€525 million investment set to drive new generation of European chip design companies

Launching today, the European Chip Design Platform will mobilise €525 million in investment to stimulate a new generation of European chip design companies. Executive Vice-President for Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy, Henna Virkkunen launched the project, a key initiative under the EU Chips Act.

Chip design is a core stage of the semiconductor value chain, where much of the industry's innovation emerges. European chip design companies currently account for less than 1% of global revenues in this segment. New manufacturing capacity in Europe will only be sustainable if there is enough demand for it, and much of that demand has to come from European designers.

The European Chip Design Platform - eurocdp.eu - will give chip design companies access to chip design tools, design support services, intellectual property blocks, as well as access to manufacturing capacity on the platform. These resources are often the most expensive and the hardest to access for early-stage companies.

Start-ups and companies can apply for funding on the European Chip Design Platform; grants of up to €100,000 are available to early-stage start-ups for proof-of-concept prototyping. In addition, more developed start-ups can apply for €16 million grants to help them meet the substantial costs of chip development towards commercialisation.

Start-ups and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) can also receive guidance from the European network of Chip Competence Centres when applying for access.

By providing comprehensive support through training, rapid prototyping and access to state-of-the-art resources, the Platform will help European start-ups turn their innovative ideas into silicon and scale up faster.

Background

A total of €440 million in public investment from the EU and Member States is available through grants. This is accompanied by a further €85 million in investment in the cloud-based platform's infrastructure, running support services and developing open-source chip design tools.

A part of the total funding, € 285 million, comes from the EU budget and another €240 million comes from the participating States of the Chips Joint Undertaking.

The cloud-based platform is operated by a consortium led by imec, and is supported by the Chips Joint Undertaking, with solutions from the world's leading EDA and IP providers.

In parallel, 20 start-ups are taking part in the EuroCDP venture development programmes receiving technical and commercial training to turn their ideas into market-ready products. 

The EU Chips Act aims to reinforce the semiconductor ecosystem in the EU, ensure the resilience of supply chains and reduce external dependencies. It focuses on five strategic objectives, including building and reinforcing Europe's design capacity in advanced chips. A core component of the Chips Act is setting up a European Chip Design Platform through the Chips Joint Undertaking.

In addition, in June 2026, the European Commission proposed the technological sovereignty package, which includes the Chips Act 2.0, with a key aim of boosting demand for chips and supporting the design and production of advanced and mainstream chips in the EU.

For more information

Chips Act success stories - Factpage

European Chips Design platform - Factpage