Consolidation of the Network of European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIHs with reinforced AI focus)

Grant Purpose and Target

Core Objective

The core mission of this grant is to consolidate and strengthen the Network of European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIHs) to ensure broad coverage across the European Union and Associated Countries. The grant aims to enhance the capacity of EDIHs to support the digital transformation of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs), mid-caps, and public sector organizations, with a reinforced focus on the development, deployment, and uptake of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies.

Funding Organization

European Commission, Directorate-General for Communication, Networks, Content and Technology (DG CONNECT).

Target Recipients

This call is exclusively for existing European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIHs). Eligible applicants are:
* EDIHs currently funded by the Digital Europe Programme.
* EDIHs holding a 'Seal of Excellence'.

These must be listed in the Commission Implementing Decision 2023/1534. Applicants can be a single legal entity or a coordinated group of entities (consortium) with complementary expertise and a not-for-profit objective. Typical members of an EDIH consortium include research and technology organizations (RTOs), university labs, chambers of commerce, industry associations, accelerators, and Enterprise Europe Network (EEN) centers.

Sector Focus

SECTOR-AGNOSTIC. The grant aims to support the digital transformation needs of public and private sector organizations across all economic sectors. However, there is a strong strategic focus on the deployment and adoption of digital technologies, particularly Artificial Intelligence (AI).

Geographic Scope

Applicants must be established in EU Member States (including overseas territories) or specific non-EU countries associated with the Digital Europe Programme. Funding is allocated on a per-country basis. For this call, proposals requesting funding must originate from the following countries: Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Denmark, France, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, and Sweden. Applicants from Bulgaria, Germany, Ireland, and Spain are eligible to apply for a 'STEP Seal' but will not receive funding from this call.

Key Filtering Criteria

• Applicant Type: Must be an existing EDIH funded by the Digital Europe Programme or hold a Seal of Excellence.
• Project Focus: Consolidation of EDIH services with a strong emphasis on Artificial Intelligence.
• Project Duration: 36 months.
• Funding Model: 50% co-financing required.
• Consortium: A consortium agreement is mandatory, indicating a collaborative structure is expected.

Financial Structure

Funding Range

• Total Call Budget: EUR 79,200,000.
• Project Budget: The requested grant amount per project is indicatively between EUR 1,000,000 and EUR 3,000,000.
• Note: The budget is allocated per country. Proposals will compete for the budget allocated to their respective country.

Co-financing

• Funding Rate: The grant covers 50% of the total eligible costs.
• Matching Funds: Applicants must secure the remaining 50% of funding. The call document notes that this can come from Member States, regions, or private funding. The total public funding (EU + Member State) can be up to 100% of eligible costs.

Eligible Costs

Costs must be actually incurred, necessary for the project, and recorded in the accounts. Key eligible cost categories include:
* Personnel costs: Costs for employees, natural persons under direct contract, and seconded persons. Unit costs for SME owners and natural person beneficiaries without a salary are also eligible.
* Subcontracting costs: Must be awarded based on best value for money and without conflict of interest.
* Purchase costs:
* Travel and subsistence: Reimbursed as actual costs.
* Equipment: Reimbursed via depreciation. Full cost reimbursement is possible for specific equipment listed in the proposal.
* Other goods, works and services: Consumables, supplies, dissemination, etc.
* Internally invoiced goods and services: Eligible if based on usual cost accounting practices.
* Indirect costs: A flat rate of 7% of the total eligible direct costs is applied.
* VAT: Non-deductible VAT is an eligible cost.
* Kick-off Meeting: Travel costs for up to two people to attend the kick-off meeting in Brussels are eligible if the meeting occurs after the project start date.

Ineligible Costs

• Financial support to third parties: Explicitly not allowed.
• Separate project websites: Costs for dedicated project websites are not eligible (promoting the project on participants' existing websites is allowed).
• General ineligible costs: As per the Model Grant Agreement, these include return on capital, debt service charges, currency exchange losses, and costs declared in other EU grants (unless part of an approved Synergy action).

Payment & Reporting

• Prefinancing: A pre-financing payment of normally 65% of the maximum grant amount will be paid to the coordinator at the start of the project.
• Interim Payments: One or more interim payments will be made during the project, based on periodic reports of costs incurred.
• Final Payment: The balance is paid at the end of the project after the final report is approved.

Eligibility Requirements

Formal Criteria

• Legal Status: Applicants must be legal entities (public or private bodies). Natural persons are not eligible.
• Location: Applicants (beneficiaries and affiliated entities) must be established in an EU Member State (including OCTs) or a non-EU country associated with the Digital Europe Programme. Specific funding is restricted to a pre-defined list of countries (see Geographic Scope).
• Origin Requirement: Critically, proposals must be submitted by candidate EDIHs that originate from existing EDIHs funded by the Digital Europe Programme or EDIHs with a Seal of Excellence, as listed in Annex I and Annex II of the Commission Implementing Decision 2023/1534.
• Consortium Composition: While an EDIH can be a single legal entity, a consortium structure is expected, and a consortium agreement is mandatory. A candidate EDIH may change the composition of its original consortium.
• Topic Correspondence: The content of the proposal must correspond to the topic description.

