UNIVERSITY COLLEGE DUBLIN, NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF IRELAND, DUBLIN

The medical, financial, and emotional costs imposed by ageing and infectious diseases are major challenges for our societies. Strikingly, while past research has not provided solutions for extending human healthspan and preventing the harmful consequences of infections, nature has solved both problems in the only flying mammals – the bats. Among mammals, bats exhibit an exceptional longevity with little signs of age-related diseases. Despite being reservoirs for numerous deadly viruses, viral infections in bats are mostly asymptomatic due to unique immune system adaptations. The overarching goal of BATPROTECT is to achieve breakthroughs in our understanding of the molecular basis of bats’ extended healthspan and disease resistance to ultimately discover new directions to improve human healthspan and disease outcome. BATPROTECT integrates a team of world-leading experts in bat biology, genomics, immunology and gerontology to synergistically: (i) elucidate the molecular mechanisms that bats use to slow down expected ageing; (ii) identify the driving molecular mechanisms behind bats’ viral tolerance and limited age-related inflammation; (iii) uncover the genomic basis and evolution of extended healthspan and disease tolerance in bats; and, (iv) develop transgenic animal models to functionally validate the uncovered bat adaptations. We will generate 150 reference quality bat genomes, the novel immunological, bioinformatic, cellular and molecular tools required to take an integrative multi-omics approach and uncover the age and immune changes that occur in wild and captive bats across the ageing spectrum. We will identify the top regulators of longevity and immunity, using deep neural networks analyses, to functionally validate in our cellular systems and novel transgenic animal models- BatWorms and BatMice. Ultimately, we will provide a deeper understanding of extended healthspan and disease resistance and will pave the way for future therapeutics.

EC contribution:

EUR 3.7M

Start:

2024-06-01

End:

2030-05-31

Status:

SIGNED

Scheme:

HORIZON-ERC-SYG

Call:

ERC-2023-SyG

View on CORDIS (DOI 10.3030/101118919)

Youth in Europe may be the first generation of native EU citizens in their country; their support for and identification with Europe are essential for peace on the continent. Identity formation is an essential development task across the lifespan; yet in middle childhood and early adolescence, there is low identity complexity. Therefore, it is essential to understand how children and adolescents develop and identify with superordinate categories (e.g. being European), and the impact of those identities on individual (e.g. well-being, civic engagement) and societal outcomes (e.g. social cohesion, peace). GENERATION EU (GenEU) has three aims. First, GenEU will explore the development and predictors of European identity within and between countries, regions, and social groups, alongside changes over time. Second, GenEU will investigate the impact of European identity – on individual children and adolescents, as well as on society as whole. Third, a paradox of inclusion is often excluding others. GenEU will trace the potential unintended negative consequences or backlash effects of European identity. To assess causal processes and change over time, the GenEU combines field experiments, qualitative archives, a longitudinal survey, historical cross-national surveys, and large-scale quantitative text analysis. Case selection not only enables understanding changes and processes across developmental periods (WP2 childhood; WP3 adolescence), but also across cohorts and generations using historical data (WP3 22 years, WP4 80 years). Essential for robust inference, research designs have strategic variability (e.g. EU generation; violent conflict or not). Finally, tackling the research challenge (i.e. what is European identity and how does it work?), GenEU will generate a new comprehensive model and interdisciplinary data and tools. These have implications for European social cohesion and peace, as well as for other global regional identities (e.g. African Union, ASEAN).

EC contribution:

EUR 2M

Start:

2026-09-01

End:

2031-08-31

Status:

SIGNED

Scheme:

HORIZON-ERC

Call:

ERC-2025-COG

View on CORDIS (DOI 10.3030/101230066)

This project will create a new vision of Bronze Age ontologies by exploring the role of animals as active participants in Bronze Age social worlds. The impact of contemporary Capitalist ideology on archaeological understanding of the European Bronze Age has been profound. Dominant narratives describe a world in which economic intensification, the accumulation of wealth and the emergence of chiefly hierarchies were predicated on the objectification of the ‘other’. This project will critically re-evaluate models that view animals as objects of exploitation. Drawing on work in animal studies that highlights how living with animals involves intimate interaction and interdependency, it will investigate the intertwining of human and animal identities, and will consider how the social and cultural significance of animals affected how they were farmed, managed and consumed. The appearance of field-systems and houses incorporating byres for cattle indicates major changes in animal management in the Bronze Age. Yet, animal iconography and the presence of animal remains in graves and votive deposits suggest that animals had cultural significance. The project will bring together contextual, zooarchaeological, isotope, organic residue and aDNA analysis to investigate human-animal sociality, examining herd management; patterns of human-animal interaction; animal mobility and exchange; the role of animals in feasting and ritual; and their location in cultural taxonomies. By examining the ontological position of animals not as passive objects but as active subjects, this project will radically reframe the theoretical basis on which wider interpretations of the Bronze Age are based, including how political authority, gender relations and economic activities were structured. By illuminating alternate modalities of power and agency, and different ways of living with non-human others, it will also contribute to current debates around issues such as sustainability in the present.

EC contribution:

EUR 1.6M

Start:

2023-01-01

End:

2027-12-31

Status:

SIGNED

Scheme:

HORIZON-ERC

Call:

ERC-2021-ADG

View on CORDIS (DOI 10.3030/101055195)

The chemical evolution of galaxies is driven by mass loss from stars at the end of their lives. The majority of stars will go through an asymptotic giant branch (AGB) phase, losing their outer layers by means of a stellar outflow and enriching the interstellar medium with the building blocks for the next generation of stars and planets. The outflow is triggered by stellar pulsations that aid dust formation, which then launches a dust-driven wind. Large-scale structures, like spirals and disks, are widely observed and thought to be caused by binary interaction with a (sub)stellar companion. Despite the importance of dust to launching the outflow, we still do not know exactly how it is formed. Dust formation is a fundamentally chemical process: gas-phase molecules form larger clusters, condense into a seed particle and grow by accreting more molecules. Existing dust formation models either assume an initial number of seed particles to be already present at the start of the model or use classical nucleation theory, which is not applicable to AGB outflows as it assumes thermal equilibrium. Now, thanks to a decade of quantum chemical calculations, it is finally possible to model dust formation in a chemical kinetic way in AGB outflows. ASHES will develop the first comprehensive chemical network that includes dust nucleation and growth, allowing us to quantify the effects of large-scale structures and a stellar companion’s UV field on the amount, composition, and size of the dust. Using machine learning to emulate the network, we will build the first comprehensive 3D hydrochemical model. This model will quantify the impact of a binary companion on shaping the outflow and, for the first time, on the chemistry and dust formed within the outflow. The observational tracers generated by the model will be used to determine the dusty output of observed outflows. ASHES will transform our understanding of dust formation in AGB outflows and impact AGB research and beyond.

