Current EU legislation does not distinguish innovative start-ups from the massed ranks of SMEs. A specific definition - and a specific strategy - is needed to back start-ups and help them to grow 

A tussle between policy-driven and bottom-up research will shape Framework Programme 10. There are two years to have the debate and strike a balance. ‘This is the beginning of the conversation,’ says Marc Lemaître

Voters go to the polls on 22 October, following which wider talks with Brussels should resume. But with the Commission’s precise negotiating preconditions unclear, it’s doubtful whether association to the research programme can be agreed before EU elections next year

The Dutch university has opted out of the Times Higher Education league table this year, adding further momentum to the research assessment reform movement that is pushing for universities and researchers to be judged on quality not quantity

Budget discussions are on for the EU’s next R&I funding programme, due to begin in 2028, and the European Parliament wants more than twice as much as was agreed last time

MEPs’ ambition is to up funding for the European Innovation Council, and for health and climate research. But this is once again at odds with budget cuts proposed by EU governments

Two scale-ups at the nexus between academia and industry are helping EIT Digital revise its masters’ programmes and keep pace with the fast-moving fields of cybersecurity and robotics

The continuing roll out of lump sums across Horizon Europe is coming to the €10B European Innovation Council in 2024. Meanwhile, EU auditors are calling for ‘technical changes’ to this approach to disbursing grants

Parliament votes to prevent money being taken away from Horizon Europe’s Pillar II to fund the Strategic Technologies for Europe Platform