AI and software funding consultant for companies across the EU

Yes, we work with AI and software companies across the EU. Without a German entity, the main routes are the EIC Accelerator and Horizon Europe, which are open to companies established in an EU member state or an associated country, and Eurostars, in which every EU member state takes part. German national programmes such as the Research Allowance come into play once you have a German company or a permanent establishment in Germany.

The EIC Accelerator, Eurostars and Horizon Europe Cluster 4 are the three to check first. The EIC Accelerator funds a single startup or SME with a grant below €2.5M and optional equity of €1M to €10M, and its open call accepts any field of technology. Eurostars funds international R&D projects led by an innovative SME. Horizon Europe Cluster 4 includes AI topics such as GenAI4EU and frontier AI, for consortia of at least three partners from three countries.

Yes, if it is taxable in Germany, typically through a German subsidiary or a permanent establishment. Eligibility follows German tax liability, and the tax authorities treat a foreign company with a German permanent establishment as eligible where Germany has the right to tax. The allowance is 25% of eligible R&D costs, 35% for SMEs, credited against German tax. Contract research counts only if the contractor is managed in the EU, or in an EEA state that provides administrative assistance in tax matters.

Yes, for the work that goes beyond using them. For the Research Allowance, the certifying body (BSFZ) does not count introducing and configuring established software, or assembling existing components without technical risk, as R&D; new methods, training approaches or systems that resolve real technical uncertainty can qualify. The EIC Accelerator looks for a breakthrough innovation, and KMU-innovativ: IKT expects research, not experimental development alone.

Not as R&D. The BSFZ excludes projects that consist only of routine development, such as requirements analysis, testing, debugging and documentation, or of configuring cloud and server setups, porting and data migration. Testing a prototype inside a genuine R&D project still counts. Grant programmes apply their own test: KMU-innovativ: IKT asks for novelty in the IT itself, the EIC Accelerator for a breakthrough. For digitalisation without research character, KfW digitalisation loans are the closer fit.

Owned hardware can count under the Research Allowance; rented cloud compute is not eligible as a cost item of its own. Depreciation on movable assets such as GPU servers counts if they were acquired or produced after 27 March 2024, are used exclusively in the R&D project and are necessary for it; low-value assets written off immediately do not. Rented assets, software and licences are excluded. For projects started from 2026, a flat 20% is added to eligible costs for overheads and other operating costs.

Yes, through its IKT strand, if you are an SME with a permanent establishment or branch in Germany by the time the grant is paid out. It funds research in software-intensive systems, and its project management agency names AI fields such as computer vision, language understanding and data engineering. SMEs can apply alone or with partners; companies above the SME limits take part only as partners in a joint project. The procedure starts with a project outline on kmu-innovativ.de.

Yes, several programmes are built for that stage. The Research Allowance is paid out even when a company makes a loss: whatever exceeds your tax bill is refunded. The EIC Accelerator accepts startups, and even founders who will set up the company before the grant agreement is signed. Founders still at a German university or research institute can start with EXIST.

For digital transformation without a research component, a KfW loan is usually a better fit than an R&D grant. KfW's ERP-Förderkredit Digitalisierung finances digitalisation projects in Germany, IT security measures included, and is applied for through a bank before the project starts. Where a digital project involves real development, such as new models or data systems built under technical uncertainty, the Research Allowance and the grants on this page come into play.

Yes, and for some programmes it helps. Under the Research Allowance, contract research counts at 70% of the fee for contracts placed after 27 March 2024 (60% before), if the contractor is managed in the EU, or in an EEA state that provides administrative assistance in tax matters. KMU-innovativ: IKT funds joint projects in which universities and research institutes can receive up to 100% of their costs. Under the German Eurostars rules, universities and institutes are funded only when a German SME carries a substantial share of the R&D work.

For the Research Allowance our fee is purely success-based: 10% of the funding up to €500k per year and 5% above that, due only after payout. For all other programmes the fee is a fixed share plus a success component, both agreed in advance. The first eligibility check is free and comes with no obligation.