AI Entrepreneurs Lab
ClosedDescription
An intensive programme for the most promising early-stage talent in AI and robotics. Up to 15 people join a cohort for a hands-on bootcamp that turns research and raw ideas into the foundations of a company. It runs across three cities in five days, ends with a Demo Day, and awards up to five prizes of €10,000 to the teams that show the strongest evidence of a real venture. The Lab is part of the EU ApplyAI Strategy and is operated by 28DIGITAL under the EIT Community AI & Robotics. It exists to move Europe’s best technical talent from the lab bench to the founder’s seat.
Beneficiary & submission
Submit one application through the official platform before the deadline. You’ll need:
- The completed application form (on the submission platform)
- Your CV — one per team member
- A short, creative presentation of your idea
Key dates
- Call opens: 1 September 2026
- Information session: 25 September 2026
- Application deadline: 21 October 2026, 17:00 CET
- Top 15 announced: 26 October 2026
- Bootcamp (in person): 9–13 November 2026
- Demo Day & winners: 13 November 2026
- Awards ceremony: 17 November 2026, EU AI Summit, Brussels
Further information
Master’s and PhD students and graduates with strong AI or robotics ideas and the drive to build a business around them. You can apply solo or as a team of up to two, in your personal capacity, whether you have an early concept or a recently incorporated startup at pre-launch stage.
You’re a strong fit if you:
- Have an idea where AI or robotics is genuinely central, not a label bolted onto something else;
- Can point to a real problem, a credible technical direction and a plausible path to market;
- Are working in Core AI and Robotics: AI agents and autonomous systems, edge AI and AI infrastructure, robotics intelligence, trustworthy and secure AI, foundation and generative models, or industrial AI deployment;
- Are ready to test your idea in public - with customers, founders and investors - in five fast days.
What will you get?
- A cohort, not a classroom. A place in a 15-strong cohort of Europe’s most promising applied-AI founders.
- Hands-on mentoring. Founder readiness, customer discovery, commercial-model testing, pitch development and investor readiness — led by people who’ve founded, scaled and deployed.
- Real market contact. Direct feedback from mentors, startups, corporates and investors, plus introductions that outlast the week.
- A shot at €10,000. Up to five prizes of €10,000, awarded on merit at Demo Day to fund concrete venture progress.
- Support to be there. Travel and accommodation support for the Top 15 may be provided, subject to programme rules and budget.