A versatile ecosystem of physical-cyber drones for agriculture and forestry, designed for governance and environmental monitoring
Drones are rapidly growing in importance, with their use expected to increase by 25.5% annually from 2023 to 2027. This growth brings challenges, including cybersecurity risks and safety concerns. As drone technology advances, it complicates regulations and business opportunities but also opens up new, versatile uses.
SPADE is focused on creating a smart, connected system by using drones (UAVs) and digital technologies to improve agriculture, forestry, and livestock management. Spade is working on ways to make drones serve multiple purposes, from individual use to working together in groups (like swarms) or operating on their own (autonomous drones).
SPADE will release open calls to look for pilots to fund ambitious and promising projects that will enhance the capabilities of drone technology and innovation use for a total budget of 720.000€.
At the heart of SPADE is using sensor data, powered by Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML), to build smarter, more sustainable solutions for these industries. This will help make farming, forestry, and livestock management more efficient and resilient in the long run.
Revolutionizing the Food and Nutrition Sector with Data-Driven Innovations for Sustainable, Fair, and Healthy Food Systems
FOODITY is revolutionising the food and nutrition sector with cutting-edge data-driven innovations, while protecting personal data. Through 12 dynamic partnerships with industry and research, we are funding pilot projects that show how data can build more sustainable, fair and healthy food systems. Involving more than 200,000 citizens, FOODITY leverages personal data to promote environmentally friendly food practices. Teams selected through open calls get access to expert mentoring, world-class training and powerful tools, all designed to ensure secure, GDPR-compliant data sharing and breakthrough innovations.
Funded by the European Union through the Horizon Europe’s framework programme for Research and Innovation under grant agreement N° 101086105
Fostering EU, US, and Canada Collaboration to Shape the Future of the Internet through Emerging Technologies
The NGI Sargasso project fosters collaboration between the EU, US, and Canada to shape the future of the Internet. Focused on emerging technologies like digital identity, data sovereignty, and decentralized systems, the project brings together teams from both sides of the Atlantic to develop, prototype, and contribute to open standards. NGI Sargasso offers equity-free funding and support to up to 96 projects through a 9-month program. It aims to drive innovation and strengthen international cooperation on Next Generation Internet initiatives.
Application of Quantum Resistant Crypto in Energy Aware Contexts
As the demand for secure communication intensifies across individuals, businesses, and governments, the shift to post-quantum cryptography (PQC) becomes essential. Although PQC solutions are still under development, they represent the future of cybersecurity, set to replace current cryptosystems to withstand quantum attacks.
PQ-REACT is creating a comprehensive framework to enable a rapid, efficient transition to PQC across diverse sectors and applications. Real-world applications, such as Smart Grids, 5G networks, and digital ledgers, will pilot the solution to demonstrate its effectiveness.
The project will also launch two open calls with a combined budget of €900,000, inviting SMEs, Research centers, Universities and Non-profit organizations to develop and test their PQC solutions. This initiative will ensure that Europe is prepared for a secure, quantum-resilient future.
Empowering Women Entrepreneurs from Widening Areas to Lead Europe’s Tech Future
Women nowadays face a significant under-representation within the entrepreneurship environment in Europe (less than one third of entrepreneurs are women, and less than 2% of capital is invested in women-founded companies). This inequality is even more manifest in Widening area countries, where the entrepreneurship ecosystem is not so developed and the funding mechanisms are not so extended.
EmpoWomen is focused on creating an exclusive support programme for women-led companies from widening-area countries, to help them become the tech leaders of tomorrow and, thus, increasing Europe’s technological development and talent. The programme aims to fund 25 startups with up to €60.000, as well as vouchers for participation in EU tech summits, dedicated mentoring and an exclusive programme on Business Angels Investment.
Empower women today, for a better future tomorrow.
Empowering women leading deep tech startups in Europe to become tomorrow’s tech leaders
Despite their potential to drive growth and innovation, women remain underrepresented in EU entrepreneurship, especially in deep tech, where funding for women-led startups falls below 2%.
Women TechEU addresses this gap by supporting 160 women-led deep tech startups with non dilutive grants of 75k€ for each startup, plus six months of tailored programme of services and
mentoring. Through collaboration with the European Commission, this initiative fosters a more inclusive ecosystem, helping women entrepreneurs lead the way in Europe’s digital, green, and resilient transformation.
mentoring. Through collaboration with the European Commission, this initiative fosters a more inclusive ecosystem, helping women entrepreneurs lead the way in Europe’s digital, green, and resilient transformation.
