Serces to enhance the innovation management capacity of SMEs in the macro-region 1 in Romania
- Funding agency:
- Horizon 2020
- Status:
- awarded
- Location:
- Romania
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Virtual worlds test beds
Details
Location:
EU 27
Grantmaking entity type:
Multilateral organization
Status:
Awarded
Budget:
EUR 17,000,000
Award ceiling:
N/A
Award floor:
N/A
Sector:
ICT & Telecommunications, Research & Innovation
Languages:
English
Eligible applicants:
Government / Public Bodies, Private Sector
Eligible applicant countries:
EU 27, Albania, Anguilla, Aruba, Bermuda, Bosnia and Herzegovina, British Virgin Islands, Caribbean Netherlands, Cayman Islands, Falkland Islands, French Polynesia, French Southern Territory, Greenland, Iceland, Kosovo, Liechtenstein, Moldova, Montenegro, Montserrat, New Caledonia, North Macedonia, Norway, Pitcairn, Saint Helena, Serbia, St. Pierre and Miquelon, Switzerland, Türkiye, Turks and Caicos, Ukraine, Wallis and Futuna
Date posted:
Oct 9, 2025
Summary
The primary objective of the grant is to create virtual worlds test beds to enhance productivity and ...
Eligible applicants include sectorial test beds, which are organized through two specific projects, one for industrial applications and another for societal applications. Each test bed shou...
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Description
Virtual worlds test beds
TOPIC ID: DIGITAL-2026-AI-09-VIRTUAL-TESTBEDS-STEP
Type of grant: Call for proposals
General information
Programme:
Call: AI Continent (DIGITAL-2026-AI-09)
Type of action: DIGITAL-SIMPLE DIGITAL Simple Grants
Type of MGA: DIGITAL Action Grant Budget-Based [DIGITAL-AG]
Status: Forthcoming
Deadline model: single-stage
Planned Opening Date: 04 November 2025
Deadline dates: 03 March 2026 17:00 (Brussels time)
Topic description
Expected Outcome:- Contributing to European digital sovereignty and open strategic autonomy in the domain of virtual worlds;
- Contributing to development of innovative and interoperable virtual worlds solutions;
- Contributing to the creation and promotion of EU regulatory sandboxes for virtual worlds.
The main objective is to increase productivity and innovation capacity through state-of-the-art virtual worlds technologies. The Virtual worlds test beds will support testing, experimentation and integration of Virtual Worlds, immersive and extended reality technologies in specific sectors, targeting both industrial and societal applications.
The virtual worlds test beds will focus on testing and integrating mature technologies and solutions that have already been tested in the labs with the objective to be validated in real-world environments. They will also cover the aspects of interoperability and transferability between Virtual Worlds.
The Virtual worlds testbeds will seek to maximise the uptake of virtual worlds solutions in industrial and societal applications and boost competitiveness of the sectors they are applied.
Scope:For this action, support to two world-class sectorial testbeds through two projects is envisaged: one for industrial applications (such as manufacturing, construction or industrial design) and one for societal applications (such as education and training, cultural heritage and other cultural experiences, public administration or healthcare). Each testbed should create a network of facilities with critical mass across at least three different Member States or associated countries.
Proposals are expected to focus on either industrial or societal applications. The area should be clearly identified within the proposal.
The test beds will provide all necessary expertise and infrastructure for the design and implementation of the testing methodologies, combining physical world and virtual worlds facilities.
Conditions
1. Admissibility Conditions: Proposal page limit and layout
described in section 5 of the call document.
Proposal page limits and layout: described in Part B of the Application Form available in the Submission System.
2. Eligible Countries
described in section 6 of the call document.
3. Other Eligible Conditions
described in section 6 of the call document.
4. Financial and operational capacity and exclusion
described in section 7 of the call document.
5a. Evaluation and award: Submission and evaluation processes
described section 8 of the call document and the Online Manual.
5b. Evaluation and award: Award criteria, scoring and thresholds
described in section 9 of the call document.
5c. Evaluation and award: Indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement
described in section 4 of the call document.
6. Legal and financial set-up of the grants
described in section 10 of the call document.