Organizational Status

• Not-for-Profit Objective: The EDIH as a whole must have a not-for-profit objective to support the digital transformation of its target clients.
• Financial and Operational Capacity: Applicants must demonstrate stable and sufficient financial resources to implement the project and the necessary know-how, qualifications, and resources to perform the work. This is assessed based on previous project experience (especially prior EDIH operations) and the profiles of the project team.

Technical Expertise

The applicant consortium must possess complementary expertise to deliver the four core EDIH services:
* Test before invest: Access to technical expertise and experimentation facilities, especially for AI.
* Training and skills development: Upskilling and reskilling on digital technologies, including AI.
* Support to find investments: Facilitating access to public and private funding.
* Innovation ecosystem and networking: Fostering collaboration and access to innovation networks.
A reinforced expertise in Artificial Intelligence is a primary focus.

Exclusion Criteria

• Financial Support to Third Parties: This is not allowed.
• EU Restrictive Measures: Entities subject to EU restrictive measures (sanctions) are not eligible to participate in any capacity.
• EU Conditionality Measures: Entities subject to measures under EU Regulation 2020/2092 (e.g., certain Hungarian public interest trusts) are not eligible for funded roles.
• High-Level Classified Information: Projects involving information classified as TRÈS SECRET UE/EU TOP SECRET cannot be funded.
• Duplicate Proposals: Only one candidate EDIH at most will be retained as the successor of an original EDIH. If multiple proposals originate from the same consortium, only the highest-ranked one may be funded.

Application Practical Information

Deadlines

• Call Opening: 4 November 2025
• Submission Deadline: 3 March 2026, 17:00:00 Brussels time (CEST)
• Evaluation Period: March - April 2026
• Information on Results: June 2026
• Grant Agreement Signature: November 2026

Required Documents

Proposals must be submitted with the following documents:
* Application Form Part A: Structured administrative information filled in directly on the portal.
* Application Form Part B: The narrative technical description of the project, uploaded as a PDF (max 70 pages).
* Mandatory Annexes:
* A list of previous relevant projects from the last 2 years (template provided).
* The original 2022/2023 letter of designation from the Member State that proves the applicant was designated as an EDIH candidate.
* Highly Recommended/Optional Annexes:
* A list of services and prices to be offered by the EDIH (highly recommended).
* A summary of the project's Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and targets (highly recommended).
* Letters of support (optional).
* Memorandum of Understanding with other EDIHs or AI infrastructures (optional).

Application Process

• Proposals must be submitted electronically through the EU Funding & Tenders Portal.
• The submission process is a single-stage procedure.
• The proposal must be created and submitted by the designated contact person of the coordinating organization.
• All participants (beneficiaries, affiliated entities, and associated partners) must have a Participant Identification Code (PIC).

Support

• Financial: The grant provides a 50% co-funding for eligible project costs.
• Network Support: All EDIHs in the network are supported by the Digital Transformation Accelerator (DTA), which provides services like community building, training, networking events, and impact assessment tools.
• STEP Seal: All proposals that pass the evaluation thresholds will receive a STEP Seal, a quality label that can facilitate access to alternative EU or national funding.

Post-Award Obligations

• Project Duration: Projects must have a fixed duration of 36 months.
• Reporting: Beneficiaries must submit periodic reports (technical and financial) to receive payments. Continuous reporting on deliverables and milestones is also required via the portal.
• Mandatory Deliverables: A deliverable on dissemination and exploitation (due in the first 6 months) and another on the economic sustainability of the EDIH (due at 18 months).
• Consortium Agreement: Beneficiaries must establish and sign a consortium agreement to govern their internal arrangements.
• Record-Keeping: Records and supporting documents must be kept for 5 years after the final payment.
• Communication: Beneficiaries must acknowledge EU funding and display the EU emblem in all communication and dissemination activities.

Evaluation Criteria

Proposals are assessed against three main award criteria. Each criterion is scored out of 5 points. A minimum score of 3/5 is required for each criterion, and a total minimum score of 10/15 is needed to be considered for funding.

Scoring Factors

1. Relevance (Threshold: 3/5)

   • Alignment: How well the project aligns with the call's objectives and activities, including consolidating the EDIH network and reinforcing AI capacity.
   • Strategic Contribution: The project's contribution to long-term EU policy objectives (e.g., 'AI Continent' strategy), and synergies with other European and national activities.
   • Note: The standard sub-criteria on 'reinforcing the digital technology supply chain' and 'overcoming financial obstacles' are not applicable to this topic.