Transforming Healthcare with Living Labs: Testing Innovative Solutions for Hospital Discharge, Homecare Monitoring, and Aging Population Care
Healthcare faces urgent challenges, like an aging population and complex medical needs. Market forces and slower responses from regulatory frameworks lead to long and complex bureaucratic ways of innovation.
To address these, “living labs” offer a new approach: real-world spaces where healthcare users and professionals work together to test and lead innovative solutions.
EVOLVE2CARE is a project aimed at improving healthcare by helping innovators test and develop new technologies in real-life settings (Living Labs). It focuses on creating an ecosystem for healthcare, where users and healthcare providers work together – to collaborate. EVOLVE2CARE will provide support for testing and validating new healthcare solutions, especially in care transitions bringing into contact living labs and innovators. The project will test innovative products for 3 pre-identified key areas:
1. Helping patients when they leave the hospital (Hospital Discharge Management)
2. Monitoring health at home (Homecare Monitoring Solutions)
3. Supporting the aging population during care transitions (Aging Population & Care Transitions).
Through these efforts, EVOLVE2CARE aims to bring innovative healthcare products to life and improve patient care.
Empowering European SMEs with Photonics and Quantum Technologies: Driving Sustainability, Resilience, and Competitiveness in the Global Market
The 21st century presents global challenges in competitiveness, raw materials supply, and sustainability, particularly under the framework of the Green Deal.
While Europe leads in innovation for Photonics and Quantum technologies, such as laser production, transforming these innovations into tangible business applications is crucial for empowering industries, especially SMEs. PhotonQBoost aims to bridge this gap by enabling European SMEs to tackle challenges in sustainability, resilience, and competitiveness through the adoption of Photonics and Quantum solutions. By focusing on enhancing resource efficiency, productivity, and supply chain stability, PhotonQBoost helps SMEs stay at the forefront of global markets.
This initiative brings together a robust alliance of seven European Photonics and Quantum clusters, four specialized consultancies, and two Research and Technology Organisations from nine EU Member States. Funded by the EU’s Horizon Europe programme, PhotonQBoost supports cross-border collaboration, fostering innovation and market access through matchmaking events, delegation visits, and ecosystem-building activities. By bridging knowledge, infrastructure, and network gaps, the initiative aims to strengthen European SMEs and solidify Europe’s leadership in cutting-edge technologies.
Accelerating European Deep Tech: Supporting EIC Pathfinder & Transition Projects from Research to Market
Boost is a European Commission-funded initiative designed to support and complement the European Innovation Council (EIC) programmes, EIC Pathfinder and EIC Transition.
EIC Pathfinder promotes visionary, early-stage research, exploring innovative ideas with high potential.
EIC Transition helps projects advance toward prototypes and market readiness.
Through the EIC Booster Grant Scheme, Boost aims to support at least 100 invited EIC Pathfinder and EIC Transition projects with lump-sum grants of up to €50,000, facilitating their transition from research to market.
Breaking barriers and scaling women-led deep tech startups
Women-led startups struggle to secure funding and corporate partnerships, limiting their growth. Open Horizons addresses this by connecting selected startups with major corporations through a paid-pilot programme. This initiative provides funding, mentorship, and direct corporate access to help startups scale and build strategic partnerships.
By identifying corporate challenges, scouting talent across Europe, and funding real-world pilot projects, Open Horizons accelerates growth. Post-pilot, it connects startups with investors and supports long-term deals. In its first phase, 39 startups will be funded, followed by 17 more, with €1.2 million allocated. Open Horizons is driving Europe’s deep tech transformation by bridging startups and industry leaders.
Securing Europe’s Transition to Post-Quantum Cryptography
As Europe prepares for the post-quantum era, critical sectors face new security challenges. PQ-NEXT is leading the way by enabling a smooth, risk-minimised migration to post-quantum cryptography standards across finance, critical infrastructure, telecommunications, and digital identities.PQ-NEXT brings together 17 top-tier partners from across the EU, developing a comprehensive migration framework and tailored transition plans. By launching large-scale pilots and leveraging digital twinning, PQ-NEXT ensures that innovative post-quantum solutions are robustly tested in real-world conditions.Building on the success of the Horizon Europe project PQ-REACT, PQ-NEXT delivers practical tools and strategies for organisations to future-proof their systems against quantum threats. The project combines technical excellence with legal, risk, and standardisation expertise, accelerating Europe’s secure digital transformation.
Funded by the European Union through Horizon Europe’s framework programme for Research and Innovation under grant agreement nº 101225759*.