EC contribution:

EUR 1.5M

Start:

2026-08-01

End:

2031-07-31

Status:

SIGNED

Scheme:

HORIZON-ERC

Call:

ERC-2025-STG

View on CORDIS (DOI 10.3030/101219552)

"Ireland is actively building a connected national ecosystem for artificial intelligence (AI), where enterprise, research, and the public sector work together to drive innovation and tackle major economic, environmental and societal challenges. This collaboration supports Ireland's twin transition goals, digital and green transformation, across sectors like energy, agriculture, biodiversity, climate, healthcare, smart cities, Space, deeptech and manufacturing. AI is a core part of Ireland's national digital strategy, ""AI – Here for Good"", and is now closely linked with efforts in advanced computing, data governance, quantum technologies, space, semiconductors, and skills development. As the use of AI grows, there is an increasing need to provide businesses, researchers, and public sector bodies with the tools, infrastructure, and expert support they need to build and scale AI solutions. The AI Factory Antenna in Ireland (AIF IRL-Antenna) will serve as the central hub for connecting and supporting Ireland's AI ecosystem. It will offer access to national and European AI infrastructure—such as secure data environments, AI Sandboxes, AI-optimised HPC resources and data spaces—and help users make the most of AI through hands-on support, user-friendly tools, and tailored training for all skill levels. AIF IRL-Antenna will link with AI Factory France (AI2F), network with the rest of the EuroHPC AI Factory and Antenna network, and will be Ireland's link to the wider European AI ecosystem, connecting with the AI Factories and Antennas network, EuroHPC National Competence Centres, Centres of Excellence and European Digital Innovation Hubs. Led by ICHEC, Ireland's national centre for high-performance computing (HPC) and data platforms, and working in partnership with CeADAR, Ireland's centre for applied AI, AIF IRL-Antenna will engage closely with startups, SMEs, public sector bodies, and researchers—helping them adopt, develop, and scale AI for real-world impact."

EC contribution:

EUR 1.5M

Start:

2026-04-01

End:

2029-03-31

Status:

SIGNED

Scheme:

HORIZON-JU-RIA

Call:

HORIZON-JU-EUROHPC-2025-AIFA-01

View on CORDIS (DOI 10.3030/101263091)

AGROBOOST is a pilot driven, 5-year multi-disciplinary project that aims to transform the agricultural sector into a more attractive, sustainable and efficient industry by harnessing the power of advanced agro-robotics, augmented reality (AR), artificial intelligence (AI), automation and digitalisation revealing the societal and economic benefits for all the people working in agriculture, especially women, young professionals and farmers with moving disabilities. Through the development of cutting-edge, ground-breaking solutions, the project will improve the safety and appeal of agricultural work, reduce environmental impacts, enhance productivity and address labour shortages. AGROBOOST will also emphasize on the development of flexible business models, concrete system analysis tools and training curricula to ensure the widespread adoption and the rapid uptake of these technology innovations. Six distinct and diverse pilot validation campaigns will be demonstrated in 6 countries across Europe (Portugal, Ireland, Greece, England, Belgium and Switzerland), covering multiple agricultural practices and sectors including (1) tree pruning and flower thinning, (2) mushroom selective harvesting, (3) automated weeding, (4) strawberries gentle picking, (5) animal husbandry and livestock farm management and (6) crop monitoring in steep slope viticulture. Financial support to third parties for testing and validation of technology offerings as part of the project’s funding and implementation strategy will be awarded through an Open Call, enabling a dynamic response to a changing policy and technology landscape. Through the engagement of a diverse range of stakeholders e.g., farmers (young and women), farm workers, advisors, technology providers and scientists in decision-making processes and the incorporation of social sciences perspectives, AGROBOOST will create a more inclusive and forward-looking agricultural landscape, securing a promising and sustainable future for farming.

EC contribution:

EUR 1.2M

Start:

2025-11-01

End:

2030-10-31

Status:

SIGNED

Scheme:

HORIZON-RIA

Call:

HORIZON-CL6-2024-GOVERNANCE-01

View on CORDIS (DOI 10.3030/101182954)

MANOLO will deliver a complete stack of trustworthy algorithms and tools to help AI systems reach better efficiency and seamless optimization in their operations, resources and data required to train, deploy and run high-quality and lighter AI models in both centralised and cloud-edge distributed environments. It will push the state of the art in the development of a collection of complementary algorithms for training, understanding, compressing and optimising machine learning models by advancing research in the areas of: model compression, meta-learning (few-shot learning), domain adaptation, frugal neural network search and growth and neuromorphic models. Novel dynamic algorithms for data/energy efficient and policy-compliance allocation of AI tasks to assets and resources in the cloud-edge continuum will be designed, allowing for trustworthy widespread deployment. To support these activities a data management framework for distributed tracking of assets and their provenance (data, models, algorithms) and a benchmark system to monitor, evaluate and compare new AI algorithms and model deployments will be developed. Trustworthiness evaluation mechanisms will be embedded at its core for explainability, robustness and security of models while using the Z-Inspection methodology for TrustworthyAI assesment, helping AI systems conform to the new AI Act regulation. MANOLO will be deployed as a toolset and tested in lab environments via Use Cases with different distributed AI paradigms within cloud-edge continuum settings; it will be validated in verticals such as health, manufacturing, and telecommunications aligned with ADRA identified market opportunities, and with a granular set of embedded devices covering robotics, smartphones, IoT as well as using Neuromorphic chips. MANOLO will integrate with ongoing projects at EU level developing the next operating system for cloud-edge continuum, while promoting its sustainability via the AI-on-demand platform and EU portals.

