RESTART 2016-2020 – NURTURING AN RTDI CULTURE – Cyprus Award – Commercial Exploitation of Research Results 2025

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Code: 38037 | Identifier Code: CULTURE / AWARD-EXPLOITATION / 0725 | Programme name: 27535 | Sub-program: i. “RESTART 2016-2020” Programmes | Start submission calls: 04/07/2025 | End submission calls: 19/09/2025

The Research and Innovation Foundation (RIF), in the frame of its activities to develop a culture of knowledge transfer and commercial exploitation of research results, announces for the first time the “Cyprus Award for the Commercial Exploitation of Research Results”.

Knowledge Transfer activity at national level makes a significant contribution to enhancing competitiveness, creating new jobs and contributing to the diversification, sustainability and vitality of national economies.

This Award will provide a reward for a scientist or a group of scientists who have demonstrated successful commercial exploitation of research results and seeks to motivate and encourage further development of knowledge transfer activities in the Cypriot ecosystem.

RESTART 2016-2020 «NURTURING AN RTDI CULTURE» «Cyprus Research Award – Young Researcher 2025» AWARD-YR

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Code: 38031 | Identifier Code: CULTURE / AWARD-YR / 0725 | Programme name: 2941 | Sub-program: i. “RESTART 2016-2020” Programmes | Start submission calls: 04/07/2025 | End submission calls: 19/09/2025

The Research and Innovation Foundation (RIF), in the frame of its activities for recognizing and rewarding research excellence, established an annual Research Award for Cyprus in 2007. In 2013, the Award was modified in order to separately reward young and more experienced  researchers, in a parallel attempt to support early-career researchers and promote distinguished scientists active in Cyprus.

RESTART 2016-2020 «NURTURING AN RTDI CULTURE» «Cyprus Research Award – Distinguished Researcher 2025»

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Code: 38028 | Identifier Code: CULTURE/AWARD-DR/0725 | Programme name: 2941 | Sub-program: i. “RESTART 2016-2020” Programmes | Start submission calls: 04/07/2025 | End submission calls: 19/09/2025

The Research and Innovation Foundation (RIF) launches the Call for Nominations for the “Cyprus Research Award – Distinguished Researcher” of the Programme “Nurturing an RTDI Culture” within the framework of the “RESTART 2016-2020” Programmes for Research, Technological Development and Innovation (RTDI) and invites all interested parties to submit nominations for the award.

Enhancing Cybersecurity for Small and Medium Enterprises in the Republic of Cyprus 2025 – Tourism

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Code: 38025 | Identifier Code: NCC-CY-ENTERPRISES/TOURISM/0925 | Programme name: 27535 | Start submission calls: 12/09/2025 | End submission calls: 18/11/2025

The Programme aims to ensure that SMEs reach a basic level of cybersecurity in order to protect their infrastructures, systems and information. This will be achieved through the purchase of solutions and services to maintain and strengthen the level of security and resilience of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) operating in the Tourism industry, as well as through the evaluation and identification of challenges and weaknesses.

Additionally, the Programme seeks to achieve their compliance of SMES with European and internationally accepted measures and standards through a certification scheme, the Cyber-Hygiene Framework for Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) of the NCC-CY.

Enhancing Cybersecurity for Small and Medium Enterprises in the Republic of Cyprus 2025

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Code: 38023 | Identifier Code: NCC-CY-ENTERPRISES/0925 | Programme name: 27535 | Start submission calls: 12/09/2025 | End submission calls: 18/11/2025

The Programme aims to ensure that SMEs reach a basic level of cybersecurity in order to protect their infrastructures, systems and information. This will be achieved through the purchase of solutions and services to maintain and strengthen the level of security and resilience of small and medium enterprises (SMEs), as well as through the evaluation and identification of challenges and weaknesses.

Additionally, the Programme seeks to achieve their compliance of SMES with European and internationally accepted measures and standards through a certification scheme, the Cyber-Hygiene Framework for Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) of the NCC-CY.

