This live blog is tracking the latest developments in European research and innovation programmes, including the broader debate on the future of R&D policy and funding in the next multiannual budget due to start in 2028. Beyond that, we look at other EU policies with significant research and innovation components in climate, digital, agriculture and regional development. In addition, national governments often come up with new R&D policies, decide to fund new research avenues, and set up international cooperation deals. This blog aims to keep you informed on all of that and more.
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The European Commission and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) have adopted a new agenda for cooperation in research and innovation, setting shared priorities and governance to guide collaboration.
“Both sides of the Atlantic are facing similar challenges in climate, health and digital technologies,” EU research Commissioner Ekaterina Zaharieva said. “With the details and the clear roadmap agreed today, we will support our scientists and researchers and turn this partnership into concrete results for our people and economies.”
Working groups on health, climate change, environmental sustainability and energy transition, and artificial intelligence are now expected to prepare 18-month action plans. These are open to voluntary participation from EU and CELAC countries.
More details here.
European Technology Platform Photonics21 is urging the European Commission to launch a standalone programme dedicated to photonics, with a ringfenced budget of at least €2 billion under the EU’s next long-term budget.
This budget would in turn leverage between €6 and €8 billion in industrial co-investment in photonics research and innovation in Europe.
“Photonics is vital to 20% of the EU economy, and drives innovation in manufacturing, defence, healthcare, and energy,” the platform says. “Yet, Europe risks losing its edge to China and the United States, where billions are invested annually. With over 50% of EU photonics firms reliant on Chinese components, this standalone programme is critical to secure supply chains, scale manufacturing, and ensure technological sovereignty.”
More details here.
Basic research is “heading for disaster” and the EU needs to reconsider the budget for the next Framework Programme and the European Competitiveness Fund, a new paper by the League of European Research Universities (LERU) says.
According to LERU, under FP10, basic science is likely to get a budget of just €31.5 billion through the European Research Council, plus minor contributions from the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions and Pillar 2 of Horizon Europe. The research lobby also fears that the structure and budget of the Competitiveness Fund will not help the EU prepare for long-term challenges and disruptions, “all of which require sustained investment in fundamental research.”
“A €175 billion EU R&I budget sounded ambitious over the summer – assuming that additional ECF funding would follow,” LERU says. “If the ECF cannot legally fund R&I – and especially basic research – transferring part of its budget to FP10 should be a no-brainer.”
More details here.
The European Innovation Council (EIC) has received a record 611 proposals from 40 countries for its Transition calls that closed in September 17, led by participants in Italy, Germany, Spain and France.
According to the European Commission, more than half of the applicants came from the private sector, followed by universities at 27% and research organisations at 17%.
The estimated budget stands at €98 million.
More details here.
The European Commission has launched a call for evidence and a public consultation to gather feedback on the upcoming European Innovation Act, which aims to facilitate the commercialisation of innovations.
Stakeholders can submit position papers until October 3.
More details here.
Industry group Waterborne Technology Platform has established a working group to prepare a roadmap that will serve as input for the next research and innovation Framework Programme.
“A joint and coordinated approach towards research, development, innovation and its deployment will be key to achieve the objectives of the upcoming industrial waterborne and port strategies,” said secretary general Jaap Gebraad. “With a view to the negotiations on Framework Programme 10 and the related European Competitiveness Fund, the establishment of the working group is very timely,” he said.
The group is chaired by Hildegunn McLernon, senior vice-president of technology strategy and portfolio at Kongsberg Maritime, a Norwegian marine technology company.
More details here.
The Guild of European Research-Intensive Universities is calling on the European Commission to show transparency on the Erasmus+ programme, preserve its bottom-up nature and boost mobility and long-term multilateral cooperation.
While the organisation welcomes the proposed €40.8-billion budget for the programme, it believes that it is “the bare minimum” to meet Europe’s strategic needs. It also expects clarity from the Commission on its main features, the scope of new initiatives such as STEM scholarships, and its governance. Meanwhile, Erasmus+ must remain global, it adds.
“By fostering mobility, exchange and partnership – within Europe and beyond – Erasmus+ has made a pivotal contribution to the skills and competences of its population – and to Europe’s standing in the world,” said Jan Palmowski, secretary general of The Guild.
More details here.
The European High-Performance Computing Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC JU) has inaugurated its second quantum computer, VLQ, as the result of a consortium made of Czechia, Finland Sweden, Denmark, Poland, Norway, Belgium, and the Netherlands.
VLQ is hosted and operated by IT4Innovations in Ostrava, Czechia, and supplied by IQM Quantum Computers.
“The VLQ quantum computer will serve a broad spectrum of European users – from academic institutions and industrial companies to the public sector,” said Branislav Jansik, director of Supercomputing Services at IT4Innovations. “It will primarily support research and innovation, and its capacities will be accessible to all users across Europe via EuroHPC JU.”
More details here.
The European Union has launched the partnership on “One Health Antimicrobial Resistance” with a budget of €253 million, including €75 million from Horizon Europe, in efforts to reduce antimicrobial use and resistance.
Coordinated by the Swedish Research Council, the ten-year programme will seek to develop joint transnational calls for collaborative research, strengthen research capacity in participating countries and align national and European efforts.
“This partnership embodies our commitment to step up, innovate, and protect the foundations of modern medicine,” EU research Commissioner Ekaterina Zaharieva said in a statement.
More details here.
More than half of the participants in a European Commission survey said that they were unfamiliar with the Codes of Practice for knowledge valorisation, which provides guidance to research and innovation players.
“This suggests that stronger efforts are needed to raise awareness of the Codes,” the Commission says, adding that once familiarised with the Codes through the survey, most of these respondents considered them useful and 48% of them were already planning to use them in the future.
More details here.
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