EC contribution:

EUR 1.1M

Start:

2024-01-01

End:

2026-12-31

Status:

SIGNED

Scheme:

HORIZON-RIA

Call:

HORIZON-CL4-2023-HUMAN-01-CNECT

View on CORDIS (DOI 10.3030/101135782)

UPCAST provides a set of universal, trustworthy, transparent and user-friendly data market plugins for the automation of data sharing and processing agreements between businesses, public administrations and citizens. Our plugins will enable actors in the common European data spaces to design and deploy data exchange and trading operations guaranteeing (i) automatic negotiation of agreement terms, (ii) dynamic fair pricing, (ii) improved data-asset discovery, (iii) privacy, commercial and administrative confidentiality requirements, (iv) low environmental footprint, as well as ensuring compliance with (v) relevant legislation and (vi) ethical and responsibility guidelines. UPCAST will support the deployment of Common European data spaces by consolidating mature research in the areas of data management, privacy, monetisation, exchange and automated negotiation, considering efficiency for the environment as well as compliance with EU and national initiatives, AI regulations and ethical procedures. Four real-world pilots across Europe will operationalise a set of working platform plugins for data sharing, monetisation and trading, deployable across a variety of different data marketplaces and platforms, ensuring digital autonomy of data providers, brokers, users and data subjects, and enabling interoperability within European data spaces. UPCAST aims at engaging SMEs, administrations and citizens by providing a transferability framework, best practices and training to endow users in order to deploy the new technologies and maximise impact of the project.

EC contribution:

EUR 1.1M

Start:

2023-01-01

End:

2025-12-31

Status:

SIGNED

Scheme:

HORIZON-IA

Call:

HORIZON-CL4-2022-DATA-01

View on CORDIS (DOI 10.3030/101093216)

A deeper understanding of the interactions between soils and plants, especially at the root zone, where they take up water and nutrients may support sustainable intensification of agricultural production. Research is indicating that a greater understanding of roots and soil functions may lead to increases in crop yields, reductions in greenhouse gas emissions from soils, enhanced productivity in grasslands and reductions in fertilizer requirements to land. However, data gaps remain in our understanding of how plant roots interact with their environment from a physiological and phenotypic perspective. Plant Phenotyping has been described as the bottleneck to food security, yet the real bottleneck to plant phenotyping is thought to be image analysis and processing. The challenge of ensuring food security provides the impetus for ROOTED (Root Phenotyping Integrated Educational Doctoral Network). ROOTED will apply deep learning and artificial intelligence to speed up data generation in root phenotyping. Agriculture is increasingly using digital technologies, but currently 44% of the European workforce do not have these basic skills. This is a severe skills gap that Europe needs to close urgently to avoid economic downturn. ROOTED will consolidate the complimentary expertise of an international, interdisciplinary, multisectoral team to train a new generation of creative, resilient, adaptive multi-skilled scientists capable of innovating the fields of plant and soil sciences to actively contribute to the goal of doubling food production in a sustainable manner by 2050. Soil health and food is one of the 5 mission areas for Horizon Europe and the findings from ROOTED would be directly applicable to the EU’s Green deal and a Soil Deal for Europe. ROOTED graduates will have a level of scientific, communication and digital skills mastery that enables them to move straight into employment in agri-food businesses, seed and breeding companies, advisory and scientific roles.

EC contribution:

EUR 859k

Start:

2023-01-01

End:

2027-12-31

Status:

SIGNED

Scheme:

HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-DN

Call:

HORIZON-MSCA-2021-DN-01

View on CORDIS (DOI 10.3030/101072588)

FORSEE posits that the advancing technical capabilities of AI applications require a clear understanding of what successful AI means - for society as a whole - together with the conditions of possibility for successful AI. New AI technologies are sites of negotiation and contestation. Different groups, based on their social positions, develop diverse and possibly conflicting ideas on what constitutes “success”. Expanding visions that define AI strictly in terms of technological and economic efficiency, FORSEE aims to develop a nuanced and enriched notion of success that will guide future AI applications and policy efforts. To achieve this, FORSEE draws from the social construction of technology to engage with three categories of stakeholders: a) institutional actors, b) “lifeworld” stakeholders (Civil Society Organizations representing gendered perspectives and Digital SMEs) and, c) the broader public. Then, FORSEE inquires into the impact of AI applications on economy, society and sustainability as well as on their alignment with EU values and strategic priorities. These interconnected research projects will illuminate a broader understanding of success that rests upon conflict resolution, empowerment of stakeholders, and alignment with fundamental rights and the goal of sustainable development. Based on these research findings, FORSEE will (i) develop a novel approach to AI governance that can guarantee more successful AI applications for society as a whole, including (ii) a new evaluative framework for assessing current and future AI applications, and (iii) a new prototype for registering risk and negative impacts. Through these outputs, FORSEE highlights and analyses existing successful AI applications to strategically enhance capabilities of our stakeholders and policymakers to address future risks and opportunities. Updating the SME sector’s understanding of success is a particular condition for the EU to retain a leading position in the AI landscape.

EC contribution:

EUR 764k

Start:

2025-02-01

End:

2028-01-31

Status:

SIGNED

Scheme:

HORIZON-RIA

Call:

HORIZON-CL2-2024-TRANSFORMATIONS-01

View on CORDIS (DOI 10.3030/101177579)

The risk of water scarcity due to climate change and human activities is real. i3WaterS stands for Intelligent, Innovative, Integrative Water Systems and addresses the urgent need to optimize water resources management by providing a comprehensive solution to upgrade, optimally operate and maintain water distribution systems (WDSs). For the first time, a unique holistic approach will find the key interrelationships between external, day-to-day and extreme, factors and WDS failures, to advise actions and protocols to make WDSs robust and reliable. At research level, i3WaterS project focuses on the integration of data, specific expert knowledge and computational simulations tools, introducing the most advanced data-driven and artificial intelligent techniques beyond the State of the Art, that plugged in a newly developed intelligent decision support system (IDSSs), working as an umbrella for a set of 14 independent solutions that enables assisting the WDSs management into scientifically driven decision-making. The incorporation of artificial intelligence (AI) will help to increase the autonomy of some parts of the WDS, those suitable under a paradigm of maximum security, safety and robustness, and the project will take care to frame this autonomy in a global and general concept of intelligent assistance, including human validation in each steps where it makes sense 15 Doctorate Candidates will learn from a network of experts on network monitoring, data management, algorithms, AI, modeling, microbiology, ethics and industrial partners, and by participating in a specifically designed training programme, they will develop the required cross competencies to find, test and innovate over a solution that will be fundamental to meet the sustainable development goals on water. Just as important, i3WaterS provide a new generation of internationally connected professionals with unique skills for the development of thriving careers in the critical infrastructures.

