Open call – Do business with Procter & Gamble, Air Liquide, Chiesi Group, Merck and Nestlé at Brussel’s Innovation Roundtable

The European Innovation Council (EIC) is inviting EIC-backed start-ups, scale-ups, and SMEs to participate in an exclusive business acceleration journey culminating in the EIC Multi-Corporate Day with Procter & Gamble (P&G), Air Liquide, Chiesi Group, Merck, Nestlé and others. This exclusive activity will take place on 8–9 October 2025 in Brussels, Belgium, in the context of the Innovation Roundtable, Europe’s premier gathering of corporate innovation executives.

Don’t miss this unique opportunity and apply by 12 August 2025

This activity is organised under the EIC Corporate Partnership Programme. This initiative offers the selected EIC-backed companies dedicated training, mentoring, pitch dry runs, and further support ahead of their strategic one-to-one meetings with our corporate partners. Additionally, the selected EIC companies will benefit from post-activity support to maximise the impact of their business proposals.

What is in it for you?

The selected EIC-backed companies will benefit from:

• Personalised preparatory support, including a group session with the partner corporations, 1-to-1 sessions with business experts, high-quality feedback to adjust the pitch deck, pitch dry run, and a business proposal review;
• Privileged access to high-level decision-makers from P&G, Air Liquide, Chiesi, Merck and Nestlé;
• Knowledge-sharing and networking opportunities;
• Invitation to the exclusive EIC VIP Networking Dinner on 8 October;
• Potential for collaborations, strategic partnerships, or market entry with P&G, Air Liquide, Chiesi, Merck and Nestlé.

Who can apply?

This call is ONLY open to EIC-backed start-ups, scale-ups, and SMEs offering market-ready or near-market innovations. Applications should target the specific interest areas outlined by the corporate partners.

P&G, Air Liquide, Chiesi Farmaceutici, Nestlé, and Merck are seeking innovative, market-ready solutions aligned with the following innovation challenges. You can find a more detailed version of these challenges here.

P&G – Consumer products for a sustainable and data-driven household

P&G is scouting for disruptive, scalable technologies that can accelerate their development in:

1. AI-Enhanced materials and ingredients: AI-enabled formulation design, novel polymers and packaging, preservative and surfactant innovation, perfume materials via AI-driven fermentation, and advances in olfactory science.
2. AI in manufacturing for net-zero Impact: energy and resource management, and sustainable packaging production.
3. Smart product and personalisation: smart, connected products, data-driven personalisation, adaptive solutions, and seamless eco-system integration.
4. AI for consumer insights: use of AI-driven predictive analytics hard and soft sensors to understand consumer behaviour, implement machine learning models for dynamic segmentation, and conduct sentiment analysis.

Air Liquide – Industrial AI and advanced materials

Air Liquide seeks AI enabled and digital solutions that optimise complex industrial ecosystems:

1. AI for industrial optimisation: predictive safety, process control, maintenance, lifetime extension of ageing assets and incident prediction.
2. AI for advanced materials science: membranes, adsorbents, catalysts, polymers and others.
3. Generative engineering: AI for material discovery and engineering design.
4. AI for distribution and supply chain: e.g. optimising routes for industrial gas deliveries.
5. AI for customers: customer care, personalisation, reducing customer churn
6. Generative engineering and documentation: Leveraging AI-powered tools to transform unstructured technical content, such as text files, graphics, and diagrams, into structured, actionable databases. These solutions should streamline the processing and management of large volumes of technical documentation, enabling efficient data extraction, transcription, and integration into engineering workflows
7. AI solutions: Predicting the stability of cosmetic, pharmaceutical, and nutraceutical formulations

Chiesi Farmaceutici – Better breathing and neonatal care

Chiesi is looking for solutions focused on two strategic domains:

1. CARE (Neonatology): Prevention, prediction, early diagnosis of Neonatal Respiratory Distress Syndrome (NRDS), Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia, (BPD), Intestinal Malabsorption and Hypoxic Ischemic Encephalopathy (HIE),  non invasive monitoring (hospital & home), smart and less invasive drugdelivery, personalised treatment, digital parental support, and solutions improving neonatal outcomes in low resource settings.
2. AIR (Chronic Respiratory Diseases) such as Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), Asthma, Bronchiectasis, Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis, Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension (PAH), Pulmonary hypertension associated with interstitial lung disease (PH-ILD), prevention and prediction, early diagnosis, improved disease management and adherence, personalized treatments and disease modifying approaches, support severe patients and broader access especially in low-resource settings.

