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Grant Analysis

Purpose & Target

Objective: Leverage Artificial Intelligence to accelerate the valorisation of European research results, addressing the 'innovation paradox' by bringing scientific knowledge to market, society, or policy-making.
Explicit identification of target recipient type and size: Research & Innovation actors, including SMEs, social enterprises, NGOs, and local communities.
SECTOR-AGNOSTIC
Geographic scope and any location requirements: EU Member States and Associated Countries.
Key filtering criteria for initial grant screening: Focus on AI-powered solutions for knowledge valorisation, consortium required.
Grant frequency and program context: Part of the annual Horizon Europe Work Programme 2025, specifically as a Coordination and Support Action (CSA) under the 'Digital, Industry and Space' cluster.

Financial Structure

Funding type: Lump sum contribution.
Grant amount per project: A fixed amount of €2,000,000 for this specific Coordination and Support Action (CSA).
Expected number of grants: 1.
Currency: EUR.
Eligible costs: Covered by the lump sum. These costs must align with categories that would typically be eligible in an actual costs grant, including personnel costs, subcontracting, purchase costs (e.g., travel, equipment, goods, services), and other specific cost categories.
Indirect costs: A 25% flat rate is applied to eligible direct costs and is automatically included in the calculation of the lump sum.
Payments: Disbursements are tied to the successful and proper implementation of predefined work packages as outlined in the grant agreement. Payments are not dependent on detailed proof of actual costs incurred.
Financial retention: 5-8% of the total lump sum is retained as a contribution to the Mutual Insurance Mechanism.
Co-financing: Applicants' estimated total project costs are expected to be greater than the EU contribution, thereby implying a co-financing requirement from the beneficiaries.

Eligibility Requirements

Organization Type

Eligible entities are not strictly defined but are implied to be R&I actors, which include diverse organization types such as STARTUP, SME, NGO, PUBLIC, UNIVERSITY, ENTERPRISE, and OTHER (e.g., social enterprises, local communities).
Consortium required for application.

Geographic Location

Organizations must be from EU Member States or Associated Countries as defined in Annex B of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes. These include, but are not limited to: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and various Associated Countries.

Legal and Financial Capacity

Applicants must demonstrate sufficient financial and operational capacity to carry out the proposed project, as further described in Annex C of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes.
The legal and financial framework for grants, including eligible costs, is outlined in Annex G, specifying the use of lump sum contributions.

Application Process

Application Deadline

Submission deadline: 2025-09-23 00:00:00+0000.
The submission session officially opened on 2025-05-22.

Submission Process

Applications follow a single-stage submission procedure.
All proposals must be submitted electronically through the Funding & Tenders Portal's Electronic Submission Service.
Required documentation includes the Standard application form (HE CSA) and a Detailed budget table (HE LS).
Applicants are required to propose the lump sum amount based on their estimated costs, providing a detailed breakdown of this lump sum per work package and for each participating beneficiary or affiliated entity.

Evaluation Timeline

An indicative timeline for the evaluation process and the subsequent grant agreement preparation is explicitly provided in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes.

Post-Award Requirements

Grant beneficiaries' performance will primarily be monitored based on the technical implementation of their projects and the successful fulfillment of the conditions for releasing lump sum contributions per work package.
Checks, reviews, and audits will specifically focus on technical aspects such as the completion of work packages, adherence to ethical guidelines and research integrity, effective dissemination and exploitation of results, proper management of intellectual property, and compliance with gender equality principles.
A key benefit of the lump sum model is that beneficiaries have no obligation to provide detailed documentation of costs incurred, and standard ex-post financial audits are typically not conducted, reducing administrative burden.

Evaluation Criteria

Quality of Proposal

Excellence: Assesses the scientific and technical quality, the soundness of the methodology for the AI-powered valorisation approach, and the innovative nature of the proposed solution.
Expected Impact: Evaluates the potential contribution to valorising research results for market, society, or policy; the effectiveness in addressing Europe's 'innovation paradox'; and the alignment with key EU strategies like the AI Strategy and GenAI4EU.
Quality and Efficiency of the Implementation: Examines the coherence and feasibility of the work plan, the appropriateness of resource allocation, the robustness of the management structure, and the effective involvement of all relevant stakeholders.

Technical Approach

Proposals are scored on the integration of AI-ethics, as well as social sciences and humanities (SSH) aspects.
Evaluation considers the development of a trustworthy, safe, reliable, human-centric, and bias-free AI-powered valorisation toolbox.
Projects must demonstrate the capacity to test AI-powered valorisation plans in at least 100 cases and to develop a comprehensive knowledge base comprising insights and best practices derived from these experiences.

Financial Evaluation

External experts will rigorously check the proposed budget estimate, using benchmarks on costs and resources such as market prices, statistical data, or historical data from comparable actions.
Assessment includes verifying that the proposed resources and the breakdown of lump sum shares are directly supportive of achieving the defined activities and expected outputs of the project.
The co-financing principle is enforced by ensuring that the total estimated costs of the action are greater than the estimated Union contributions, demonstrating shared investment.

Compliance & Special Requirements

Regulatory Compliance

Projects must strictly adhere to the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes, which cover essential requirements such as admissibility conditions, eligible countries, financial and operational capacity standards, and specific exclusion criteria.
Strict compliance with EU policy and regulations on AI-ethics is a foundational requirement.
Proposed solutions are expected to be designed to be 'compliant by design' with the AI Act, anticipating future regulatory frameworks.

Ethical and Social Standards

Solutions developed under this grant must be trustworthy, safe, reliable, human-centric, and specifically designed to be free from gender, racial, and other social biases.
The integration of Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH) aspects into the project's design and implementation is a crucial requirement.
The project should actively promote an inclusive and gender-equal approach in the development and application of digital technologies and innovation.

Funding Mechanism Specifics

The grant operates on a unique lump sum contribution model. This means that funding payments are linked directly to the successful completion of predefined work packages rather than being based on detailed records of actual incurred costs. This approach is intended to significantly reduce the administrative and financial reporting burden on beneficiaries.

Strategic Alignment

The grant is strategically aligned with the broader EU's Apply AI Strategy and directly supports the GenAI4EU initiative, aiming to solidify Europe's position as a global leader in AI innovation and adoption.
A central objective of this grant is to significantly enhance knowledge valorisation efforts across Europe, directly addressing what is termed the 'innovation paradox' by facilitating the effective translation of research outcomes into tangible societal and economic value.

Grant Details