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.
If you have any tips, please email them at [email protected].
You can read the full archive of this blog here.
The 4EU+ Alliance, an association of seven European universities, has selected 15 projects for funding under the SEED4EU+ 2025 call, which was launched to boost collaborative research and educational initiatives.
The projects range from trustworthiness in computational artificial intelligence to lexical innovation for a gender-inclusive Europe to sustainability-driven innovations in materials science.
More details here.
The European Commission has selected European coordination initiative SCIANCE to shape the development of RAISE, its new virtual institute designed to speed up the adoption of artificial intelligence in science.
“SCIANCE represents a unique opportunity to coordinate AI-enabled science across Europe – connecting research communities, infrastructures and AI expertise in a way that truly reflects scientific priorities,” Jonas L’Haridon, project coordinator, said in a statement.
The consortium, which is composed of 13 European organisations and research infrastructures, is set to identify AI-in-science research and innovation priorities and pilot the structure of the RAISE Secretariat for AI in science.
More details here.
The three Baltic states signed a memorandum of understanding to expand regional cooperation with four Nordic microchip centres in Finland, Sweden, Norway and Denmark.
“This is the next significant step in strengthening the region’s microchip value proposition,” Liene Briede, vice-rector for innovation at Riga Technical University, said in a statement. “It is also an important signal to the Baltic States – we have a role to play in the long-term plans for major technological development.”
Under this agreement, the partners will promote joint activities in education, research and industry support, and could in the future expand cooperation to strengthen knowledge exchange and tackle regional challenges in the semiconductor industry.
More details here.
The European Commission has launched a call for applications as part of its search for members of the informal Commission Expert group on European Union Research and Innovation for the automotive sector (EURIAS), which is set to advise the Commission on future policy initiatives.
According to the Commission, the group will be composed of around 50 members, including automotive equipment manufacturers and suppliers, as well as academia and research and technology organisations and civil society organisations relevant to the industry.
The deadline for submitting applications is February 2, 2026.
More details here.
The rectors’ conferences of Austria, Germany, Poland and Slovakia have called on the Georgian government to abandon controversial plans to reform higher education. In a joint statement, the rectors say that in its current form the plan isks undermining university autonomy and academic freedom in the EU-candidate country.
The government says it wants to fix geographical disparities in teaching quality, make the funding system more efficient, strengthen links between teaching and research and invest more in infrastructure. However, the proposal has sparked concerns over whether the government seeks to assert additional control over how universities operate.
“The measures foreseen in the concept for restructuring the system and financing of higher education institutions, for reorganising the structure of studies, research and personnel, and for adjusting the activities of higher education institutions to state requirements are intended to completely dismantle the current structure and to place whatever remains under complete political control and steering,” the statement says.
More details here.
Europe’s main centre-right party has adopted the Heidelberg Declaration on Innovation, a series of proposed aimed at stimulating innovation in the EU.
“Innovation is the only plausible route for Europe to sustainable growth and maintaining our prosperity,” EPP MEP Christian Ehler says in a statement. “This needs to be reflected in our regulatory agenda by making Europe more innovation-friendly, and in the next [multiannual financial framework] with at least €200 billion for the next Framework Programme,” he adds.
The EPP recommends expanding the capacity of the European Investment Fund and the European Investment Bank to direct resources into innovative firms. It also recommends that the EU do more to channel private savings towards capital markets and high-risk ventures.
To gain a competitive advantage, the EPP says the EU should also push for the adoption of artificial intelligence across all sectors, particularly manufacturing, robotics, automotive, pharmaceuticals, agrifood and biotechnology, and invest in dedicated gigafactories and innovation hubs.
The text was adopted on December 16 following a three-day meeting in Heidelberg, Germany.
More details here.
The European Patent Office (EPO) and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) have agreed on a renewed framework for cooperating on patent statistics and innovation analysis.
The EPO said the shared ambition is to produce high-quality resources on patenting and technological trends, delivering actionable insights that support innovation ecosystems and inform robust science, technology and innovation policies."
More details here.
Several projects funded under the European Innovation Council (EIC) Pathfinder and Accelerator schemes won the Innovation Radar Prize this year.
Co-organised by the European Commission and Dealflow.eu, a European initiative that aims to connect promising start-ups and innovators from EU-funded projects with investors and experts to help them scale up, the prize is awarded every year to high-potential innovations.
More details here.
The European Commission has announced a total of €1 billion for defence research and development under the European Defence Fund.
“For the sixth time, we are investing significant resources to incentivise and support research and development on major defence capabilities. With €1 billion in the 2026 European Defence Fund, we are putting collaboration at the centre of Europe’s defence innovation,” EU Commissioner for defence and space Andrius Kubilius says in a statement.
Next year’s work programme is expected to fund 31 collaborative R&D topics in areas ranging from core defence capabilities to future technologies.
More details here.
Patenting activity for quantum technologies in communication, computing and sensing have risen five-fold across the world since 2015, according to a study by the European Patent Office (EPO) and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
In Europe, this surge was led by Germany, the United Kingdom and France, the study says. Meanwhile, the United States took the lead in terms of new firm formation, innovation output and total investment mobilised.
Looking at companies, the top five applicants were IBM, LG, Toshiba, Intel and Microsoft.
“Quantum technologies hold huge potential but are still in the early stages of development,” EPO President António Campinos says in a statement. “As this study and the Draghi report highlight, the EU has room to grow its quantum investment, especially when compared to leading countries like the United States. Private-sector funding is now needed to commercialise basic research, and governments should make this a priority.”
More details here.
Receive the Funding Newswire [full access requires a subscription] each Tuesday, our Policy Bulletin each Thursday, and the fortnightly R&D Express, tracking reforms and investments in central and eastern Europe. 
A unique international forum for public research organisations and companies to connect their external engagement with strategic interests around their R&D system.