EIT Health Wild Card

What EIT Health Wild Card does

EIT Health Wild Card is an open innovation programme operating within EIT Health, a public initiative of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) headquartered in Munich. Its function is to build new healthcare ventures from external teams and individuals with big ideas, and as a platform within EIT Health it orchestrates a portfolio of 36-37 active programmes spanning venture-building, acceleration, education, and certification across 15+ European countries including CEE and Southern European RIS markets.

The core product is a platform-plus-programmes architecture: competition/showcase programmes such as Catapult; Certified Innovation Paths in Health Data, Digital Medical Devices, and Value-based Healthcare; accredited Master's programmes (Health Data Science, Entrepreneurship in Digital Health, Innovative Medicine, Technological Innovation in Health); short courses covering regulatory compliance, go-to-market, and design thinking; thematic programmes including TEF Health (AI and robotics), Open Innovation, Start-ups Meet Pharma, and the Venture Centre of Excellence; regional programmes such as RIS Innovation Call and InnoStars Connect; and the EIT Label accreditation for quality-assured health innovation education. Underlying technology is not proprietary software; the platform is a programme orchestration and content-distribution layer delivered via the eithealth.eu web property across online, in-person, and hybrid formats.

The business model is publicly funded: as part of EIT, the entity receives EU funding and offers programmes free or at subsidized rates to entrepreneurs, healthcare professionals, students, researchers, and investors. Go-to-market is event-driven and community-driven — digital channels (website, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, newsletters), Morning Health Talks, conferences, and a member-based Innovators Community. The customer base is broadly distributed across persona segments (students, healthcare professionals, entrepreneurs, investors, SMEs, researchers) and geographies, with no named commercial customer logos and no disclosed pricing.

Name

EIT Health Wild Card

Website

https://wildcard.eithealth.eu

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Short description

EIT Health Wild Card is an EU-funded open innovation programme that builds new healthcare ventures from external teams, operating within EIT Health's pan-European platform of 36-37 acceleration, education, and certification programmes across 15+ countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Healthcare Innovation Education and Acceleration

SIC

Services-Health Services (8000)

akta.pro primary industry

Health Informatics & Digital Health Programs (EDAHAGAJ)

Keywords

• Healthcare innovation programmes
• Health startup acceleration
• Healthcare education programmes
• Medical entrepreneurship training
• Digital health training

Headquarters

HQ city

Munich

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Public funding / EU funding: EIT Health is part of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT), receiving EU funding to support health innovation programmes across Europe. The organization provides programmes for free or subsidized rates to support healthcare innovation ecosystem development.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

EIT Health Wild Card is an open innovation programme that creates new business ventures from teams and individuals with healthcare-focused ideas. It operates a portfolio of health innovation programmes including startup competitions (Catapult), Certified Innovation Path learning tracks, Master's degree programmes, short courses on digital health and regulation, and acceleration/funding programmes (Venture Centre of Excellence, RIS Innovation Call, InnoStars Connect). The offering targets students, healthcare professionals, entrepreneurs, investors, start-ups/SMEs, and researchers across 15+ European countries.

Product overview

EIT Health Wild Card operates as a portfolio of accelerator and educational programmes focused on health innovation across Europe. The offering is a platform-plus-programmes architecture comprising various specialized tracks: (1) Competition/Showcase programmes like Catapult that connect start-ups with investors; (2) Certified Innovation Path programmes offering personalised learning in Health Data, Digital Medical Devices, and Value-based Healthcare; (3) Master degree programmes including Master in Health Data Science, Master in Entrepreneurship in Digital Health, and Master in Technological Innovation in Health; (4) Short courses covering Digital Health topics (Human-Centred Design, Market Readiness, Go-to-Market Strategy), Healthcare Regulations, Quality by Design, and Design Thinking; (5) Thematic programmes including TEF Health (AI and robotics), Open Innovation, Start-ups Meet Pharma, and Venture Centre of Excellence for financing; (6) Regional programmes such as RIS Innovation Call and InnoStars Connect for emerging European countries; and (7) EIT Label accreditation for quality-assured health innovation education. The programmes serve entrepreneurs, healthcare professionals, researchers, and students across European countries including Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovenia.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Catapult: Innovation competition and training programme showcasing life sciences and health tech start-ups to leading experts and investors across Europe
• Certified Innovation Path
• Master in Health Data Science
• Master in Entrepreneurship in Digital Health
• International Master in Innovative Medicine
• Master in Technological Innovation in Health
• Venture Centre of Excellence
• Healthy Investment Central Eastern Europe
• InnoStars Connect

Products and services

• Catapult
• Certified Innovation Path
• Master in Health Data Science
• Master in Entrepreneurship in Digital Health
• Master in Technological Innovation in Health
• International Master in Innovative Medicine
• Venture Centre of Excellence
• Healthy Investment Central Eastern Europe
• InnoStars Connect
• Open Innovation
• Start-ups Meet Pharma
• RIS Innovation Call
• TEF Health
• EIT Health Academy
• EIT Label
• i-Days

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Techstars: Operates dedicated healthcare and biotech accelerator programmes providing mentorship, funding connections, and demo-day exposure to early-stage health ventures — directly parallel to EIT Health's Catapult and acceleration tracks serving European health-tech startups.
• MassChallenge: Global, equity-free startup accelerator with dedicated health tracks that supports early-stage founders through programmes, mentorship, and investor connections — directly comparable in mission and cohort model to EIT Health's accelerator programmes such as Catapult.
• IndieBio (SOSV): Leading biotechnology and health-focused accelerator that combines seed capital, mentorship, and lab infrastructure for early-stage health ventures — comparable to EIT Health's health-tech venture development and acceleration programmes.
• Startupbootcamp: Global accelerator network operating vertical-specific programmes including Digital Health and HealthTech, supporting founders with mentor networks and investor access across multiple regions — closely comparable to EIT Health's regional accelerator and startup programmes.
• European Innovation Council (EIC): EU-level innovation funding and accelerator programme that supports breakthrough deep-tech and scale-up ventures with grants and equity investment — a directly comparable EU-backed innovation platform targeting European entrepreneurs and SMEs.

Broad incumbents

• Y Combinator: Largest global startup accelerator with a substantial healthcare and biotech portfolio — comparable as a general accelerator model, but operates far more broadly across sectors and geographies than EIT Health's health-focused European remit.

Emerging players

• Station F: World's largest startup campus hosting corporate-backed and thematic programmes including health — provides programme infrastructure, investor introductions, and community similar to EIT Health's open-innovation model, though more centralised in one location.

Others

• Horizon Europe: The EU's flagship research and innovation framework programme that funds cross-border health innovation projects — directly comparable as an EU-level funding vehicle supporting healthcare R&D and innovation capacity across member states.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC8W06RVPIATNIxFMVyi6Ujw
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/eit-health-wild-card
• Instagraminstagram.com/eithealth
• Xx.com/Wildcard_EITH

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments2 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about EIT Health Wild Card