- EIT-backed company opens factory in Finland to power AI data centres
- Commission seeks feedback on future Charter of access to research and technology infrastructures
- Commission opens Erasmus+ 2026 call with €5.2B budget
- Commission launches dialogues on water resilience
- EIT creates new community for water innovation
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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Skeleton Technologies, a company supported by InnoEnergy, one of the communities of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT), has opened a new factory in Varkaus, Finland, to supply high-power storage solutions for artificial intelligence data centres.
“With a total of €50 million invested in the facility, it becomes Europe’s first production site dedicated to high-power batteries for AI infrastructure and the world’s first to industrialise backup power systems for mission-critical computing and emerging technologies such as nuclear fusion,” said Taavi Madiberk, CEO and cofounder of Skeleton Technologies.
The facility is expected to provide one gigawatt of high-power battery capacity annually.
More details here.
The European Commission has launched a survey to gather input on the forthcoming Charter of access to research and technology infrastructures, which aims to facilitate access for companies, small and big.
“The Charter will help simplify access and contractual conditions of such infrastructures, ranging from advanced laboratories to large scientific instruments, pilot lines, testbeds, and more,” the Commission says. “As a result, companies will be able to test and validate their innovative solutions under the best conditions and bring them to the market more quickly.”
The survey will be open until December 10, and the Charter is expected to be presented next year.
More details here.
The European Commission has opened the Erasmus+ 2026 call for proposals worth around €5.2 billion to support opportunities in education, training, youth and sport across Europe and beyond.
Under this call, some 1,275,000 participants are expected to benefit from learning mobility experiences and over 100,000 organisations involved in Erasmus+ projects receive support.
More details here.
Between 2025 and 2027, the European Commission will discuss with EU ministers how to improve water management and address water efficiency across Europe, supported by the European Institute of Innovation and Technology’s (EIT) new Knowledge and Innovation Community (KIC) on water.
“A healthy ocean and resilient freshwater systems are two sides of the same coin,” fisheries and oceans Commissioner Costas Kadis said. “EIT Water will help us bridge the gap between blue and green innovation by empowering local communities, businesses, and researchers.”
More details here.
The European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) has selected the Allwaters consortium to lead its new Knowledge and Innovation Community (KIC), EIT Water.
The KIC will focus on water scarcity, drought and floods, marine and freshwater ecosystem degradation, and the development of a circular and sustainable blue economy.
“We are proud to welcome EIT Water to the EIT Community, which will be a platform for collaborative innovation, bringing together business, research, and education with strong industry involvement to deliver real solutions for Europe’s water challenges,” said Stefan Dobrev, chair of the EIT governing board.
Allwaters is composed of 50 partners from 24 countries.
More details here.
The European Research Council (ERC) has received 957 proposals to its Synergy Grants 2026 call, the highest number recorded since its launch in 2012 and up 34% from last year.
The EU funding body has earmarked €500 million for around 50 grants in its work programme 2026.
The selected projects will be announced in the fall 2026.
More details here.
The European Innovation Council (EIC) and the EU Mission on climate adaptation have launched a new EIC Accelerator Challenge worth €50 million to support deep-tech innovations targeting climate-related issues, including growing water scarcity, coastal hazards and extreme heatwaves.
The Mission will provide half of the funding for the call, which is open to individual companies. The selected applicants can receive up to €2.5 million in grants combined with equity investments of up to €10 million.
More details here.
The European Commission has appointed Maria Cristina Russo as deputy director-general in charge of innovation, prosperity and international cooperation in the Commission’s directorate-general for research and innovation, DG RTD.
Russo is currently director for prosperity within that same department.
“With more than 30 years of experience at the European Commission, Ms Russo has developed extensive expertise in industrial research, policy development and financial affairs,” the Commission says. “Moreover, she has large expertise managing the industrial component of the Horizon Europe Cluster.”
The date of effect has not been determined yet.
More details here.
The forthcoming Innovation Act should allow research and technology infrastructures to work more closely with start-ups and scale up, the European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures (ESFRI) said in a statement.
EFSRI wish to see the regulations on state aid clarified and those on intellectual property cleared, an embargo period of up to five years for data generated through collaborations, the possibility for start-ups and scales-up to be temporarily based in research and technology infrastructures and benefit from a tailored transnational access, and legal mechanisms to support temporary personnel exchanges.
“Where legislative action is either not necessary or can be accompanied by additional actions, proposed measures could also be implemented through the upcoming Charter of Access for industrial users to research and technology infrastructures,” the paper reads.
More details here.
The international coalition for open access has published a new strategic plan as part of its commitment to open, transparent and equitable sharing of scientific knowledge.
“As research funders, we want our funding to foster the public good of science through open practices, recognising multiple pathways to open access and working collaboratively with other key stakeholders,” said Mari Sundli Tveit, head of the Research Council of Norway and chair of the Coalition S leaders group. “What we are adding is explicit recognition that achieving true open science requires transparency in processes, equity in participation, and unwavering commitment to the trustworthiness of scientific knowledge.”
More details here.
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