ERC awards Proof of Concept Grants to 182 researchers
Ekaterina Zaharieva, European Commissioner for Startups, Research and Innovation, said:
‘Many of today's innovations begin with a researcher asking a fundamental question. These 182 projects show that curiosity-driven science and real-world impact go hand in hand. With Proof of Concept funding, ERC researchers can test how their discoveries could become new treatments, technologies, services or solutions that benefit people across Europe.’
President of the European Research Council, Prof. Maria Leptin, said:
‘It turns out to have been a very good move of the ERC Scientific Council to introduce the top up funding ‘Proof of Concept’. By now, nearly 2500 such grants have helped our grantees explore the innovation potential of discoveries from their ERC-funded research. I am pleased to see a new round concluded - congratulations to all!’
Projects selected for funding
The new awarded projects will delve into a diverse range of topics, with 54% in physical sciences and engineering, 37% in life sciences and 8% in social sciences and humanities. For example, researchers will develop 3D-printed bioinspired electronics made from soft materials, create a tool to help doctors protect speech areas of the brain during epilepsy surgery, and advance a ready-made vaccine for breast cancer that could work for many patients, avoiding the need for personalised treatments. These and many other projects will explore how frontier research can be translated into practical applications.
Facts and figures
The competition attracted 554 proposals, representing a 15% increase compared to last year’s first round. One in three proposals was selected for funding in this round. The new grantees will be based at universities and research centres in 21 EU Member States and associated countries, notably Germany (31 grants), the Netherlands (27 grants), Italy and France (both 18 grants) and Spain (13 grants).
Next Proof of Concept Grant call
The ERC 2026 work programme includes two rounds of the call for Proof of Concept Grants with a total budget of €60 million.
Interested in applying for an ERC Proof of Concept? The next funding round is now open for applications, with the deadline of 17 September 2026.
The scheme is open only to researchers who currently hold, or have previously been awarded, ERC frontier research grants. These top-up grants help to explore the commercial or societal potential of the findings researchers made through their ERC projects. The objective is to enable ERC-funded ideas to progress on the path from ground-breaking research towards innovation.
About the ERC
The ERC, set up by the European Union in 2007, is the premier European funding organisation for excellent frontier research. It funds creative researchers of any nationality and age, to run projects based across Europe. The ERC offers four core grant schemes: Starting Grants, Consolidator Grants, Advanced Grants and Synergy Grants. With its additional Proof of Concept Grant scheme, the ERC helps grantees to bridge the gap between their pioneering research and early phases of its commercialization. A new ERC Plus Grants scheme is open for applications since June 2026. The ERC is led by an independent governing body, the Scientific Council. Maria Leptin has been the President of the ERC since November 2021. The overall ERC budget from 2021 to 2027 is more than €16 billion, as part of the Horizon Europe programme, which is under the responsibility of Ekaterina Zaharieva, European Commissioner for Startups, Research and Innovation.