EC contribution:

EUR 682k

Start:

2026-01-01

End:

2029-12-31

Status:

SIGNED

Scheme:

HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-DN

Call:

HORIZON-MSCA-2024-DN-01

CEREBRIS is a groundbreaking project tackling one of the most pressing health challenges: neurological disease. These conditions now account for the highest share of global disability. By age 75, one in three people will be affected by a neurological condition, and one in five women will experience a stroke each year. These conditions disproportionately affect low- and middle-income countries. There is a critical need for solutions that are scalable, affordable, and personalised to patients. CEREBRIS aims to develop a secure, federated, and explainable AI ecosystem- starting with stroke care. Its AI models will be designed to form multiple types of patient data- such as brain scans, motion patterns and brain signals- to help doctors understand and predict more objectively how an individual is progressing and will recover after a brain injury. Using privacy-preserving technologies, the system will allow hospitals and clinicians to work together without ever sharing raw data, ensuring trust and compliance with global regulations. Long term, the platform will include multiple advanced clinical tools: AI Agents specialised in reasoning and prediction, signal integration and brain image synthesis, robotic and motion capture system to assess motor and sensory function, and an ethical biobank of real and simulated data for continuous learning. To enable this technological leap, a new comprehensive, longitudinal dataset from stroke survivors will be created- capturing geographic, clinical and real-world variations. Driven by a multidisciplinary European challenge-based consortium with deep expertise in neurology, AI, neurotechnology, and clinical translation, CEREBRIS will transform the entire stroke care pathway—from early diagnosis to recovery. By delivering precise diagnostics and targeted rehabilitation, CEREBRIS will significantly reduce long term disability, cut drastically healthcare expenses, and set a new standard for brain health globally,

EC contribution:

EUR 640k

Start:

2026-05-01

End:

2030-04-30

Status:

SIGNED

Scheme:

HORIZON-EIC

Call:

HORIZON-EIC-2025-PATHFINDEROPEN

View on CORDIS (DOI 10.3030/101257536)

The aim of the EU Soil Strategy is that by 2050 all soils in the EU are healthy. However, cost-effective indicators for soil biodiversity, ecosystem functioning and ecosystem services are missing, and so are cost-effective measures for restoring soil health. SOB4ES will contribute to the Mission A Soil Deal for Europe by: (1) elucidating soil biodiversity, ecosystem functioning and services for major land uses and land use intensity changes; (2) testing cost-effectiveness of existing indicators for soil biodiversity, ecosystem functioning and services; and, (3) evaluating how policy incentives may enhance protection, sustainable management and restoration of soil systems and soil health. By focusing on nine major pedoclimatic (soil type-climate) regions and land uses, including soils from urban, agriculture, forest, (semi)-natural, wetlands, drylands, industrial and mining environments, SOB4ES will cover most relevant EU climate-soil type-land use conditions. SOB4ES will further develop the mapping and assessment of ecosystem conditions (MAES) approach. For agricultural land uses, envisaged sustainable agricultural practices will be compared with conventional high input-output practices. Ultimately, SOB4Es will deliver well-validated and applicable indicators for soil biodiversity and ecosystem services for policy evaluation to be used in EU-wide soil health monitoring from the field to the landscape level. SOB4ES will also analyse how networks of soil biodiversity relate to aboveground biodiversity and ecosystem services by advanced artificial intelligence-based machine learning approaches, and scale monitoring up to being applied by remote sensing. Finally, SOB4ES will support a more effective adoption of indicators by large-scale European surveys, such as LUCAS and SoilBON and contribute to the development of the EUSO dashboard and national soil monitoring programmes.

EC contribution:

EUR 599k

Start:

2023-06-01

End:

2028-05-31

Status:

SIGNED

Scheme:

HORIZON-RIA

Call:

HORIZON-MISS-2022-SOIL-01

View on CORDIS (DOI 10.3030/101112831)

The EU data economy has grown tremendously, with forecasts predicting to reach 800Billion Euros in 2025. Data are becoming the new currency, being exchanged as products or services in marketplaces. Data markets are predicted to reach a size of 100Billion Euros in 2025. Existing data marketplaces are centralised, store the data on the cloud, provide limited to no guarantees about data quality and they are governed by single entities that make the rules. SEDIMARK merges the expertise of a large team of experts to build a secure, trusted and intelligent decentralised data and services marketplace, based on Distributed Ledger Technology and Artificial Intelligence. SEDIMARK enables distributed heterogeneous data within the EU to be easily and seamlessly linked, shared and exploited for diverse business and research scenarios. SEDIMARK builds upon the concept of FAIR data, ensuring that data are of the highest quality, unbiased, enriched and annotated, so that they can be discovered, accessed, and easily reused. SEDIMARK includes a distributed registry of resources (data/services) stored on edge systems, close to where they are generated and where the data are cleaned, labelled, validated and anonymised. Security is applied with strong access control, privacy techniques for data minimisation and purpose limitation, exploiting blockchain for enforcing trust, decentralised identities, and data verification. Energy efficient AI techniques will be used for automated data quality management, labelling and classification of data as well as for providing (distributed) analytics and advanced services on top of the data. Semantic interoperability based on common ontologies and data models will allow the easy and efficient discovery, sharing and federation of heterogeneous data from multiple sources. The system is built on top of existing platforms of the consortium, starting from TRL5 and will be tested and demonstrated in four real world scenarios, reaching TRL-8.

EC contribution:

EUR 585k

Start:

2022-10-01

End:

2025-09-30

Status:

CLOSED

Scheme:

HORIZON-IA

Call:

HORIZON-CL4-2021-DATA-01

View on CORDIS (DOI 10.3030/101070074)

DIGITISE aspires to enable the digital literacy and empowerment of consumers/ prosumers as well as the active engagement in digital energy activities and markets and the obtainment of an active role in the energy transition. It brings together proven know-how and tangible expertise around energy systems and flexibility services, energy markets and transactions, social/ human engagement in digital ecosystems. It integrates advanced technologies for Innovative Cross-Sector Services, Digital Twins, DLT-enabled Marketplaces, AI Analytics and Big Data Management, Interoperability and Security, into a holistic end-to-end consumer empowerment framework that will be extensively validated in 1 well and long established Living Lab and 4 large-scale demonstration sites in Greece, Spain, Croatia and Ireland involving the required actors (consumers, prosumers and the business actors: Retailers/Aggregators/LECs), diverse, cross domain data sources, heterogeneous energy and non-energy systems/assets, and multi-variate climatic and socio-economic characteristics.