Incentive Scheme for the recruitment of unemployed young people aged 15 to 29, not in Education, Employment or Training, with flexible employment arrangements

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Code: 38020 | Programme name: 2799 | Start submission calls: 05/09/2025 | End submission calls: 05/09/2026

The scheme involves subsidising part of the wage costs of staff as an incentive for employers to hire young people aged 15 to 29 who are not in employment, education, or training and are registered as unemployed with the Public Employment Service (PES) up to one day before or on the date of their recruitment, with flexible employment arrangements.

It is included in the Active Employment Policies measures and contributes to the active integration of vulnerable groups of the population into the labor market.

The aim of the Plan is to recruit 350 young people belonging to the target group.

Incentive Scheme for the recruitment of inactive women with flexible working arrangements

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Code: 38017 | Programme name: 2799 | Start submission calls: 05/09/2025 | End submission calls: 05/09/2026

The scheme involves subsidizing part of the wage costs of staff as an incentive for employers to hire inactive women with flexible working arrangements. It is included in the Active Employment Policies measures and contributes to the active integration of vulnerable groups into the labor market. The aim of the Plan is to recruit 470 inactive women.

ERC STARTING GRANTS

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Code: 38014 | Identifier Code: ERC-2026-STG | Programme name: 2939 | Sub-program: European Research Council (ERC) | Start submission calls: 09/07/2025 | End submission calls: 14/10/2025

The Starting Grant supports excellent Principal Investigators starting or having recently started their own independent research team or programme.

A Starting Grant Principal Investigator should have already shown evidence of the potential for research independence, for example, by having produced at least one important publication as its main author or a publication without the participation of their PhD supervisor.

Incentive Scheme for the Recruitment of Unemployed Women

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Code: 38010 | Programme name: 2799 | Start submission calls: 05/09/2025 | End submission calls: 05/09/2026

The scheme involves subsidising part of the wage costs of staff as an incentive for employers to hire unemployed women registered with the Public Employment Service (PES) up to one day before or on the date of their recruitment. It is included in the Active Employment Policies measures and contributes to the active integration of vulnerable groups into the labor market. The aim of the Plan is to recruit 820 unemployed women.

Coordinate deployment for the EuroQCI (CSA)

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Code: 38009 | Identifier Code: DIGITAL-IRIS2-2025-QCI-02 | Programme name: 15593 | Start submission calls: 15/07/2025 | End submission calls: 16/10/2025

To ensure a coherent EuroQCI initiative and support the Commission, ESA and the Member States by providing key support functions in coordination, industrialisation, dissemination and alignment, enabling national and cross-border EuroQCI networks to discuss progress, to identify and utilise synergies in their work, share best practices and information about EU components and their certifications, supporting QKD standardisation efforts, and coordinating overall progress towards a fully functional EuroQCI.

Maturing of a European industrial ecosystem for security-certified terrestrial QKD technologies and systems

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Code: 38006 | Identifier Code: DIGITAL-IRIS2-2025-QCI-01 | Programme name: 15593 | Start submission calls: 15/07/2025 | End submission calls: 16/10/2025

To stimulate the maturing and the transition to security certified (common criteria) of compact and efficient European components and systems for quantum key distribution and quantum secure networks, ready for integration into telecom networks, and compliant with security requirements (e.g. protection profile).

Contribute to the development of a European industrial quantum communication ecosystem, including a thriving SME sector.

Incentive Scheme for the recruitment of unemployed people over the age 50

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Code: 38000 | Programme name: 2799 | Start submission calls: 05/09/2025 | End submission calls: 05/09/2026

The Scheme aims to encourage employers to hire unemployed persons over the age of 50, on the date of recruitment, who are registered with the Public Employment Service (PES). The Scheme is part of the active employment policies promoted by the Government and contributes to the effort to combat poverty and social exclusion, particularly with regard to the active integration of vulnerable population groups into the labor market. From 5/9/2025 until the budget is exhausted or the Plan is announced as terminated.

Support standardisation for the EuroQCI (CSA)

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Code: 38001 | Identifier Code: DIGITAL-IRIS2-2025-QCI-03 | Programme name: 15593 | Start submission calls: 15/07/2025 | End submission calls: 16/10/2025

To implement appropriate necessary standardisation activities to efficiently support an operational EuroQCI infrastructure with dedicated QKD and quantum cryptography services.

