The European Commission has published the proposal for the Horizon Europe Regulation, the European R&I programme for 2021–2027.

• Pillar Structure:

1. Open Science (€25.8 billion), which will support the dissemination of excellent skills and frontier research through i) the European Research Council, ii) Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions, and iii) Research Infrastructures;
2. Global Challenges and Industrial Competitiveness (€57.8 billion), with the aim of developing industrial innovations to address global challenges, organised into 5 "Clusters" (Health, Digital and Industry, Inclusive and Secure Society, Climate, Energy and Mobility, Food and Natural Resources) and the enhancement of the Joint Research Centre;
3. Open Innovation (€13.5 billion), with the aim of promoting breakthrough innovation and the market development of innovative solutions through:
• The European Innovation Council, which will support breakthrough innovations with the potential to scale up in international markets through, for example, the provision of €50,000 grants without competitive selection and the creation of a business accelerator;
• The European Innovation Ecosystem, which will support the development of cross-regional programmes and interregional partnerships within Smart Specialisation value chains;
• European Institute of Innovation & Technology

1. European Research Area (€2.1 billion)

• Types of actions and funding. In addition to current actions and funding schemes (e.g. Research and Innovation Action – 100% co-funded grant, Innovation Action – 70% co-funded grant and 100% for non-profit, Coordination and Support Action – 100% co-funded grant) there will be a particular focus on:
• Blended finance, through the use of a mix of grants and private finance backed by the InvestEU fund and EU Guarantee
• Prizes, to develop results from past projects or to develop actions on future research priorities
• Co-fund Actions, through the funding of R&I programmes managed by third parties (e.g. regional and/or national institutions)
• Pre-commercial and public procurement

• Synergies with other funding programmes (ERASMUS+, CEF, Single Market Programme, LIFE, etc.), in particular:
• ERDF, through interregional programmes to foster complementarity between Smart Specialisation Strategies and the definition of ERDF initiatives that encourage the industrial development of Horizon Europe project results
• ESF+, through regional programmes that enhance future skills and the development of cutting-edge healthcare systems
• Digital Europe Programme, with direct support for digital topics (High Performance Computing, Artificial Intelligence, cybersecurity) and scale-ups introducing radical innovations; support for building digital infrastructure at a European level and the development of digital skills.

• R&I Partnerships,in the following forms:

• Co-programmed, based on memoranda of understanding and joint programming between managing partners
• Co-funded, through a single programme involving funding from various bodies, as well as the EU
• Institutional (e.g. PPPs and JTIs) based on Articles 185 and 187 TFEU and the KICs

The texts of the regulations and other detailed documentation can be consulted by clicking here.