EC contribution:

EUR 469k

Start:

2024-06-01

End:

2027-05-31

Status:

SIGNED

Scheme:

HORIZON-IA

Call:

HORIZON-CL5-2023-D3-03

View on CORDIS (DOI 10.3030/101160671)

MLSysOps will achieve substantial research contributions in the realm of AI-based system adaptation across the cloud-edge continuum by introducing advanced methods and tools to enable optimal system management and application deployment. MLSysOps will design, implement and evaluate a complete framework for autonomic end-to-end system management across the full cloud-edge continuum. MLSysOps will employ a hierarchical agent-based AI architecture to interface with the underlying resource management and application deployment/orchestration mechanisms of the continuum. Adaptivity will be achieved through continual ML model learning in conjunction with intelligent retraining concurrently to application execution, while openness and extensibility will be supported through explainable ML methods and an API for pluggable ML models. Flexible/efficient application execution on heterogeneous infrastructures and nodes will be enabled through innovative portable container-based technology. Energy efficiency, performance, low latency, efficient, resilient and trusted tier-less storage, cross-layer orchestration including resource-constrained devices, resilience to imperfections of physical networks, trust and security, are key elements of MLSysOps addressed using ML models. The framework architecture disassociates management from control and seamlessly interfaces with popular control frameworks for different layers of the continuum. The framework will be evaluated using research testbeds as well as two real-world application-specific testbeds in the domain of smart cities and smart agriculture, which will also be used to collect the system-level data necessary to train and validate the ML models, while realistic system simulators will be used to conduct scale-out experiments. The MLSysOps consortium is a balanced blend of academic/research and industry/SME partners, bringing together the necessary scientific and technological skills to ensure successful implementation and impact.

EC contribution:

EUR 434k

Start:

2023-01-01

End:

2026-01-31

Status:

SIGNED

Scheme:

HORIZON-RIA

Call:

HORIZON-CL4-2022-DATA-01

View on CORDIS (DOI 10.3030/101092912)

INERRANT aims to drive genuine advancements for safe-and-sustainable-by-design materials, and eco-friendly processes, to ensure the economical and widespread utilization of safer LIBs tailored for the expanding electromobility applications in our modern society. To realize this, INERRANT is formulating a holistic approach to enhance safety performance, extend cyclability and operational lifespan, and improve fast charging, all while maintaining cost-effectiveness, energy, and power density, and avoiding dependence on Critical Raw Materials. The pivotal S&T challenges encompass: development of functional materials, design sustainable recycling processes and understanding of pertinent interfacial phenomena and degradation mechanisms. The project addresses current challenges for LIBs components related to (i) novel (nano)materials combinations for anodes and cathodes; (ii) smart-functioning separators; (iii) stimuli responsive electrolyte formulations; (iv) novel sustainable recycling processes to improve the purity of recovered materials. Novel electrochemical characterization methods and operando spectroscopies, both at the materials and component level, will be utilized. This includes the establishment of a metrological framework for traceable calibrations and the integration of machine learning methodologies for swift and early LIB cell aging predictions. Adopting fabrication methods that are inherently scalable, built upon existing pilot lines and proven safety testing, will facilitate a swift progression to Gigafactory-relevant scales. INERRANT will present a compelling business case and clear exploitation strategy, rooted in the consortium’s strategic insight, guaranteeing effective technology commercialization. This approach will support the economical and eco-friendly production of LIB cells and systems, tailored for e-mobility applications. INERRANT comprises a consortium of 11 partners from the European Commission and one associated partner from the USA.

EC contribution:

EUR 396k

Start:

2024-05-01

End:

2027-04-30

Status:

SIGNED

Scheme:

HORIZON-RIA

Call:

HORIZON-CL5-2023-D2-02

View on CORDIS (DOI 10.3030/101147457)

The Evolutionary Medical Genomics Doctoral Network (EvoMG-DN) pioneers an integrative approach combining Evolutionary Medicine and Medical Genomics to address critical health challenges. By combining evolutionary insights with state-of-the-art genomic tools, EvoMG-DN seeks to establish EvoMG as a structured and impactful discipline in Europe. The network aims to train the next generation of interdisciplinary researchers to unlock the full potential of evolutionary genomic approaches in healthcare. EvoMG-DN pursues three overarching objectives: (i) foster interdisciplinary synergy by uniting EvoMG researchers from diverse fields to catalyze innovation in methodologies and tools; (ii) create a cohesive training framework, equipping doctoral candidates (DCs) with expertise in EvoMG applications through structured training and collaboration; and (iii) advance evolution-informed clinical applications, such as adaptive cancer therapies. The research program is organized into three scientific work packages: WP1 explores evolutionary insights into ageing and age-related diseases; WP2 focuses on tumor evolution and acquisition of resistance in cancer therapies; and WP3 addresses pathogen evolution, antibiotic resistance and interactions with the immune system. These are underpinned by core methodological pillars, which include comparative functional genomics, genetic diversity analysis, mathematical modeling and machine learning, and the use of unconventional model organisms. Through interdisciplinary secondments, tailored mentoring, and advanced training modules, EvoMG-DN empowers DCs to bridge disciplines and develop actionable solutions to global health challenges. By formalizing EvoMG methodologies and advancing clinical applications, EvoMG-DN aims to solidify Europe’s leadership in biomedical research and deliver long-lasting societal impact.