While the available QKD products have now been made available by industry for a market of early adopters and innovators, there is the need to intensify standardization efforts at all levels, from QKD components, systems and applications to network capabilities and components for future quantum networks, to enable integration of quantum devices into wider complex systems, to build a solid industrial base and anticipate foreseeable work on components for future quantum networks and future certification.

Enhanced Learning Strategies for General Purpose AI: Advancing GenAI4EU (RIA) (AI/Data/Robotics Partnership)

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Code: 37995 | Identifier Code: HORIZON-CL4-2025-04-DIGITAL-EMERGING-07 | Programme name: 2939 | Sub-program: Digital, Industry & Space (Cluster 4)(2021-2027) | Start submission calls: 10/06/2025 | End submission calls: 02/10/2025

Large-scale AI models excel at tasks like language processing, image generation, and complex games, but they still struggle with real-world adaptability, robust reasoning (logic, math, multi-step planning), and recognizing their own limits—often producing errors outside their knowledge domains. To move beyond pattern recognition, the goal is to build more robust, adaptive General-Purpose AI by combining self-supervised learning with complementary strategies: hybrid learning (symbolic reasoning + knowledge representation), active learning, reinforcement learning, relational learning, continual learning, evolutionary learning, and physics-based learning. Together, these approaches aim to create GPAI systems with enhanced capabilities that can tackle complex, real-world challenges.

Soft Robotics for Advanced physical capabilities (IA) (AI/Data/Robotics Partnership)

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Code: 37992 | Identifier Code: HORIZON-CL4-2025-04-DIGITAL-EMERGING-05 | Programme name: 2939 | Sub-program: Digital, Industry & Space (Cluster 4)(2021-2027) | Start submission calls: 10/06/2025 | End submission calls: 02/10/2025

Soft robotics represents an important avenue to advance robotics, particularly for enhancing safety and physical interaction. Its potential lies in creating systems with intrinsic and functional safety, capable of securely interacting with humans across various scenarios. By using compliant designs, these systems overcome the limitations of rigid robotic systems, such as limited adaptability and reduced safety around humans. Novel design methods, the use of smart materials, deformable physical architectures, and bioinspired approaches are key to improving robotic performance. However, significant challenges remain in learning, modelling, simulation, control, actuation, sensing, and the integration of soft electronics.

To address this, proposals should focus on exploiting novel materials and design methods for non-rigid structures, along with advanced control techniques for soft robotic systems.

Assessment methodologies for General Purpose AI capabilities and risks (RIA) (AI/Data/Robotics Partnership)

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Code: 37990 | Identifier Code: HORIZON-CL4-2025-04-DIGITAL-EMERGING-04 | Programme name: 2939 | Sub-program: Digital, Industry & Space (Cluster 4)(2021-2027) | Start submission calls: 10/06/2025 | End submission calls: 02/10/2025

The rapid advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) has led to the development of increasingly sophisticated general-purpose AI (GPAI) models and systems. These models, such as large language models and multimodal AI systems, demonstrate remarkable capabilities across a wide range of tasks. However, assessing the capabilities of these models remains a significant challenge. Traditional evaluation methods often fail to capture the full spectrum of abilities exhibited by GPAI models and systems. Therefore, there is a pressing need for the development of new assessment frameworks, methodologies and tools that can comprehensively evaluate these models in terms of their trustworthy and ethical behaviour and operation, ensuring their reliability, fairness, and alignment with human values.

Advanced sensor technologies and multimodal sensor integration for multiple application domains (IA) (Photonics Partnership)

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Code: 37987 | Identifier Code: HORIZON-CL4-2025-04-DIGITAL-EMERGING-01 | Programme name: 2939 | Sub-program: Digital, Industry & Space (Cluster 4)(2021-2027) | Start submission calls: 10/06/2025 | End submission calls: 02/10/2025

The scope of this topic focuses on the advancement and application of photonic sensor technologies and their integration into multimodal systems. Proposals are expected to address the development of sensor technologies and their validation through trials in realistic use cases. This includes exploring multi-modal sensor capabilities, as well as employing sensor fusion and machine learning approaches for the analysis of sensor data.

