Despite various European initiatives supporting women entrepreneurs, corporate investments remain an underutilised funding avenue. Unlike traditional venture capital, Corporate Venture Capital units operate within large corporations. They prioritize long-term growth, strategic partnerships, industry insights, corporate backing and corporate partners. 

Open Horizons will establish a pathway for women-led startups to collaborate with large-scale corporates under an innovative funding and mentorship framework. 

Key activities of the project include: 

• Establishing a network to connect women-led startups with corporations across various industries. 

• Providing a structured, zero-cost collaboration framework for corporations, removing financial barriers and fostering impactful partnerships. 

• Funding startups through the paid pilot scheme developing new business collaborations with corporate partners 

The initiative is coordinated by PEDAL Consulting possessing extensive experience in supporting small and medium-sized enterprises and women-led initiatives through innovation procurement. Furthermore, the consortium consists of:  

• SPLORO (Spain) – Experts in cascade funding and key contributors to Women TechEU and the EmpoWomen projects. 

• INNOVX (Romania) – A premier European accelerator and an EIC Partner, recently recognized among Europe’s leading startup hubs by the Financial Times. 

• MIGROS (Turkey) – A major retail corporation with an established open innovation program, MigrosUp! 

Additionally, Open Horizons will collaborate with a network of associated corporate partners, such as e.g. Siemens Industry Software, Stahl, Repsol, and Arneplant. They will support the development and implementation of innovative tech solutions in energy, industry, advanced software, and retail sectors. 

Contact person and Project Coordinator: 
Zuzana Velika, PEDAL Consulting 
e-mail: z.velika@pedal-consulting.eu

This project has received funding from the European Union’s HORIZON EUROPE research and innovation programme, under grant agreement No. 101193231. This press release reflects the views only of the author, and all partners of the project OPEN HORIZONS and the European Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.