Nestlé – Nutrition, biodiversity & sustainable packaging

Nestlé is looking for startups and scaleups (TRL 6+) that can strengthen its "Good food, Good life" commitments:

1. Agricultural biodiversity research: Measuring and assessing biodiversity within cocoa, coffee, and dairy farming systems
   • Fat and oil alternatives, including the development of substitutes for cocoa butter and other confectionery fats, and research into alternative fat sources for chocolate and candy production
2. Health-beneficial ingredients
   • Scientifically proven ingredients that support specific health areas (brain function and cognitive health, sleep quality improvement, skin health and appearance, muscle, joint, and bone strength).
   • Focus on ingredients with robust clinical evidence for these benefits
3. GLP-1 treatment support
   • Ingredients and products with scientific backing for supporting GLP-1 receptor agonist therapies
   • Nutritional components that may enhance or complement GLP-1-based treatments
4. Women's health solutions
   • Evidence-based ingredients targeting menstrual cycle symptom relief
   • Scientifically-supported solutions for menopause symptom management
   • Focus on natural or functional ingredients with proven efficacy for women's hormonal health
5. Circular & functional packaging solutions
   • Material innovations: Paperisation (replacing conventional packaging with paper-based alternatives), bio-based coatings (plant-derived protective films for packaging surfaces), algae materials (packaging components made from algae sources)
   • System design: Refillable systems (multi-use packaging designed for repeated filling), reusable containers (durable packaging that eliminates single-use waste), recycled integration (incorporating post-consumer recycled content).
   • Advanced materials: Barrier papers (high-performance papers that replace plastic protection), bio-based polymers (renewable plant-based packaging materials), compostable options (industrial composting-compatible packaging), biodegradable solutions (materials that naturally break down in standard environments).
6. Innovation in algae production and utilisation

Merck – Digital bioprocessing & human-relevant models

Merck invites proposals in two high-priority areas:

1. Smart consumables: Enabling seamless digital integration of filters, chromatography media and other downstream tools in biomanufacturing.
2. Multi-purpose micro physiological systems (MPS): Enhancing translatability, reduce animal testing and accelerate drug-safety profiling.

Please specify which challenge(s) you are applying for in your application.

EIC-backed start-ups, scale-ups and SMEs can apply here.

Please note that the information you provide on the application form will be shared with P&G, Air Liquide, Chiesi, Merck and Nestlé, who will select participants based on their business interests and strategic goals.

What happens after your application?

The EIC team will contact all selected applicants once the evaluation process is concluded. Please note that no feedback is provided to unsuccessful applicants.

If selected, the company participants must commit to:

• Attending all preparatory sessions (mid-September): including online pitch training, proposal reviews, and coaching;
• Participating in-person at the EIC Multi-Corporate Day in Brussels on 8–9 October 2025;
• Completing a brief satisfaction survey shortly after the matchmaking activity and a business impact survey six months after.

The companies must be represented by C-level executives and will be responsible for arranging and covering their travel and accommodation costs. Failure to comply with the commitments mentioned may result in exclusion from future EIC Business Acceleration Services opportunities.

Cancellation policy

Cancellations will only be accepted in duly justified cases of force majeure. Unjustified cancellations may result in exclusion from future EIC Business Acceleration Services opportunities. For more information, contact our Helpdesk (please select "EIC Multi-Corporate Day with P&G, Air Liquide, Chiesi, Merck and Nestlé" as the subject).

About the EIC Corporate Partnership Programme

This call and service are part of the EIC Corporate Partnership Programme, an initiative supporting EIC-backed companies looking to scale by securing new customers and business partners. To date, more than 1,500 EIC-backed start-ups and scale-ups, together with over 2,500 high-level representatives from more than 100 large companies, have taken part in the programme, resulting in significant impacts on organisations, tracking progress, and closing deals, often within 6 months. 

Stay up to date!

The EIC Corporate Partnership Programme is an initiative of the EIC Business Acceleration Services.

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About the EIC Corporate Partners

P&G: A global leader in fast-moving consumer goods, with iconic brands across hygiene, personal care, and household sectors. Known for its commitment to sustainability and consumer-centric innovation, P&G employs over 100,000 people worldwide.

Air Liquide: A world leader in gases, technologies, and services for industry and health, Air Liquide operates in 75 countries and serves over 3.8 million customers and patients. The company is pioneering digital, AI and green energy technologies.

Chiesi Group: A certified B Corp focused on research and development in respiratory, neonatology, and rare diseases. The company aims to make healthcare more inclusive and environmentally responsible.

Merck: A global science and technology company active in healthcare, life science, and electronics. Merck’s open innovation efforts include funding for biomanufacturing and the development of micro physiological systems.

Nestlé: The world's largest food and beverage company, with a commitment to nutrition, health, and wellness. Operating in 186 countries, it focuses on sustainable sourcing and science-driven innovation.

Innovation Roundtable: The leading network exclusively for innovation practitioners in large firms, gathering over 600 executives from 250+ global corporations. Innovation Roundtable® has organised over 250 large-scale corporate-only events in Europe, the US, and Asia since 2008.