Empowering AI/generative AI along the Cognitive Computing continuum (RIA) (AI/Data/Robotics Partnership)

The main goal of this opportunity is to advance generic and AI-enabled cloud-edge technologies across the computing continuum, supporting the development of AI and generative AI applications. Projects should focus on creating new tools and mechanisms for efficient AI workflow development, deployment, and operation across diverse infrastructures. Additional aims include improving energy efficiency, reducing emissions, and optimizing technical performance such as memory use and data transfer speed. Priority areas include decentralized and federated computing, cloud and edge processing, and industrial collaboration across the Cloud-Edge-IoT spectrum. Eligible participants come from EU Member States, Iceland, Norway, and selected associated countries.

• Projects must involve legal entities established in eligible countries (EU Member States, Iceland, Norway, Canada, Israel, Republic of Korea, New Zealand, Switzerland, United Kingdom).
• Proposals must follow specific page limits and layout requirements as outlined in the application guidelines.
• Projects should avoid technological dependency on non-EU sources and address strategic vulnerabilities.
• Applications must adhere to evaluation and award criteria, including submission processes and scoring thresholds.

Examples:

• A multinational team develops a federated AI platform for smart city data analysis, ensuring all partners are from eligible countries.
• An industrial consortium creates energy-efficient edge computing tools for manufacturing, explicitly avoiding reliance on non-EU technologies.
• A research project focuses on interoperable AI systems for healthcare, with participants from the EU and associated countries only.

• Personnel costs
• Subcontracting
• Travel and subsistence
• Equipment (depreciation or rental)
• Consumables and materials
• Dissemination and communication
• Access to research infrastructure
• IPR and certification
• Audit costs
• Indirect costs (25% flat rate)
• Internally invoiced services

• Budget for this Call: 30.000.000€
• Number of Grants attributed: 4
• Budget per project: 8.000.000€
• Minimum value per project: 6.000.000€

• Applicants must be legal entities established in EU Member States, Iceland, Norway, Canada, Israel, Republic of Korea, New Zealand, Switzerland, or the United Kingdom.
• Entities controlled by non-eligible countries may participate only if they provide guarantees, positively assessed by their country of establishment, ensuring no negative impact on EU strategic assets or interests.
• High-risk suppliers of mobile network communication equipment, or entities owned or controlled by such suppliers, are not permitted to participate or submit guarantees.