EC contribution:

EUR 341k

Start:

2026-01-01

End:

2029-12-31

Status:

SIGNED

Scheme:

HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-DN

Call:

HORIZON-MSCA-2024-DN-01

View on CORDIS (DOI 10.3030/101226544)

Along the whole value chain in using data for economic purposes, guidelines and tools are required to make the business of the different stakeholders successful, and the end-users confident that none of their rights are endangered. CERTAIN addresses these needs and delivers solutions for data holders, dataspaces and AI systems providers, and AI systems deployers, which are the primary actors of the data and AI value chain. They must be compliant with applicable European regulations, must reach this compliance in a timely manner, and at reasonable cost. CERTAIN delivers guidelines and technical tools to help with compliance, to assess data quality, to measure biases in datasets, and to protect privacy. CERTAIN sets the foundation of AI certification: it translates the regulations to business terms, builds a directory of certification entities per business, develops a platform to streamline the certification process, and tools for AI system providers and certification entities so that they could respectively prepare and run a certification process. In case of security breach, not only privacy may get compromised, but also AI models may become useless and lead to extremely damageable decisions. To make sure that AI-based products are of high quality and reliability, CERTAIN develops security tools and methods, specifically suitable for dataspaces and AI systems. CERTAIN addresses the environmental footprint of the AI value chain. Innovative techniques are elaborated to reduce energy consumption when building and running AI systems. This is beneficial not only for the green deal but to reduce cost for AI stakeholders. As importantly, CERTAIN considers the end-users perspective, and provides templates and guidelines that may be used by AI systems deployers to reassure end-users on the use of their private data. The project tests its results on seven operational pilots in six different business areas, considering all the actors along the AI value chain.

EC contribution:

EUR 314k

Start:

2025-01-01

End:

2027-12-31

Status:

SIGNED

Scheme:

HORIZON-IA

Call:

HORIZON-CL4-2024-DATA-01

View on CORDIS (DOI 10.3030/101189650)

Hard-of-hearing (HoH) individuals are greatly limited in their interpersonal communications leading them to social isolation and loneliness. To mitigate the communication gap, cochlear implants (CI) were invented to improve speech intelligibility. However, music perception remains severely distorted due to its innate complex acoustical properties. Since music is a ubiquitous means for socio-cultural interactions, the inability to listen to it significantly degrades the quality of life of CI users. ARM4CI aims to enable CI users to perceive and appreciate music holistically through augmented reality (AR). Its objectives include organizing a database containing multimodal data of live music performances, utilizing the database to implement an intelligent system that transforms music that will be more perceivable by CI users, and integrating it into an AR system for evaluation of the quality of experience (QoE) of CI users. ARM4CI has the potential to impact the scientific community by providing a database that enables the development of machine learning algorithms, the CI users by improving their quality of experience in music consumption, and the music industry by introducing a new paradigm of listening to live music through AR. ARM4CI will be implemented in University College Dublin under the supervision of Dr. Andrew Hines. Through this project, a two-way transfer of knowledge is achieved since it combines my experience in multimodal data gathering and analysis of music performances, Dr. Hines' experience in designing algorithms to improve speech intelligibility for HoH individuals, and UCD's capacity to host AR-driven research. The fellowship is a timely opportunity for me to achieve my career goals of securing a tenure faculty position and setting up my own research laboratory for music technology in the future.

EC contribution:

EUR 216k

Start:

2024-09-01

End:

2026-09-30

Status:

SIGNED

Scheme:

HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF

Call:

HORIZON-MSCA-2023-PF-01

View on CORDIS (DOI 10.3030/101151676)

The ERC Advanced Grant HIGHWAVE is a current project that studies the physical mechanisms underlying the emergence of destructive breaking waves on the ocean’s surface. The recent months have shown the multiplication of abnormal atmospheric disturbances generating extreme winds and waves that surprised forecasters. It is therefore essential to be able to extract useful information from real-time measurements of winds and waves. In planning to address this problem from a science perspective, we discovered a critical gap in all current approaches to ocean wave measurements and maritime communications. There is no existing technology that provides air and water information (wave amplitude and direction, wind speed and direction, current speed and direction) of any given sea state in real time. The lack of any technique providing instant access to a sea state makes it extremely difficult to adapt to a changing sea state and to act fast. REALTIMESEA will fill this gap, using wireless wave sensor technology deployed on a connected buoy to measure and transmit instantaneously to a fully equipped mobile station the raw data of the sea state (air and water) at a given location at a very low communication cost. Considering that our idea can be extended to a linked network of connected buoys, thus adding a spatial component to the real-time measurements, one can say that the ability to track sea states in real time and space will represent a revolution in wave forecasting, with expected commercial applications for multiple “end users”. Taking the real-time measurement of waves to Proof of Concept is made possible because of the recent development of maritime wireless networks, that enables Wi-Fi data coverage over large areas of water within a 12 km radius from a shore station. A 1-year campaign off Inishmaan, Ireland, will allow the optimisation of the measurement system, the development of the required analysis software and of the manual for the buoy/mobile station kit.

EC contribution:

EUR 88k

Start:

2023-05-01

End:

2024-10-31

Status:

CLOSED

Scheme:

HORIZON-ERC-POC

Call:

ERC-2022-POC2

View on CORDIS (DOI 10.3030/101112716)

Osteoarthritis (OA) causes pain, disability, and economic burden for 500+ million people. Developing disease modifying osteoarthritis drugs is crucial, but challenging due to disease heterogeneity, slow progression, and regulatory issues. The PROBE consortium addresses these challenges by integrating diverse and disparate datasets, combined with all necessary expertise, creating a federated database network. PROBE will unite critical mass in OA data and multidisciplinary disease specific expertise, federated infrastructure experts, AI and ML expertise, data privacy and ethics experts, health economics and outcome researchers, and indispensable patient, HTA, and regulatory perspectives experts, to achieve significant advancements in trial designs and tools for shared decision making. The overarching aim of PROBE is to deliver data-driven opportunities for the treatment of OA, through enhancements in patient stratification, predicative modelling, patient/caregiver interface decision tools and clinical trial design. Outcomes include a federated and regulatory compliant database network of disparate OA data for powerful, innovative big data methodology. In close collaboration with key stakeholders, we will also provide novel multimodal and relevant endpoints to test emerging treatments, models to enable stratified medicine and support shared prognostic and treatment decision-making and Health Technology Assessment. The impact of PROBE encompasses the foundation for advanced clinical trial design, predictive models for OA progression, novel endpoints, stratified patient subgroups and the ability to target treatments to patients’ needs and preferences, and tools that enable specific functional measurements and reflect real-life treatment benefits. The PROBE consortium holds the potential to reshape the landscape of OA clinical trials/treatment and ultimately improve the lives of all people affected by OA.

