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HORIZON EUROPE – EIC Advanced Innovation Challenge – 2026

HORIZON EUROPE – European Innovation Council aims at supporting breakthrough innovations from the laboratory right through to market launch, with three schemes offering funding and support solutions for prizewinners.

2026-02-26
6 million euros
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Call synthesis

Call reference HORIZON-EIC-2026-AIC
Programme Horizon Europe
Institution European Commission
Sectors Business & Industry Research & Innovation Technology & Digital
Beneficiaries Large company (> 250 employees) Smes & Start-Ups (< 249 Employees)

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Call reference

HORIZON-EIC-2026-AIC



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Priorities and funded actions

Some Horizon Europe budgets are structured in response to policy ambitions (“destinations”) and deployed through calls for proposals targeting more specific thematic/sector (“Topics”). Thus, your application must be linked to a topic of a call for proposals.

Various categories of projects are eligible:

  • RIA, Research and Innovation Actions: Basic and applied research / Technology development and adoption / Testing and validation of a prototype in the laboratory ;
  • IA, Innovation Actions: Prototypes, tests, demonstrations, pilot projects, market placement. These actions may include limited R&D activities ;
  • CSA, Coordination and Support Actions: Networking, studies & conferences, communication, studies for new research infrastructures ;
  • MSCA, Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions / ERC individual grants: Training networks for researchers, Individual grants for experienced researchers, Staff exchange – mobility for researchers and non-scientific staff.

In addition, calls specify the categories of eligible beneficiaries:

  • Collaborative projects, composed of a coordinator and several partners organisations (consortium) ;
  • Single-beneficiary projects, involving a single organization ;
  • Individual scholarships, open to natural persons in their own name with their home institution.

TOPICS:

Open

  • HORIZON-EIC-2026-AIC-01: Accelerating Physical AI: Embodied Intelligence for the Next Frontier of AI-Powered Robotics
  • HORIZON-EIC-2026-AIC-02: Translating Disruptive New Approach Methodologies (NAMs) into Practice

Additional information

Useful

Financement
  • Total budget of the call: 6 million euros
  • Budget per topic:
    • HORIZON-EIC-2026-AIC-01: 3 million euros
    • HORIZON-EIC-2026-AIC-02: 3 million euros
  • Amount of the grant: 300 000 euros
  • Funding rate: up to 100% of the total eligible costs

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