2. Implementation (Threshold: 3/5)

   • Maturity: The state of preparation of the project and its readiness to start, building on the achievements and lessons learned from previous EDIH operations.
   • Project Plan: The soundness of the implementation plan, including the structure of work packages, quality assurance, monitoring strategy, and efficient use of resources.
   • Capacity: The operational capacity of the applicants and the consortium as a whole to carry out the proposed work, based on their competence, experience, and available resources.

3. Impact (Threshold: 3/5)

   • Outcomes & Deliverables: The extent to which the project will achieve the expected outcomes, such as supporting a high number of entities, increasing their digital maturity, and triggering further investment.
   • Dissemination & Communication: The quality of the plans to disseminate results, communicate achievements, and ensure the visibility of EU funding.
   • Competitiveness & Societal Benefit: The extent to which the project will strengthen competitiveness and bring important benefits to society.
   • Note: The standard sub-criterion on 'environmental sustainability and the European Green Deal' is not applicable as a direct scoring factor for this topic, although the scope does encourage EDIHs to harness green digital technologies.

Innovation & Impact

Innovation is evaluated through the project's ability to support the uptake of cutting-edge technologies, especially AI. The 'Impact' criterion measures the project's expected effects, including the number of organizations supported, the increase in their digital maturity, and the amount of follow-on investment triggered. Proposals must define clear targets for Key Performance Indicators (KPIs).

Project Quality

The 'Implementation' criterion assesses the project's quality through the soundness of the work plan, the effectiveness of the project management strategy, the allocation of resources, and the management of critical risks. Proposals are expected to demonstrate how they build on previous achievements to ensure an efficient and impactful continuation of services.

Strategic Fit

Beyond the scoring, a final optimisation process is applied to the ranked list of proposals. This process ensures the final selection of EDIHs achieves strategic objectives, such as:
* Geographical, technological, and sectoral coverage within each country and across the entire EU network.
* Ensuring at least one AI-focused EDIH per country.
* Sufficient coverage of the public sector (target of at least 10% of hubs).

Cross-cutting Themes

• STEP Seal: A unique aspect of this call is that all proposals passing the evaluation thresholds will be awarded a STEP Seal. This quality label facilitates access to other EU or national funding, even if the proposal is not funded under this call due to budget limitations.
• AI Focus: A strong focus on Artificial Intelligence is a central theme, and EDIHs are expected to act as a first-line help desk for businesses on AI, including basic information on the AI Act.

Compliance and Special Requirements

Regulatory Compliance

• Ethics: Projects must adhere to the highest ethical standards and applicable laws. All proposals will undergo an ethics review. For projects involving AI, this includes ensuring compliance with principles of human agency and oversight, fairness, transparency, and responsible social impact.
• Data Protection: Projects involving personal data must comply with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). This includes implementing appropriate technical and organizational measures to safeguard data.
• Security: Projects involving EU Classified Information (EUCI) must undergo a security scrutiny process. Information classified at TRÈS SECRET UE/EU TOP SECRET level is not permitted. Beneficiaries may need to obtain facility and personnel security clearances.

IP Policy

• Ownership: Beneficiaries retain ownership of the intellectual property (IP) they generate (results).
• License to EU: The granting authority receives a royalty-free, non-exclusive, and irrevocable license to use the project's non-sensitive results and deliverables for its own policy, communication, and dissemination purposes.
• Exploitation: Beneficiaries are expected to have a plan for the exploitation and dissemination of their results.

Unique Aspects

• Restricted Eligibility: This call is not open to all organizations. It is specifically for existing EDIHs funded under the Digital Europe Programme or those holding a Seal of Excellence. This is a critical 'no-go' factor for new applicants.
• STEP Seal: A key incentive of the call is the awarding of a STEP Seal to all proposals that pass the evaluation thresholds. This quality label is designed to help projects secure alternative funding from Member States or other EU programs, and allows them to become full members of the EDIH network even if not funded by this call.
• Country-Specific Competition: The budget is pre-allocated by country. Applicants only compete against other proposals from the same country for that country's budget envelope. Some countries are only eligible for the STEP Seal, not for funding from this specific call.
• Mandatory Collaboration with Network: Active participation in activities organized by the Digital Transformation Accelerator (DTA) is compulsory. EDIHs must also collaborate with other EU AI innovation infrastructures like AI Factories and the AI-on-demand platform.
• Price List: Proposals must include a price list for the services they will offer, even if services are provided for free or at a discount, to comply with State aid regulations.

Industry-Specific Rules

• AI Act Compliance Support: A key role for the selected EDIHs is to serve as a first-line AI help desk for businesses and public sector organizations. This includes providing basic information on compliance with the AI Act and referring to further sources of information.