EC contribution:

EUR 78k

Start:

2025-12-01

End:

2030-11-30

Status:

SIGNED

Scheme:

HORIZON-JU-RIA

Call:

HORIZON-JU-IHI-2024-08-two-stage

View on CORDIS (DOI 10.3030/101219324)

Recent years have seen something of a renaissance in African literature, with African novelists becoming global best-sellers and achieving the world’s highest literary accolades. But published novels are restrictively expensive in Africa itself and the novel form is ill-suited to African everyday life, where people are more likely to spend their leisure time engaging with informal, ephemeral and not-for-profit literary and oratory cultural forms, such as spoken-word poetry, street theatre, and a variety of online genres. These informal African literatures are rarely catalogued and therefore exist outside of any structured metadata system. The consequence is that formally published English and French African novels are hyper-visible globally, while the rich literary and oratory cultures of the continent itself are caught in a perpetual state of structural ephemerality. The ALMEDA project addresses this problem in three ways. First, by providing the first history of literary metadata on the African continent, the project will provide a diachronic understanding of how colonial cataloguing systems came to construct the idea of the ‘literary work’ as book-based and thus dismissive of Africa’s oral cultures. Secondly, ALMEDA aims to develop and publish a metadata scheme specifically designed for these informal literary materials. This scheme will be multilingual, which will enable a unique descriptive model that allows African-language genres to inhabit their own categories, rather than having to be forced into European literary ontologies. Thirdly, the project will develop a linked open metadata repository, populated via an interface that allows non-specialist entry of metadata on literary materials. By creating and linking metadata on this body of work, this repository will constitute a major intervention in African literature by making these literatures searchable and their records enduring, thereby opening up entirely new possibilities for scholarship.

EC contribution:

EUR 54k

Start:

2023-09-01

End:

2028-08-31

Status:

SIGNED

Scheme:

HORIZON-ERC

Call:

ERC-2022-ADG

View on CORDIS (DOI 10.3030/101097763)

ELIXIR unites Europe’s leading life science organisations in managing and safeguarding the increasing volume of data being generated by publicly funded research. It coordinates, integrates and sustains bioinformatics resources across its 23 Nodes. ELIXIR enables users in academia and industry to access services (databases, software, training, standards, compute) provided through national Nodes. ELIXIR is the ESFRI Landmark for life science data and plays a unique role in the landscape, with millions of users globally, supporting the digital-needs of other ESFRIs and Horizon Europe research projects. Increasingly, life-science data is held at national and institutional centres. Thus, large-scale data analytics requires that researchers can find and analyse data distributed across Europe. The purpose of ELIXIR-STEERS is to build capacity for large-scale, cross-border data analysis and for this capacity to be embedded across member states. ELIXIR-STEERS directly benefit Europe’s life scientists by allowing software and workflows to meet requirements of those using them in national centres. A ‘robust, reproducible and green’ approach to software and workflow provision will ensure that scientists have access to high quality, energy-efficient analysis tools. The project will also develop the crediting and recognition systems for software, supporting improvements to research assessment frameworks. Further, ELIXIR-STEERS supports ELIXIR’s long-term operations by addressing the recommendations of the European Commission and ESFRI on the long-term sustainability of research infrastructures. It will strengthen the operational excellence of ELIXIR’s Nodes; support the training and development of professional and scientific staff in ELIXIR Nodes; expand the membership of ELIXIR to new countries, especially widening countries; enable international collaborations in particular with Latin America and Africa; and stimulate innovation and industry engagement.

EC contribution:

EUR 50k

Start:

2024-02-01

End:

2027-01-31

Status:

SIGNED

Scheme:

HORIZON-RIA

Call:

HORIZON-INFRA-2023-DEV-01

View on CORDIS (DOI 10.3030/101131096)

The 15-month coordination and support action “4.UNCAN.eu” will generate a strategic agenda to launch UNCAN.eu, a European initiative to UNderstand CANcer proposed by the Mission Board and the European Beating Cancer Plan. This research agenda will be built with the final aim of achieving a new breakthrough in cancer prevention and treatment that will contribute to saving European citizens’ lives and help ensuring an optimal quality of life to disease survivors. To reach a new level of understanding, UNCAN.eu will take advantage of recent advances in research data generation and data sciences. Reliable, high-quality cancer research data generated by experimental model analysis and collected from longitudinal follow-up of cancer patients will be shared and integrated at an unprecedented scale within a Federated Cancer Research data hub, in the context of the General Data Protection Regulation. This information will be used by relevant players in Europe and beyond to address urgent and essential scientific and medical challenges in cancer prevention, early diagnosis, treatment and survivorship, in males and females of various ages. These challenges, identified in close interaction with European patients and citizens, will be tackled through competitive, ambitious and innovative, cross-border and trans-disciplinary research programmes built in a problem-solving manner. The definition of challenges will integrate inequalities in cancer research across regions and member states in order to boost the research potential of less-developed regions in Europe. Players will be committed to open science principles, including FAIR (findable, accessible, interoperable, and reusable) guiding principles for scientific data collection, management and stewardship. The new understanding gained from the collection and analysis of this wealth of data will apply secondarily to other diseases.

EC contribution:

EUR 10k

Start:

2022-09-01

End:

2023-11-30

Status:

SIGNED

Scheme:

HORIZON-CSA

Call:

HORIZON-MISS-2021-UNCAN-01

View on CORDIS (DOI 10.3030/101069496)

ECHOES aims to create the European Collaborative Cloud for Cultural Heritage (ECCCH) as a shared platform for heritage professionals and researchers to access data, innovative scientific and training resources and advanced digital tools co-developed by the heritage community according to their specific needs. ECHOES will bring together fragmented communities of the Cultural Heritage (CH) field, which consists of various actors from different sectors and disciplines, into a new community around the Digital Commons. Going beyond the strict focus on assets and the mere digitisation of Heritage, ECHOES intends to generate a visionary paradigm shift in the CH field. Adopting a holistic approach, ECHOES will also enable digitising the existing knowledge of Heritage objects, whether tangible or intangible. It will create a digital environment enabling collaborative analysis of CH assets, facts, and phenomena. In this environment, actors – humans or Artificial Intelligence – can develop their interpretations, thereby enriching the knowledge of CH and their surroundings. The digital environment proposed by ECHOES will empower users to interact with, manipulate and enrich Digital Twins, leading to new, jointly developed scientific knowledge. The ECCCH built by ECHOES is anchored in the principles of Open Access and Open Science. It thus promotes inclusion and democratises access to knowledge and digital assets, which are understood as public goods by and for all. This digital environment will allow the creation of a new generation of heritage objects, the Digital Commons, which are semantically rich and collectively produced – we see this as “the heritage of tomorrow”. At the end of the project, ECHOES will deliver a single platform to integrate results of EU and national projects on CH. The ECCCH will be sustainable thanks to its inclusive legal entity, which will be created before the end of ECHOES.

