Commission nearly doubles research, innovation fund in next budget
Horizon Europe, which finances projects on green and digital transitions as well as research leading to scientific breakthroughs, will now be part of the newly created European Competitiveness Fund (ECF), with a total budget of €410 billion, that aims to improve the bloc's competitiveness in technologies and strategic sectors critical to the EU.
Until now, the variety of EU programmes supporting innovation and deployment of research has been seen as 'complex and difficult to navigate' for the targeted beneficiaries, the Commission's document said.
The new ECF is pooling resources from eleven programmes. Of the €410 billion fund, some €54.8 billion is earmarked for the 'digital transition'.
'This investment impulse should benefit the entire Single Market – from AI to space, from clean tech to biotech. The Fund will be structured into four vertically integrated sectoral windows: clean transition and decarbonisation; resilience, defence industry and space; digital leadership; health and bio-economy,' the Commission's document said.
On Wednesday the Commission presented its much-anticipated proposal for the new long-term EU budget, worth €2 trillion between 2028 and 2034, a sizable increase compared to the €1.21 trillion in the previous period.
In a reaction to the funding, tech lobby group Digital Europe said an 'additional investment of between €157 billion and €227 billion per year on average' is needed to close Europe's investment gap with other regions of the world.
'Digital technologies are crucial to cut emissions, protect critical infrastructure and super-charge productivity – they need to drive action across all the EU's strategic priorities,' its statement said.
In February, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the EU executive would invest some €20 billion in AI gigafactories, needed to allow for 'collaborative development' for the most complex AI models.
In comparison, French President Emmanuel Macron previously committed to invest €109 billion in AI projects in France in the coming years. On Monday, the US government committed to €92 billion for cutting-edge AI and energy initiatives.
The budget will now need to be discussed by the member states and needs the consent of the European Parliament.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
LeMonde
an hour ago
- LeMonde
Gaza student leaves France over anti-Semitic posts row
A student from Gaza who had been studying in France on a scholarship left for Qatar Sunday, August 3, ordered out over anti-Semitic comments found on her social media accounts, the French foreign ministry said. Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot "stressed the unacceptable nature of the comments made by Ms. Nour Attaalah, a Gazan student, before she entered French territory," said the ministry statement. "Given their seriousness, Ms. Attaalah could not remain on French territory. She left France today to go to Qatar to continue her studies there," it added. The young woman, who received a student visa and a government scholarship as part of a program for Gazan students, had been due to join Sciences Po Lille in the fall. She arrived in France on July 11, according to a French diplomatic source. But social media posts from the past two years calling for the killing of Jews, since deleted, were discovered. That led to a judicial investigation for condoning terrorism, and an inquiry to determine why the posts had not been detected in advance. AFP was unable to confirm the screen shots attributed to her by internet users and media outlets, but Sciences Po Lille said Wednesday that her social media comments had been confirmed, without elaborating. Barrot said Friday that France was freezing all its student evacuation programs from Gaza pending the outcome of the investigation into how the posts had been missed. The foreign ministry would not say how many students have been affected, citing privacy reasons. France has allowed in several hundred students from Gaza since the start of the war between Israel and the Hamas movement.
LeMonde
8 hours ago
- LeMonde
Israeli PM Netanyahu in 'profound shock' over hostage videos released by Hamas
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed "profound shock" over videos showing two emaciated hostages in Gaza, with the EU also denouncing the clips on Sunday, August 3, and demanding the release of all remaining captives after nearly 22 months of war. Over the past few days, Hamas and its ally Islamic Jihad have released three videos showing two hostages seized during the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel that triggered the ongoing war in Gaza. The images of Rom Braslavski and Evyatar David have sparked strong reactions among Israelis, fueling renewed calls to reach a truce and hostage release deal without delay. A statement from Netanyahu's office late Saturday said he had spoken with the families of the two hostages and "expressed profound shock over the materials distributed by the terror organizations." Netanyahu "told the families that the efforts to return all our hostages are ongoing," the statement added. Earlier in the day, tens of thousands of people had rallied in the coastal hub of Tel Aviv to urge Netanyahu's government to secure the release of the remaining captives. In the clips shared by the Palestinian Islamist groups, 21-year-old Braslavski, a German-Israeli dual national, and 24-year-old David both appear weak and malnourished. There was particular outrage in Israel over images of David who appeared to be digging what he said in the staged video was his own grave. The videos make references to the dire humanitarian conditions in Gaza, where UN-mandated experts have warned a "famine is unfolding." 'Hamas must disarm' EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said the images "are appalling and expose the barbarity of Hamas," calling for the release of "all hostages... immediately and unconditionally." Kallas said in the same post on X that "Hamas must disarm and end its rule in Gaza" – demands endorsed earlier this week by Arab countries, including key mediators Qatar and Egypt. She added that "large-scale humanitarian aid must be allowed to reach those in need." Israel has heavily restricted the entry of aid into Gaza. UN agencies, aid groups and analysts say that much of the trickle of food aid that Israel allows in is looted by gangs or diverted in chaotic circumstances rather than reaching those most in need. On Sunday, Gaza's civil defence agency said Israeli fire killed nine Palestinians who were waiting to collect food rations from a site operated by the US- and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. Israeli attacks elsewhere killed another 10 people on Sunday, said civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal. 'Emaciated and desperate' Israeli newspapers dedicated their front pages on Sunday to the plight of the hostages, with Maariv decrying "hell in Gaza" and Yedioth Ahronoth showing a "malnourished, emaciated and desperate" David. Left-leaning Haaretz declared that "Netanyahu is in no rush" to rescue the captives, echoing claims by critics that the longtime leader has prolonged the war for his own political survival. In his conversations with Braslavski and David's families on Saturday, Netanyahu accused Hamas of "deliberately starving our hostages," and Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said he was "initiating a special UN Security Council meeting on the issue of the Israeli hostages." Braslavski and David are among the 49 hostages taken during Hamas's 2023 attack who are still being held in Gaza, including 27 the Israeli military says are dead. Most of the 251 hostages seized in the attack have been released during two short-lived truces in the war, some in exchange for Palestinians in Israeli custody.
Euronews
9 hours ago
- Euronews
Poland extends border controls with Germany and Lithuania
Poland is extending its temporary border controls with Germany and Lithuania until October 4. This was announced by Interior Minister Marcin Kierwiński on Sunday. The reason given was continued concerns regarding irregular migration. Increased security measures have made the route via Belarus and Russia largely impassable, which is why the migration movement is increasingly shifting to other EU states - especially Lithuania and Latvia. 'The 98% tightness of our barrier means that Belarusian and Russian services and illegal migration are moving to other sections,' says Kierwiński. 'Today, the main task not only for us but also for our partners in the European Union is to close the route to Lithuania and Latvia, if I may use that word,' he added. In response to illegal migration, Germany introduced controls at its borders with Poland and the Czech Republic. Last year, these controls were extended to all borders. 'In September, we will decide on the next steps in this regard based on data from the border guards, the military and the police,' Kierwiński said. In Lithuania, controls are being carried out at 13 locations, including three border crossings. The remaining 10 border crossing sites will be 'ad hoc control sites', which can be used by local residents. In Germany, border controls are carried out at 52 locations. The decision to maintain controls at internal Schengen borders continues to undermine the EU principle of free movement of people. However, Schengen countries are allowed to introduce border controls in what they consider to be 'emergency' situations, which occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic, or as a 'last resort' for security threats.
