Portugal-relevant startup grants, vouchers, prizes, accelerators, and founder funding opportunities in one place.
6 current opportunities
Funding guide
Use this page when you are building from Portugal, expanding through the Portuguese ecosystem, or looking for programmes where a Portugal link improves your fit. Each opportunity includes practical notes on eligibility, benefits, and founder stage.
Current opportunities
6 opportunities shown.
Portugal-based, technology-focused early-stage startups with a live product and website that want Web Summit preparation, an exhibition presence, investor and ecosystem connections, and international visibility.
Selected startups receive a 50% discount on a Web Summit 2026 ALPHA or BETA package, including three or four tickets, a one-day exhibition booth, startup activations, app and lounge access, event preparation support, and a dedicated Startup Success team. Eligible participants can also compete for a €15,000 Most Promising Startup prize or a €5,000 bootcamp and conference performance prize. Build Up Labs can support founders with the Startup Portugal Recognition process.
Apply free by 30 Sep 2026, or earlier if all places fill. Applicants must be Portugal-based legal entities with a valid NIPC, a live website, a developed brand and their own technology product or connected hardware. Startup / Scaleup Recognition is required, except for startups incubated in a certified RNI incubator that have already started the recognition process. Companies must have under 10 years of activity, although Web Summit may reject companies older than five years. Consultancies, agencies, subsidiaries of large companies, public companies, and startups that already bought Web Summit 2026 ALPHA/BETA access are not eligible. Selected teams must pay the remaining 50% package fee within 10 working days and showcase physically at Web Summit.
Portugal-based academic founders turning research, theses, R&D projects, or proofs of concept into a startup, especially students, researchers, or faculty connected to a national higher-education institution.
€30,000 non-repayable voucher per project, paid 100% in advance after approval, to fund early business creation and validation steps such as incubation, acceleration, company setup, events, marketing, pitch materials, proof of concept, pilots, IP protection, and regulatory or certification mapping.
For micro, small, and medium-sized companies, including startups. The company must be majority-owned by an individual who is currently, or was in the previous two calendar years, enrolled in a degree programme at a Portuguese higher-education institution or working as a researcher or teacher at one. Applications are submitted through Startup Portugal's official funding platform; ANI and Startup Portugal support the technical review, and FITEC decides within 30 working days after the notice closes.
Portugal-incorporated startups that meet at least one size threshold: up to €250,000 in annual revenue, up to €1 million raised, or 2-25 full-time employees.
Three winners share €20,000 in cash prizes (€10,000, €6,000, and €4,000), receive three hours of expert mentoring and national visibility, and represent Portugal in the Santander X Global Award 2026.
Apply by 21 Sep 2026 at 23:59 Lisbon time. The company must be legally incorporated in Portugal and meet at least one published revenue, capital-raised, or team-size threshold. Six finalists are selected for pitch preparation before the national final in October.
Early-stage startups and SMEs with health-focused digital solutions that want healthcare stakeholder exposure, pilot or validation opportunities, clinical feedback, and visibility in Portugal's health innovation ecosystem.
Selected teams showcase at the IHT Conference HealthTech Showroom, join guided tours with expert groups, connect with clinicians, healthcare decision-makers and potential partners, get direct feedback, unlock pilot, validation and funding conversations, and receive two free full-access conference tickets.
Applications close 7 Sep 2026. Applicants should be SMEs with health-focused digital solutions and meet the startup criteria stated in the guidelines: established less than five years ago and annual revenue below €1M. Selected teams are expected to confirm participation between 14-21 Sep 2026 and attend the showroom at IHT Conference on 27-28 Oct 2026.
Early-stage startups with outstanding potential that want Web Summit visibility in Lisbon, investor and media exposure, startup activations, and a structured event preparation path with the startup success team.
Selected ALPHA startups receive three Web Summit tickets, a startup profile visible to attendees, investors, media, and partners, a one-day exhibition booth, a printed exhibition board, access to the Web Summit app, Startup Lounge, startup activations, and support from a dedicated startup success manager. Accepted startups can also apply for activations such as PITCH, Startup Showcase, 40 Words, Mentor Hours, masterclasses, roundtables, and investor-to-startup meetings. Startups selected through Build Up Labs' referral route receive 20% off automatically at checkout.
Apply through the Build Up Labs referral link with a business email address. Web Summit assesses applicants for high potential and programme fit; the 20% discount is applied only after selection, at checkout. PITCH is open to ALPHA and BETA startups exhibiting at Web Summit that have received less than €5M in funding to date and have not had a discernible change in business model in the last three years.
Portuguese startups, SMEs, and eligible national entities needing advanced compute resources.; best for AI, simulation, scientific-computing, and compute-heavy startups.
CPU / GPU hours and storage on advanced computing infrastructure.
Eligible Portuguese entities with pre-commercial innovation projects.
Founder guidance
We include grants, vouchers, prizes, accelerators, investor-access programmes, and public/private calls where Portugal-based founders or Portugal-linked startups are a clear fit.
It depends on the programme. Some calls require a Portuguese legal entity, while others accept international teams if the project is implemented in Portugal or has a relevant Portuguese partner.
The full Founder Opportunities page shows everything we are tracking. This guide highlights the Portugal-relevant funding options so you can decide faster.