Software Engineering for AI and generative AI (RIA) (AI/Data/Robotics Partnership)

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Code: 37985 | Identifier Code: HORIZON-CL4-2025-04-DATA-03 | Programme name: 2939 | Sub-program: Digital, Industry & Space (Cluster 4)(2021-2027) | Start submission calls: 10/06/2025 | End submission calls: 02/10/2025

The latest developments in AI are demanding computation infrastructures designed to maximize the number of FLOPS. Europe has a window of opportunity to leverage open source and ensure that the European industry is at the cutting edge of these new processing infrastructures. The current methods and tools to develop and efficiently deliver AI pipelines and complex generative AI applications present several shortcomings.

Current identified challenges include the continuous management of data pipelines, novel testing methods (e.g. differential testing or improved performance testing), optimized deployment strategies (in terms of using energy efficient resources or the best performant), management of dependencies with a diverse set of types of hardware, algorithm bias and discrimination against certain groups, determined by characteristics such as gender, ethnicity, age or disability, as well as the maintenance of the effectiveness of AI applications, notably generative AI ones. The explainability of AI models is another crucial challenge that must be also tackled at the software engineering level, possibly in synergy with explainability methods at the machine learning stage. Also, large language models and foundational models require the development and operation of complex system architectures that need to handle data processing at large scale, continuous training of models and inference. Furthermore, AI pipelines and generative AI application also strongly suffer from poor protection against learning dataset poisoning, as well as prompt poisoning; software engineering methods and tools providing support to protect against those attacks are thus direly required. This presents novel challenges for developers that will need to be addressed with the development of new methods, mechanisms and tools covering the above, including neuromorphic computing, but not limited to.

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

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Code: 37983 | Identifier Code: HORIZON-CL4-2025-04-DATA-02 | Programme name: 2939 | Sub-program: Digital, Industry & Space (Cluster 4)(2021-2027) | Start submission calls: 10/06/2025 | End submission calls: 02/10/2025

The Cloud to Edge Continuum needs to provide seamless and trustworthy integration of diverse computing and data environments spanning from core cloud to edge to IoT and support the enormous data, processing needs, and new resource types brought by next generation AI technologies.

Different types of AI processes pose different requirements that compute infrastructures need to meet to execute them. The state-of-the-art in generative AI and large language models is heavily reliant on high-performance processing and very large AI models. Cutting-edge hardware accelerators that power these processing systems are scarce on the market and only available in highly specialised, high-performance infrastructures in certain cloud and HPC environments at considerable costs. At the same time, the requirement to gather, process, and transmit massive amounts of data to the central data processing environment remains a barrier for many AI applications. All these factors urge the emergence of efficient tools and mechanisms to empower the distribution of AI training and inference processes throughout the computing continuum.

Innovative Advanced Materials (IAMs) for conformable, flexible or stretchable electronics (RIA) (Innovative Advanced Materials for Europe partnership)

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Code: 37980 | Identifier Code: HORIZON-CL4-2025-03-MATERIALS-47 | Programme name: 2939 | Sub-program: Digital, Industry & Space (Cluster 4)(2021-2027) | Start submission calls: 10/06/2025 | End submission calls: 02/10/2025

The concept of “ubiquitous electronics” can be a unique opportunity for the EU, opening up new avenues for e.g., wearable electronics, e-textile, e-skin, wellbeing solutions and Internet of wearable things (IoWT), which represent strategic markets for the EU. Innovative and advanced materials (IAMs) can enable new technologies and the much-needed paradigm of an electronic device that can adapt to any substrate. Despite the progress made in this field, current devices are made up of a limited proportion of flexible, conformable, and stretchable components, mainly sensors, while the rest of the circuit remains rigid, limiting this technology shift.

The overall objective is to discover Innovative Advanced Materials (IAMs), including 2DMs, with improved properties in terms of flexibility, conformability and stretchability that can enable novel flexible electronic applications, with a focus on environmentally friendly technologies with reduced carbon footprint processing.