55 grantees of the European Research Council (ERC) have been awarded the Proof of Concept Grants to explore the commercial or societal potential of their research findings. Worth €150,000 each, this top-up funding is part of the EU’s research and innovation programme Horizon Europe. The selected projects cover a variety of topics, for example a more efficient method to produce the cells used in immunotherapies to fight cancer, new technology to reduce our energy consumption, or a quicker way for companies to change ingredients of everyday consumer products to make them more environmentally-friendly.
The new projects will be carried out in 16 countries across Europe. Since 2011, the ERC has funded some 1,530 Proof of Concept grants. These additional funds help ERC grantees verify the practical viability of scientific concepts, explore business opportunities or prepare patent applications. According to a recent survey, more than half of the researchers awarded these grants have either created companies or transferred the results of their research to pre-existing companies. The overall budget for this type of funding in 2022 is €50 million.
Source: European Commission
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