Innovation pipeline: Pathfinder, Demonstrator and Scaler

To achieve its goals, EIT Climate-KIC has created three programmes for innovation projects: the Pathfinder, the Demonstrator and the Scaler.

Pathfinder

The Pathfinder is an ideation programme that helps innovators test, refine and confirm assumptions about their innovation ideas, so that they are suitably developed to be applied and implemented. The Pathfinder programme is designed to enable the collaboration of research and business stakeholders, and typically lasts between three to six months, with potential funding up to a maximum of €50 000.

Open to both partners and interested partners, Pathfinder helps innovators test, refine and confirm assumptions about their innovation ideas, so that they are suitably developed to be applied and implemented.

Pathfinder is an opportunity to scope out and refine the feasibility of early-stage innovation propositions.

Applicants can get support in putting together a network of partners, gain access to pre-existing networks, and test out the parameters of their proposition in a safe, de-risked environment. The projects are typically rapid innovation projects: testing an idea or engaging in prototyping. Successful proposals have to explain why they offer a unique contribution to EIT Climate-KIC’s portfolio.

The network of Climate-KIC partners includes organisations at the cutting edge of climate innovation, from academic and educational institutions to established businesses and start-ups. Successful applicants are able to share best practice with the wider network, and propel their innovations to maturity.

EIT Climate-KIC believes that Early Stage innovation activities are critical for developing innovation capability and laying the foundations for compelling, high-value propositions that attract investment and deliver impact. The objective of these programmes is to develop high-quality Early Stage proposals that deliver change around the 12 Impact Goals. Complex interconnected challenges like climate change must be tackled by assembling key actors to change systems. Early Stage innovation, therefore, is not about supporting business as usual, but exploring systemic change and the collaborations, innovations and business models needed to achieve it. All this is done at an Early Stage when it is less costly to experiment and learn. The knowledge and understanding acquired by the EIT Climate-KIC community through this experimentation is harnessed to provide feedback loops that inform strategy and implementation.

Demonstrator

The Demonstrator (for EIT Climate-KIC partners with a validated business model) supports climate innovators to demonstrate that their innovation works and is a viable proposition on which to create a

“business”, whether for profit or not. It is designed to support multiple stakeholders with funding and services to remove project risk. Such later-stage innovation projects can receive a maximum of €1 000 000 of EIT Climate-KIC contribution per year for up to three years. They should be multi-partner, high-ambition innovation projects with a clear strategic argument for how they will create impact and why they offer a unique contribution to EIT Climate-KIC’s portfolio. Each innovation project shall embed learning dimensions, whether in terms of capability building or creating the appropriate mind-sets for systems change.

By enabling consortia, the Demonstrator Programme ensures the full range of technical and business knowledge and competencies are brought to play, thereby reducing the financial, technical and business risk associated with the latter stages of innovation and increasing attractiveness to investment and growth. In order to be eligible, Partner consortia must either have validated or clearly described the scaling model that underpins the identified systems innovation opportunity.

Scaler

The Scaler (for EIT Climate-KIC partners with a validated business model) brings together providers with scaling services and innovators in need of support to scale their proven innovations. It provides funding and support for the development and implementation of scaling services that can be applied to proven innovations. EIT Climate-KIC expects project owners to design projects with and on behalf of

demand-owners (e.g. cities, regions, countries, businesses or citizens groups). The most impactful innovation

projects are those that are both designed with demand-owners and involve them throughout. In this regard, EIT Climate-KIC does not intend to support traditional supply-driven, research-oriented projects led by universities/teams of researchers where demand-side partners are not engaged. There are other H2020 instruments to support pure research projects.

The financial resources available from EIT Climate-KIC should be seen as a co-investment alongside others.

The maximum EIT reimbursement rate is 80% for Pathfinder projects and 67% for Demonstrator and Scaler projects. The maximum EIT reimbursement rate is applied at the project level. Individual Partners may seek EIT reimbursement of up to 100% within a consortium providing the maximum EIT reimbursement rate for the programme is not exceeded by the project overall. For multi-annual projects, a Partners’ EIT reimbursement Rate should remain the same each year.

Proposal evaluation

All proposals shall be assessed fairly and transparently in the scope of EIT Climate-KIC’s Innovation Impact Goals, programme eligibility, assessment criteria and the current portfolio of activities. EIT Climate-KIC manages the portfolio to achieve the correct balance of projects and funding across the Impact Goals.

Earlier Stage Applications are assessed by a minimum of two EIT Climate-KIC teams. Later Stage Applications are assessed by a minimum of two EIT Climate-KIC teams and additionally, applications are assessed by up to three independent assessors. The assessors are experts from both business and academia. Applications are assessed against the criteria. Assessors provide written feedback for each scored question in the application. The commissioning board makes the final decision regarding funding.

EIT Climate-KIC uses the following quality assessment criteria for assessing all innovation proposals.

Strategic Fit & Contribution to the Climate Innovation Impact Goals

• Does the proposal provide a clear narrative substantiating how and why the project aligns with the EIT Climate-KIC Impact Goals?

• Does the proposal clearly work in line with the objectives of the relevant programme?

Demand Assessment • Does the proposal convey how it aims to identify or address the challenges and needs of the demand-side (business, society, policy community, etc.) of the innovation?

• To what extent are demand side representatives expressing interest in the innovation?

• [Demonstrator, Scaler] Are demand-side representatives part of the project consortium and/or expressing concrete interest in the innovation?

• [Scaler] Is there evidence that there has been uptake of the innovation?

Systems Innovation Potential • Does the innovation have intention/potential to create transformational change on a systems level?

• Does the proposal clearly describe why it is innovative?

• Does the proposal clearly describe how the innovation opportunity was identified (e.g. through a Pathfinder project)?

Expected Impact & Speed to Impact

• Does the proposal clearly describe the mechanism for how it will contribute to climate change mitigation and/or increasing climate resilience? What is the potential scale of the impact?

• How well does the proposal consider socio-economic benefits and risks that the innovation entails?

• Is evidence provided to substantiate (if appropriate: quantify) the expected impact? Does the proposal adequately reference other studies?

• Does the project encourage diversity and gender equity?

Project Consortium/ Partnership • Do the consortium partners have the appropriate skills and capabilities to successfully deliver the project?

• To what extent does the consortium engage organisations from different parts of society (government, academia, industry and civil society)?

Project Plan & Clarity of Outputs • Are the work plan and work packages clearly explained and relevant to support the project objectives and expected impact?

• Are the project outputs, deliverables and KPIs clearly stated and linked to the different work packages/project stages identified in the work plan?

Value for Money • How well is the funding spent on activities directly linked to achieving the project objectives, deliverables and KPIs?

• How appropriate is the funding request in relation to the anticipated benefits?

• How much co-funding is offered to match the EIT funding?

• How high is the potential for the innovation to attract further capital/ investment (beyond EIT-funding)?