Sweeping changes to EIC board as it prepares future expansion

The European Commission has appointed 20 new members to the European Innovation Council (EIC) board and renewed the mandates of five previous board members, as the EIC prepares for a stronger role in supporting Europe’s technological sovereignty.

The board, drawn from experts in academia, entrepreneurship, finance and other sectors, advises the Commission on the EIC’s strategy, work programme and thematic portfolios. It may also be asked to provide input on broader innovation policy matters.

The EIC was launched in 2021 to help entrepreneurial academics and start-ups scale up breakthrough technologies and innovations. It has a €10 billion budget under the Horizon Europe programme, which is distributed through grants and equity investments.

Its mission is currently being rethought as the Commission looks to introduce more agility and risk-taking, inspired by the US Advanced Research Projects Agencies, and to more than triple its budget to €34.5 billion in the next Horizon Europe programme from 2028.

Before the Commission presented its proposal, the EIC board was active in lobbying for a larger budget. In the coming years, it will have an important role in convincing EU governments to match the Commission’s ambition and in contributing to strategic debates on the future of the EIC’s various instruments.

The new board members are:

Francesca Bria, an innovation economist and president of Art-ER, an Italian innovation agency based in Bologna. She is the initiator of the EuroStack initiative setting out how Europe can achieve digital sovereignty.

Ana Casaca, director of innovation at Galp, a Portuguese energy company. She has experience in technology transfer, corporate innovation and ecosystem development.

Jean-Michel Dalle, managing director of Paris start-up incubator Agoranov and co-founder of Rise Europe, a network of start-up ecosystem builders. He currently chairs the committee for France’s University Innovation Clusters, a programme to help universities scale up their innovation and entrepreneurship capabilities.

Stefan Drüssler, managing director of UnternehmerTUM, a centre for innovation and business creation that works closely with the Technical University of Munich.

Belén Garijo, chief executive of German healthcare, life sciences and electronics company Merck. She is also a medical doctor specialising in clinical pharmacology.

Maria Victoria Hernández-Valcárcel, a board member of companies in telecoms, banking, mobility and industrial technologies. She is well acquainted with the EIC having served as a jury member and as a board member of the EIC Scaling Club, a community of deep-tech scale-ups, investors, mentors and more.

Eliza Kruczkowska, managing director of the Foundation for Entrepreneurship Support. She previously worked as director of innovation development at the Polish Development Fund and chief executive of Startup Poland.

Milla Marinova, a UK-based medical doctor and chief executive of R8ER, a digital platform connecting early-stage health innovations with investors.

Anne Mettler, former vice president for Europe at Breakthrough Energy, an organisation founded by Bill Gates to accelerate the clean energy transition. She is currently a visiting fellow at Columbia University's Center for Global Energy Policy and an advisor to European investment fund Kinnevik.

Sorin Moisa, co-founder of Australian drone technology company Skyy Network, having previously been an MEP and deputy head of cabinet to the European commissioner for agriculture.

Laurence Petit, innovation department head at French research and technology organisation CEA, where she oversees CEA’s start-up support programmes and manages its investment activities.

Danielius Stasiulis, Lithuanian entrepreneur and investor with a focus on educational technology and AI. He co-founded the EdTech Lithuania community.

Peter Vanbekbergen, co-founder of Imec.xpand, one of the largest semiconductor investment funds in Europe, with previous experience in several spin-offs from Belgian R&D organisation Imec.

Antti Vasara, venture partner at Kvanted, a fund focused on industrial applications operating in the Nordics and central Europe, chair of two quantum start-ups, and special envoy for technology for Finland’s minister for foreign affairs.

Jaromir Zahrádka, founder of Czech life-science incubator i&i Prague and the i&i Biotech Fund. He is a jury member for the EIC Step programme and is focused on strengthening innovation ecosystems in central and eastern Europe. 

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The five current members who will continue serving on the EIC board are:

Bart Becks, Belgian entrepreneur, co-founder of digital skills campus BeCentral and former chief executive of Belgian digital media company Belgacom Skynet, now part of Proximus.

Carsten Dreher, professor for innovation management at Freie Universität Berlin, his research focuses on technology foresight.

Michaela Kršková, strategic advisor at the Kempelen Institute of Intelligent Technologies. She previously served as Slovakia’s first chief innovation officer.

Patrik Sobocki, senior investment director and head of deep-tech investment practice at Swedish venture fund Industrifonden and co-founder of Deeptech Venture Collective. He previously worked for pharma companies Glaxo Smith Kline and AstraZeneca.

Anita Krohn Traaseth, chief executive of Norwegian industrial investment company DSD AS and former chief executive of Innovation Norway.

The new members were selected from 951 applications and are appointed for a two-year term, renewable twice. The first meeting of the new board will take place on 29 January 2026.

EIC president Michiel Scheffer is still in the middle of his four-year mandate, having started his role on 1 June 2023.

The appointments come a week after the European Research Council renewed its governing board.

Editor’s note: Bart Becks is a shareholder of Science|Business.