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ZIM – Central Innovation Programme for SMEs


Added by:   National contact point
Added on:   02 Jun 2026
Updated by:   OECD analyst
Updated on:   03 Jun 2026

Germany's most important technology-neutral federal innovation grant programme for SMEs, providing project grants of 25–60% of R&D costs to support innovative product, process, and technology development including AI, with an annual budget of approximately EUR 630M.

Name in original language

Zentrales Innovationsprogramm Mittelstand

Initiative overview

Administered by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energie (BMWE), ZIM (Central Innovation Programme for SMEs) was established in 2008 and is the cornerstone of Germany's SME innovation funding landscape. It is open to all technologies, industries, and sectors without thematic restriction. Eligible entities are SMEs with fewer than 500 employees (with up to 1,000 employees allowed if cooperating with an SME) and research institutions partnering with businesses. Three funding pillars: (1) Individual R&D projects (single company); (2) R&D cooperation projects (at least two companies, or company and research institution); (3) Innovation networks (consortia with network management funding). Funding rates range from 25–60% of eligible R&D costs depending on company size and project type; maximum grant per project is up to EUR 336,000 per partner. Applications are accepted continuously (no fixed deadlines). A new ZIM guideline with optimised conditions was launched in 2025. In 2024, a positive independent evaluation confirmed ZIM's significant leverage effect: for every EUR 1 of ZIM funding, companies spend an additional EUR 0.90 on R&D. Annual budget is approximately EUR 536M. AI projects are among the most active areas of ZIM applications.

AI Tags

SMEs

About the policy initiative


Category:

  • AI policy initiatives, programmes and projects

Initiative type:

  • Business grants/tax incentives

Status:

  • Active

Start Year:

  • 2008

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