What does it take to turn a semiconductor innovation into a commercial product? Where can European start-ups access advanced chip design tools, prototyping facilities and funding? The webinar “Your Gateway to European Semiconductor Technologies: CCCs, Pilot Lines & EuroCDP” provided the answers on Monday, 12 October 2026.
The webinar, Your Gateway to European Semiconductor Technologies: CCCs, Pilot Lines & EuroCDP, brought together three national Chips Competence Centres — the Czech Semiconductor Centre (CSC), Slovakia’s SK Chips and Slovenia’s CC Chip.si — alongside representatives of the European Chips Design Platform (EuroCDP) and two major European pilot lines, NanoIC and PIXEurope. The online event demonstrated how Europe’s emerging semiconductor infrastructure can help start-ups, SMEs and research teams overcome technical and financial barriers, access advanced technologies and accelerate their journey from concept to market.
EuroCDP: Chip design support and grants of up to €8 million
One of the most significant opportunities for European fabless companies was presented by Romano Hoofman, coordinator of the European Chips Design Platform (EuroCDP). EuroCDP aims to address three major obstacles facing semiconductor start-ups: the complexity of chip design, the high cost of professional design tools and the difficulty of securing investment. Through a coordinated European network of nine Design Enablement Teams, the platform is developing integrated access to electronic design automation (EDA) tools, semiconductor intellectual property (IP), cloud-based design environments, expert support and manufacturing services.
Of particular interest to start-ups and SMEs is EuroCDP’s two-level grant framework:
- Incubation grants of up to €100,000 to support proof-of-concept chip design, including multi-project wafer (MPW) prototyping.
- Acceleration grants of up to €8 million to support minimum viable product (MVP) development, including design, fabrication, packaging and testing.
Access to funding is subject to the relevant eligibility conditions, application procedures and calls. EuroCDP also introduced its Incubate and Accelerate programmes, which provide semiconductor-specific business mentoring, access to industry experts and support in preparing for investment rounds. For smaller companies, this combination of design infrastructure, technical expertise and business development support could substantially reduce the resources required to develop their first chip.
NanoIC: Exploring beyond-2nm technologies without owning a fab
Giuseppe Fiorentino, Programme Manager at imec, presented the NanoIC pilot line, which focuses on Europe’s next generation of semiconductor technologies beyond the 2nm node. NanoIC is developing advanced logic, embedded memories and interconnect technologies, providing European innovators with opportunities to explore technologies that would otherwise be difficult to access.
A particularly valuable opportunity is the free access to NanoIC’s Pathfinding Process Design Kits (PDKs). These technology-specific design environments allow companies and researchers to explore advanced semiconductor architectures and evaluate design concepts before committing to expensive fabrication.
NanoIC also demonstrated opportunities for semiconductor equipment suppliers. In September 2026, the pilot line signed an evaluation agreement with Swedish technology company Alixlabs to validate its innovative pitch-splitting technology. The presentation highlighted further opportunities for professional development, including hands-on PDK workshops. An advanced workshop covering interposers, redistribution layers and hybrid bonding is scheduled for 7–8 December 2026 at imec in Leuven.
PIXEurope: Helping photonic chip innovations reach industrial production
Marina Santana from ICFO introduced PIXEurope, Europe’s pilot line dedicated to advanced photonic integrated circuits (PICs). Photonics is becoming increasingly important for applications ranging from telecommunications and artificial intelligence to LiDAR, medical diagnostics and quantum technologies. However, the transition from laboratory prototypes to industrial manufacturing remains a major challenge. Smaller companies often lack the resources, technical maturity or production volumes required by commercial semiconductor manufacturers.
PIXEurope aims to address this gap by connecting design, fabrication, packaging, testing and reliability assessment within a coordinated European infrastructure. The initiative brings together 20 partners from 11 European countries, with a total budget of approximately €400 million. Five categories of services are being developed for industry and research organisations: technical consultancy, collaborative R&D projects, prototyping and MPW services, access to equipment and infrastructure, and specialised training.
For companies developing photonic chips, the opportunity is particularly relevant in areas such as silicon nitride photonics, thin-film lithium niobate, silicon-on-insulator technologies and heterogeneous integration. Companies interested in accessing PIXEurope services can already contact its gateway team to discuss their technology needs and potential collaboration.
Three competence centres, complementary expertise and one European ecosystem
The webinar also demonstrated how national Chips Competence Centres can serve as practical entry points to European expertise and infrastructure. Representing the Czech Semiconductor Centre, Jana Drbohlavová introduced CSC’s services covering semiconductor design, technical consultancy, prototyping, access to European pilot lines and research-to-market support. CSC helps companies identify suitable technologies, clarify technical requirements and connect with the right European facilities and partners. Its expertise covers areas including analogue, mixed-signal and digital IC design, RISC-V technologies, power semiconductors, silicon carbide, micro- and nanofabrication, materials characterisation and failure analysis. CSC also presented its portfolio of 11 specialised micro-credentials, delivered by experts from Brno University of Technology and the Czech Technical University in Prague. These practical courses cover chip design, embedded electronics, sensor technologies, semiconductor diagnostics and other skills required by industry.
The Slovak Chips Competence Centre, represented by Martin Jagelka, highlighted Slovakia’s specialisation in advanced semiconductor packaging and power electronics. Its service portfolio includes power module design, semiconductor assembly, inspection, reliability testing and system integration. Planned research and training infrastructure in Bratislava and Piešťany will further strengthen these capabilities.
Slovenia’s CC Chip.si, presented by Jurij Podržaj, demonstrated significant capabilities in photonic integrated circuits, quantum technologies and semiconductor research infrastructure. Its network offers access to specialised cleanrooms, prototyping and characterisation facilities, technical consultancy and training. The presentation highlighted a catalogue covering 81 instruments across six institutions.
Together, these three national centres illustrate an important advantage of the European Chips Competence Centre network: companies can benefit from complementary expertise beyond their national borders rather than being limited to the capabilities available in their home country.
The central message of the webinar was that European semiconductor innovation is becoming more accessible, particularly for smaller companies that cannot afford to maintain extensive in-house design teams or advanced manufacturing infrastructure. Whether a start-up needs help selecting a semiconductor technology, securing EDA tools, validating a prototype, accessing a pilot line, finding funding or developing its employees’ technical skills, there are now dedicated European initiatives designed to support these needs.
Are you developing a semiconductor-based product or looking for advanced chip design and prototyping capabilities? Explore the Czech Semiconductor Centre’s services or contact us at info@czechsemiconductorcentre.cz to discuss your project.
We would like to sincerely thank all the speakers who contributed their expertise and insights to this webinar: Martin Jagelka from SK Chips, Jurij Podržaj from CC Chip.si, Romano Hoofman from EuroCDP, Giuseppe Fiorentino from imec/NanoIC and Marina Santana from ICFO/PIXEurope.
