial work from early research through demonstration, spanning fuel cells, hydrogen, energy storage, CO2 capture and Power-to-X hardware. For hardtech teams building physical energy systems in Denmark, it is one of the largest non-dilutive pools available, with individual awards reaching well into the tens of millions of DKK.

No published deadline right now

Business Finland is the main public R&D financier in Finland. Sprint is the first grant for a new startup, R&D funding covers larger development and piloting projects as grant or soft loan, and the Deep Tech Accelerator backs research spin-outs. Tempo and Young Innovative Company (NIY) are closed.

Rolling applications

Finnvera backs bank loans with guarantees and lends directly to Finnish SMEs. The Finnvera Loan can fund domestic construction, machinery and equipment investments, energy and environment projects, and working capital. For hardtech teams it helps cover factory, tooling and test equipment spending where a bank wants more collateral than a young company has. It adds no equity dilution.

Rolling applications

Iceland's main public R&D grant for innovation in industry, with categories that follow a company's growth: seed, Sproti for new companies, Vöxtur for development and Markaður for market entry. Calls open twice a year, with company grants in the autumn round and applied research in the spring round.

Rolling applications

The fund pays grants to Icelandic projects that cut emissions, replace fossil fuels with domestic renewable energy, or bring new climate technology into use. Calls have included energy transition, circular economy, industrial (ETS) decarbonisation and geothermal innovation. For hardtech teams it is a non-dilutive way to part-fund a first physical deployment in Iceland.

No published deadline right now

Funds the last development steps and market entry of a physical product or deep tech that is too risky for private investors alone. The grant covers TRL 6 to 8 work and the equity part covers scale-up. For a hardtech company this is the largest single EU ticket available without a consortium.

Next deadline 4 Nov 2026 (12 days)

Funds early research on radically new technologies before there is a product. Pathfinder Open has no topic restriction, Pathfinder Challenges fund set themes. Relevant for a hardtech startup that works with a university on the science behind a future product.

Next deadline 28 Oct 2026 (5 days)

Takes a lab result from a previous EU funded project to a validated technology at TRL 5 or 6 and a business case. It bridges the gap between research grants and the Accelerator. Only relevant if your technology comes out of an eligible EU project.

No published deadline right now

Funds collaborative product development between SMEs in different countries, with a research partner allowed. Good fit for a hardtech company that has a supplier or customer abroad and wants both sides funded. Applications are assessed centrally, money comes from your national agency.

Next deadline 4 Mar 2027

The large collaborative EU research calls for manufacturing, materials, digital, space, batteries, energy and mobility technologies. Deadlines are fixed per call and topics are prescriptive, so a hardtech startup normally joins a consortium led by a larger company or research institute. Best used for TRL 4 to 7 work that needs several European partners.

Next deadline 1 Dec 2026 (39 days)

Nordic Innovation runs thematic calls rather than a standing startup grant. The Nordic Secondary Critical Raw Materials Value Chains call has closed. Current open calls are the RAMP preparatory projects call for the EU Raw Materials Partnership and a new call, Mobilising Capital for Nordic Growth and Scale-ups, which funds Nordic projects that improve access to capital for growth companies, scale-ups and funds. Relevant for hardtech companies working on raw materials value chains, Horizon Europe proposal preparation or scale-up financing.

Next deadline 5 Nov 2026 (13 days)

Long-term venture debt for venture-backed scale-ups, with bullet repayment and remuneration linked to the equity risk of the investee. The EIB names robotics, photonics, semiconductors, advanced hardware components, advanced materials, advanced manufacturing and space tech among the typical sectors. It is relevant for hardtech companies that need capital for pilot lines, demonstrators or first factories with less dilution than an equity round.

Rolling applications

The Innovation Fund pays lump-sum grants covering up to 60% of the costs of building and operating first-of-a-kind clean tech plants, from pilot to full commercial scale. For hardtech teams building physical decarbonisation equipment, batteries, electrolysers, CCUS or industrial process tech, it is one of the largest non-dilutive sources in Europe for the capital-heavy scale-up phase.

No published deadline right now