The EUNICE European University Alliance concludes the first edition of the Seed Funding Programme, a pilot initiative designed to foster new transnational research collaborations among partner universities. The call, which closed on 10 October 2026, received 77 applications involving a total of 421 researchers, highlighting the significant potential for strengthening scientific cooperation across the Alliance.
A total of €90,000 will be allocated, with €10,000 awarded to each project. Together, the selected projects involve 49 researchers from EUNICE universities as well as 18 among associated partner and other research institutions.
The diversity of the proposals submitted further demonstrates the strong interest generated by the initiative, reflecting researchers’ willingness to develop new international synergies and build collaborations that can evolve into joint research projects. Based on the scores awarded according to the evaluation criteria set out in the call, nine projects have been selected for funding: MAGIC-NET, ConnectPPA, BIOPOST-BRIDGE, NAVSEC-IoT, CROSSINGS, REACT-AI, MOVE-AI, TASTED and PHOTONIQ.
The analysis of the applications reveals a strong concentration in three strategic areas: artificial intelligence and digital transformation, health and biomedical innovation, and the green transition and sustainability.
Together, these areas account for 63% of all applications received, confirming researchers’ strong interest in addressing major scientific and societal challenges through international cooperation. More specifically, artificial intelligence, digitalisation and data science represent the most prominent research area, with 18 proposals (23%). They are followed by health, biomedicine and well-being, with 16 proposals (21%), and sustainability, the environment and the circular economy, with 15 proposals (19%). The remaining applications cover engineering and industrial technologies, with 10 proposals (13%); social sciences and governance, with 9 (12%); education and lifelong learning, with 7 (9%); and heritage, humanities and culture, with 6 proposals (8%).
This thematic distribution highlights the diversity of research interests across the Alliance and their alignment with key European priorities, particularly in the fields of digital transformation, health and the green transition. At the same time, the level of participation demonstrates EUNICE’s potential to bring together complementary expertise and create the conditions for new joint scientific initiatives.
To further support this process, EUNICE has also introduced the Partner Search Database, a tool integrated into EIR Portal that helps researchers identify potential academic partners across the Alliance’s universities. The database has already received around 100 submissions from researchers seeking new partners and collaboration opportunities. Through this tool, or with the Eunice Research Radar, researchers can connect with colleagues who share similar scientific interests and research areas, expand their international networks and turn common ideas into concrete projects.
The nine funded projects
The selected projects cover a wide range of disciplines and societal needs, from sustainable tourism and cultural heritage to health, food security, digital governance and quantum technologies. Together, they demonstrate the diversity of research strengths available within the Alliance.
The nine funded projects
The selected projects cover a wide range of disciplines and societal needs, from sustainable tourism and cultural heritage to health, food security, digital governance and quantum technologies. Together, they demonstrate the diversity of research strengths available within the Alliance.
MAGIC-NET: Building a European Research Network for Magnetic Field-Based Intensification of Chemical Processes. MAGIC-NET will develop a collaborative network exploring how magnetic fields can enhance chemical and environmental processes, including innovative approaches to CO₂ valorisation and microplastic recovery. The project combines modelling, artificial intelligence and experimental validation to prepare future European research initiatives.
ConnectPPA: Building a European partnership for accessible online peer support for people with primary progressive aphasia. ConnectPPA addresses the needs of people living with primary progressive aphasia, a neurodegenerative condition affecting language abilities. The consortium will lay the foundations for accessible digital peer-support services and future research focused on improving quality of life and social inclusion.
BIOPOST-BRIDGE: Building a function-informed framework for reliable microbial biocontrol in postharvest disease management. Reducing food loss and waste is a major global challenge. BIOPOST-BRIDGE aims to create a European framework for improving the use of microbial biological control agents against postharvest diseases affecting fruits and vegetables, contributing to more sustainable food systems.
NAVSEC-IoT: Towards a Trust and Resilience Architecture for IoT Systems and Federated Data Sharing across the Ship–Port–Shore Interface. NAVSEC-IoT will explore secure methods for data sharing between ships, ports and coastal infrastructures. By focusing on cybersecurity, digital sovereignty and trusted data exchange, the project seeks to support safer and more resilient maritime ecosystems.
CROSSINGS: Youth, AI and Participation in Cultural Heritage. CROSSINGS investigates how artificial intelligence can support cultural storytelling and improve young people’s engagement with cultural heritage. The project will work closely with regional authorities, social organisations and businesses to understand when and how AI can foster greater participation and accessibility.
REACT-AI: Strategic Contracting for External AI Interdependence. As organisations increasingly rely on artificial intelligence services provided by external partners, REACT-AI will develop a research agenda focused on governance mechanisms, contractual frameworks and responsible management of AI-enabled relationships across organisational boundaries.
MOVE-AI: AI-Assisted Assessment of Human Movement and Function. MOVE-AI brings together expertise in health sciences, engineering and artificial intelligence to develop objective methods for assessing human movement through wearable and markerless technologies. Initial work will focus on applications related to knee osteoarthritis and musculoskeletal health.
TASTED: Taste and Design: Crafting Circular Futures from Food Heritage. Tasted aims to consolidate an EUNICE-led consortium and co-design a shared research agenda that approaches food heritage as living knowledge, continuously reinterpreted by communities and capable of inspiring new sustainable futures. The project will explore how food heritage can be transformed, through innovative design methods, into circular products and services, new business models and policies.
PHOTONIQ: Integrated Photonic Random Number Generators for Quantum Technologies. PHOTONIQ will establish a new EUNICE collaboration in quantum technologies focused on integrated photonic random number generators, a key enabling technology for secure communications and future quantum applications.
