News

Astronomers have discovered the first example of a second-generation planet orbiting a white dwarf, a world that appears to have formed from the remains of the dead star it now orbits.

ERC grantee Peter Hegemann was awarded the 2026 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, together with Karl Deisseroth and Georg Nagel, “for their discoveries concerning light-gated ion channels and optogenetics”. They have paved the way for a new era…

Five researchers supported by the European Research Council (ERC) are among the seven recipients of the 2026 Wolf Prizes. The Prize is awarded annually by the Wolf Foundation in recognition of achievements in the fields of science and the arts.

A new survey of ERC-funded biotech researchers identifies key challenges on the path from discovery to application. The accompanying analysis shows the breadth and innovation potential of Europe’s frontier research in biotechnology.

Artificial intelligence (AI) has developed into a major and rapidly expanding area of computer science, with AI-related ERC project proposals representing a significant share of submissions to the current Computer Science evaluation panel (PE6).

Eight ERC grantees have won the 2026 Public Engagement with Research Awards for their outstanding work in engaging audiences beyond academia with their research. This year’s winners have found creative ways to involve people in research and bring…

The ERC Plus Grant 2026 competition, the first of its kind, closed for applications on 2 September. The ERC received 198 project proposals.

ERC grantee Elena Esposito has been awarded the 2026 Balzan Prize for the social science of digital technology. The jury recognised “her groundbreaking theoretical contribution to the social science of digital technology, and in particular for her…