Horizon Europe Cluster 4: Digital, Industry and Space
‘Digital, Industry and Space’ is the fourth cluster under the Global Challenges and European Industrial Competitiveness Pillar of the Horizon Europe Work Programme. Read more about Horizon Europe’s pillars, the Digital, Industry and Space cluster and its aims.
What are Horizon Europe’s Global Challenges?
The Horizon Europe R&I Programme is built around three pillars. Pillar 2, Global Challenges and European Industrial Competitiveness focuses on the major challenges that not only the EU, but the whole world, is facing. This pillar is divided into six thematic clusters, all aimed at tackling societal challenges in different areas, while strengthening key industrial technologies and the EU’s competitiveness on a global stage. The six clusters are:
- Health
- Culture, Creativity and Inclusive Society
- Civil Security for Society
- Digital, Industry and Space
- Climate, Energy and Mobility
- Food, Bio-economy, Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment
The goal of Horizon Europe Cluster 4: Digital, Industry and Space
The goal of Horizon Europe Cluster 4: Digital, Industry and Space is to secure Europe’s leadership in digital and industrial technologies, while supporting a green and resilient economy.
Between 2025 and 2027, it focuses on driving the green and digital transition, strengthening Europe’s technological sovereignty and competitiveness, and supporting key EU policies like the Net-Zero Industry Act and the Critical Raw Materials Act. Through targeted research and innovation investments, it aims to advance areas such as artificial intelligence, high-performance computing, robotics, secure communications, quantum technologies, advanced materials and circular economy solutions, ensuring Europe’s industries remain sustainable, innovative and globally competitive.
Cluster 4 – Key Strategic Orientations
To better understand the aims of the Pillar 2 clusters, the Horizon Europe Strategic Plan for 2025-2027 has set out three different Key Strategic Orientations (KSOs), namely:
- The Green Transition: aiming to support Europe in becoming the world’s first climate-neutral continent by 2050.
- The Digital Transition: focusing on reinforcing Europe’s competitiveness and strategic autonomy through research in core digital technologies.
- A More Resilient, Competitive, Inclusive, and Democratic Europe: aiming to bolster Europe’s social rights and democratic values.
Expected impacts of the Digital, Industry and Space Cluster
To support the KSOs defined by the strategic plan, Horizon Europe Cluster 4 will contribute to the following six expected impacts (or ‘destinations’):
Destination 1: Global leadership in climate-neutral, circular and digitised industrial and digital value chains
This destination aims to make European industry globally competitive and climate-neutral by 2050 through the twin green and digital transition. It supports net-zero, circular value chains using digital and industrial technologies like AI, robotics, digital twins, quantum technologies, big data and computing technologies to create smart, resource-efficient manufacturing and innovative upcycling of materials while boosting productivity.
Destination 2: Achieving technological leadership for Europe’s open strategic autonomy in raw materials, chemicals and innovative materials
Industrial leadership and increased autonomy in key strategic value chains with security of supply in raw materials, achieved through breakthrough technologies in areas of industrial alliances, dynamic industrial innovation ecosystems and advanced solutions for substitution, resource and energy efficiency, effective reuse and recycling and clean primary production of raw materials, including critical raw materials, and leadership in the circular economy.
Destination 3: An agile and secure single market and infrastructure for data-services and trustworthy artificial intelligence services
The next stage of Europe’s data economy will enable secure, fair and trusted data sharing between businesses, governments and citizens. It promotes privacy-preserving and compliance technologies, blockchain, quantum communication and interoperable data spaces. Cloud-to-edge computing, AI, digital twins and virtual worlds drive bias-free decisions, hyperflexible manufacturing, smart energy and resilient supply chains, while 5G/6G networks and quantum networks provide tamper-proof data flows.
Destination 4: Open strategic autonomy in digital and emerging enabling technologies
This destination aims for Europe to stay independent and strong in key digital technologies while keeping its economy open. The focus is on making and designing advanced chips and quantum chips, using greener materials and energy-efficient production. It also backs new tech like photonics, cloud-edge networks, virtual and extended reality, robotics and next-generation AI such as generative models. Open-source projects and RISC-V chips will help Europe control its own computing hardware, while quantum and new two-dimensional materials will bring safer communications and new devices. By supporting early research and cross-disciplinary ideas, Europe aims to stay a global leader in digital innovation.
Destination 5: Open Strategic Autonomy in Developing, Deploying and Using Global SpaceBased Infrastructure, Services in Space and on Ground, Applications and Data
Keeping full control over how Europe builds, uses and protects its space infrastructure while staying open to international cooperation. The plan covers every stage of space activity: launching satellites and cargo (“Accessing Space”), using space services on Earth (like secure communications, navigation and Earth observation), and monitoring the increasingly crowded orbit to avoid collisions and manage space traffic.
Through research, innovation and international partnerships, Europe wants to secure open strategic autonomy in developing, deploying and using global space-based infrastructures, services applications and data, including by reinforcing European independent capacity to access space, securing the autonomy of supply for critical technologies and equipment, and fostering the EU’s space sector competitiveness.
Destination 6: Digital and industrial technologies driving human-centric innovation
Destination 6 aims for a human-centred digital future where technologies make work safer, more inclusive and free from bias. A trustworthy, privacy-protecting internet will give users control of their data and enable new social and business models. Virtual worlds will boost collaboration, training and productivity. Europe aims for global leadership in next-generation AI, especially generative AI, while supporting start-ups and open digital commons.
Cluster 4 Calls for Proposals
Horizon Europe supports the aims of Cluster 4 through funding of research and innovation that address the different destinations. Proposals and partnerships are invited to apply for a variety of topics and ‘calls for proposals’. All of these calls come with different total budgets and contributions per project. The total budget of Horizon Europe Cluster 4 in 2025 is around €1.5 billion.
Who can apply?
Horizon Europe Cluster calls are open to a wide range of organisations, provided they meet the programme’s eligibility rules. Universities, research institutes, companies of all sizes (including start-ups and SMEs), public bodies, and non-profit organisations can all participate.
Most calls require a consortium of at least three independent entities from three different EU Member States or countries associated to Horizon Europe. Some specific calls may allow a single applicant or smaller partnerships. Organisations from non-EU countries can often join as additional partners. Certain topics can set extra conditions or limit participation to protect EU strategic interests.
How to apply for funding
Applications for funding go through Horizon Europe’s Funding and Tenders Portal.
Further reading on Horizon Europe
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