Funding for startups in our incubator
Verification funds (VFI funds) give you the opportunity to bring in external expertise and carry out initiatives that help the company move forward. This could involve strengthening the team, reaching new networks and investors, obtaining legal or strategic expertise, or gaining a better understanding of the market.
Verification measures may be relevant for initiatives in the following areas:
- Recruitment and Team Building – Support for Developing the Right Team and Skills for the Next Step.
- Networks and capital —initiatives that foster connections with relevant partners, investors, and other key stakeholders.
- Legal Services – such as support regarding shareholder agreements, customer agreements, and other business-critical legal matters.
- Communication and design —for example, to test messages, positioning, and market response.
- IP Strategy – external expertise to analyze and develop ways to protect and utilize the company’s intellectual property.
- Market research – external analyses that provide a better understanding of the market, customers, competitors, and potential.
- Professional Development – training programs that strengthen the team's capabilities in areas such as sales, board work, and business development.
- Marketing, customer, and capital-related activities —such as travel and registration fees for relevant trade shows, as well as meetings with customers, partners, and investors.
In short: use verification tools to find out what you need to know before moving forward.
Who is eligible to apply?
Funding is intended for companies in the Dalarna Science Park incubator that meet Vinnova’s criteria for incubation support. The purpose is to support innovations in the early stages, before recurring revenue is generated.
Among other things, the criteria stipulate that the company must be an innovative and scalable startup, be founder-owned and founder-led, and still be at a stage where its business and business model are being validated.
Are you unsure whether your company is eligible to apply? Talk to your coach.
What can verification funds be used for?
There are many ways to verify a business. So it doesn't necessarily have to involve a technical test or a lab.
Understand the market and customers
Try, for example:
- Is there really a need for this?
- Which customer segment should we prioritize?
- How big is the market?
- Are customers willing to pay?
Examples: market research, customer validation, segment analysis, and concept testing.
Verify Technology and Functionality
Find out if the technology or solution works as you intended before you invest any further.
Examples: tests, measurements, laboratory or test environments, pilot studies, and limited-scope prototypes for testing purposes.
Law and IP
Examine issues that could be critical to how you proceed.
Examples: IP strategy, legal analysis, or analysis of contractual issues.
Partners, Networks, and Capital
Determine which relationships and stakeholders are needed for the next step.
For example, this might involve gauging the interest of potential partners or investors and gathering information to inform decisions regarding partnerships or fundraising.
Communication, Design, and Positioning
Test how the market reacts before you invest in a finished design.
Examples: testing messages, pitches, positioning, concepts, or graphic design materials.
Team and Organization
In some cases, an external assessment can provide a basis for determining how the team or organization needs to develop in preparation for the next step.
The important thing is that the initiative should provide a clear basis for decision-making—not to fund ongoing recruitment or operational work.
Meetings with customers, partners, and investors
Travel and participation in relevant events may also be considered when they are part of a clearly defined verification activity.
For example, this might involve meeting with potential customers, partners, or investors to gauge interest and get answers to specific questions.
What can verification funds not be used for?
Verification tools are intended for verification—not for ongoing production or operations.
This means that the assistance is not intended, for example, for:
- product or system development primarily aimed at completing a solution
- a completed brand platform or visual identity
- ongoing marketing
- operating or internal costs
- activities that primarily involve implementing or scaling something you have already verified
A good rule of thumb:Does the activity provide you with new knowledge needed to make an important decision? If so, it may be relevant. Does it primarily involve building, producing, or implementing? If so, it is not normally a verification activity.
How the application process works
Applications are accepted four times a year and must be submitted using the form below.
In your application, you need to be able to describe three things in particular:
- What would you like to find out?
What question or hypothesis do you need to test?
- How are you going to find that out?
Describe the activity and how it will be carried out.
- How will the results help you make a decision?
What specific information do you expect to receive to support your decision?
Please feel free to talk to your coach before submitting your application. Applications will be reviewed collectively after the application period closes, and decisions will be communicated within two weeks.
Questions and answers on verifiers
Below, we’ve listed a number of questions we frequently receive about verification methods. If you have any further questions, please feel free to contact your coach and we’ll be happy to provide more information.
Does the verification have to be technical?
No. Verification methods can be used to reduce both technical and business uncertainty. This might involve, for example, investigating the market, customers, intellectual property, legal matters, partners, investors, positioning, or technology.
Can we use the grant to build a prototype?
It depends on the purpose. A limited-scope prototype may be relevant if it is needed to test a specific hypothesis. The purpose should be to learn and verify, not to fund further product development.
Can we use the funding for communications or design?
Yes, under certain conditions. The material must be used, for example, to test positioning, messaging, or market response. The grant is not intended to develop a complete visual identity or to fund ongoing marketing efforts.
Can we use the grant for travel or events?
This may be possible if the trip or event is part of a clearly defined verification activity, such as gauging customer, partner, or investor interest. There must be a clear research question, and the activity must yield concrete insights or provide a basis for decision-making.
Can we use the grant for recruitment or team development?
An initiative focused on teams or expertise may be relevant if it provides a clear basis for decision-making regarding the company’s continued development. However, verification funds should not replace the company’s ongoing recruitment efforts or other operating expenses.
Do we need to use an external vendor?
As a general rule, verification activities should be carried out with the help of external expertise to ensure quality and objectivity. Talk to your coach about which solution is best suited to the verification you want to perform.
How do we know if our idea is suitable for verification funding?
Start with three questions:
- What are we unsure about?
- How can we test that?
- What decision can we make once we receive the answer?
If you have clear answers to those questions, you have a good starting point. Then discuss them with your coach.
Where should we turn if we have questions?
Talk to your head coach at Dalarna Science Park.