EC contribution:

EUR 0

Start:

2024-06-01

End:

2029-05-31

Status:

SIGNED

Scheme:

HORIZON-IA

Call:

HORIZON-CL2-2023-HERITAGE-ECCCH-01

View on CORDIS (DOI 10.3030/101157364)

Immunotherapies promise to be the major break-through in the treatment of metastatic cancer, but effectiveness is limited to few cancer types. Metastatic neuroblastoma, breast and prostate cancer, affecting approximately 300,000 EU-27 inhabitants of all age groups in 2020, respond not or very poorly to current immunotherapies. To establish more effective immunotherapies, we need to better understand the specific tumour cell-immune host interactions at the metastatic site. The Mac4Me Doctoral Network adopts an innovative, multidisciplinary and cross-sectional approach, with a unique and dedicated research training programme to equip young researchers with scientific knowledge and transferable skills that are essential for today’s great demand in both academic and non-academic sectors. Mac4Me aims to understand the tumour cell-immune host interactions at the metastatic site. with an in-depth molecular and mechanistic understanding of the immune and matrix changes induced by tumour cells. We will use innovative animal-free organ-on-chip systems, that recapitulate early metastasis formation of brain, bone and liver. The retrieved knowledge from the preclinical models will be integrated in data from established clinical metastases and AI machine learning algorithms will be applied to identify new immune targets. Mac4Me will align with patients and the general public from the very beginning thereby bringing societal expectations and patient needs into the centre of the project to pave the way for new standards for shared decision making and acceptable health care solutions. Mac4Me will prepare a next generation of young scientists to start their own career as independent researchers being equipped with scientific knowledge and personal skills and integrating participatory science as a starting point to address the societal demand for more effective treatment solutions for incurable metastatic disease, such as neuroblastoma, breast and prostate cancer.

EC contribution:

EUR 0

Start:

2024-11-01

End:

2028-10-31

Status:

SIGNED

Scheme:

HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-DN

Call:

HORIZON-MSCA-2023-DN-01

View on CORDIS (DOI 10.3030/101168661)

Microbiota medicine is the new frontier in human health. The human gastrointestinal tract is home to trillions of microbes. Under normal conditions, these microbial communities drive physiological and homeostatic functions in the host; when altered, they can lead to severe disorders. With an increasingly recognized role in health and disease, the gut microbiota offers promising therapeutic and diagnostic potential to tackle various pathologies (incl. metabolic, neurological, and cardiovascular disorders). Its full clinical potential remains largely unrealized though, mostly due to the lack of critical mass capable of integrating the multiple scientific and translational dimensions of microbiota medicine. Grounded on a team of 180leading researchers and entrepreneurs from across 12 countries and dispersed disciplines (biological big data analytics, systems and synthetic biology, experimental and translational medicine), MiCCrobioTAckle will train 12 Doctoral Candidates (DCs) with the much-needed cross-disciplinary and -sectoral expertise to advance microbiota medicine. As course-setting disease, the DCs will focus on cancer cachexia (CC). CC is an excellent model to study the host-microbiota axis in the context of metabolic diseases and represents the paradigm of a devastating condition in urgent need of new and more efficient means of clinical management. Along MiCCrobioTAckle, the 12 high-calibre DCs will foster new discoveries with impact on CC, while driving scientific and technological progress in microbiota medicine in its broadest scope. By training the next generation of researchers with out-of-the-box thinking and an entrepreneurial mindset in microbiota medicine, MiCCrobioTAckle will safeguard the EU leadership in this vanguard and imperative biotech/pharma segment, while paving the way for the development of novel gut microbiota insights and tools to tackle multiple diseases with foreseeable impact on the well-being of billions of citizens worldwide.

EC contribution:

EUR 0

Start:

2024-11-01

End:

2028-10-31

Status:

SIGNED

Scheme:

HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-DN

Call:

HORIZON-MSCA-2023-DN-01

View on CORDIS (DOI 10.3030/101169068)

RUMEN-INNOVATE will establish a pioneering Marie Skłodowska-Curie Doctoral Network that advances sustainable ruminant agriculture through microbiome-based innovations. Building on extensive existing datasets, this network will train the next generation of scientists to revolutionise direct-fed microbial applications and sustainable ruminant production. The programme operates through three integrated pillars: Discovery & Prediction using machine learning and multi-omics to identify key microbiome-host interactions; Validation & Mechanistic Understanding through controlled studies and synthetic microbial community design; and Translation & Implementation developing real-world diagnostic tools, delivery systems, and on-farm technologies. RUMEN-INNOVATE will train doctoral candidates across European institutions with industry partnerships spanning nutrition companies, dairy, and meat sectors. Researchers will gain expertise in computational biology, experimental validation, and commercial application—creating versatile scientists capable of bridging laboratory discovery with agricultural implementation. The network addresses critical global challenges: feeding a growing population sustainably, reducing greenhouse gas emissions from livestock, and developing alternatives to antibiotics in animal agriculture. By advancing microbiome-based solutions, RUMEN-INNOVATE will deliver innovations that enhance animal health, improve production efficiency, and support environmental sustainability. Through international, interdisciplinary, and intersectoral collaboration, the network will produce breakthrough technologies, highly skilled researchers, and direct pathways for microbiomics innovations to reach farmers and consumers, positioning Europe as the global leader in ruminant microbiome science.

EC contribution:

EUR 0

Start:

2027-03-01

End:

2031-02-28

Status:

SIGNED

Scheme:

HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-DN

Call:

HORIZON-MSCA-2025-DN-01

View on CORDIS (DOI 10.3030/101311612)