Call document and annexes:
Call document
Application form templates
Standard application form (DEP) — the application form specific to this call is available in the Submission System
Ownership control declaration
Model Grant Agreements (MGA)
DEP MGA
Additional documents:
DEP Work Programmes
Guidance Classification on information in DIGITAL projects
Guidelines on How to Complete Your Ethics Self-Assessment
DEP Regulation 2021/964
EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509
Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual
Funding & Tenders Portal Terms and Conditions
Funding & Tenders Portal Privacy Statement
Start submission
The submission system is planned to be opened on the date stated on the topic header.
Get support
Please read carefully all provisions below before the preparation of your application.
For help related to this call, please contact please add a contact e-mail or url
Funding & Tenders Portal FAQ – Submission of proposals.
IT Helpdesk – Contact the IT helpdesk for questions such as forgotten passwords, access rights and roles, technical aspects of submission of proposals, etc.
Online Manual – Step-by-step online guide through the Portal processes from proposal preparation and evaluation to reporting on your ongoing project. Valid for all 2021-2027 programmes.
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grant Background
About the Funding Agency
EuropeAid is an agency responsible for designing European international cooperation and development policy and delivering aid worldwide. Its purpose is to aid in the reduction and eventual abolition of poverty in developing nations by fostering sustainable development, democracy, peace and security. With its partner nations, EuropeAid walks alongside them on their journey to sustainable development, continually adapting its help to their changing requirements. EuropeAid is also concerned with increasing the value and impact of aid money by ensuring that help is provided appropriately.
Under the donor EC - European Commission, DevelopmentAid covers the following entities:
Departments / Directorate Generals
- AGRI - Agriculture & Rural Development
- BUDG - Budget
- CLIMA - Climate Action
- COMM - Communication
- CNECT – Communications Networks, Content & Technology (formerly Digital Agenda)
- COMP - Competition
- ECFIN - Economic & Financial Affairs
- EAC - Education & Culture
- EMPL - Employment, Social Affairs & Inclusion
- ENER - Energy
- ENV - Environment
- ESTAT - Eurostat
- FISMA – Financial Stability, Financial Services & Capital Markets Union
- SANTE - Health & Food Safety
- ECHO - Humanitarian Aid & Civil Protection
- HR - Human Resources & Security
- DIGIT - Informatics
- GROW - Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship & SMEs
- DEVCO – International Cooperation & Development - EUROPEAID
- SCIC - Interpretation
- JRC - Joint Research Centre
- JUST - Justice & Consumers
- MARE - Maritime Affairs & Fisheries
- HOME - Migration & Home Affairs
- MOVE - Mobility & Transport
- NEAR – Neighbourhood & Enlargement Negotiations
- REGIO - Regional & Urban Policy
- RTD - Research & Innovation
- SG – Secretariat-General - no procurement opportunities available
- FPI – Service for Foreign Policy Instruments
- TAXUD - Taxation & Customs Union
- TRADE - Trade
- DGT - Translation
Agencies
- European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control
- Eurojust
- European Food Safety Authority (EFSA)
- European Chemicals Agency (ECHA)
- European GNSS Agency (GSA)
- European Union Agency for Network and Information Security
- The European Joint Undertaking for ITER and the Development of Fusion Energy ("Fusion for Energy")
- European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights
- European Stability Mechanism (ESM)
- Consumers, Health, Agriculture and Food Executive Agency (CHAFEA), Health and Food Safety Unit
- European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA)
- European Fisheries Control Agency
- Single Resolution Board
- Office of the Body of European Regulators for Electronic Communications (BEREC Office)
- The Executive Agency for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (EASME)
- European Asylum Support Office
- European Union Intellectual Property Office
- European Union Agency for Railways
- European Environment Agency
- European Agency for the operational management of large-scale IT systems in the area of freedom, security and justice (eu-LISA)
- Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA)
- European Defence Agency
- EU Grant Programmes
EU Bodies
- European Parliament
- Council of the European union
- Court of Justice of the European Union
- European Court of Auditors
- European Economic and Social Committee
- European Committee of the Regions
- Publications office of the European Union
- European Patent Office
- European External Action Service
- Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators
- Energy Community Secretariat
About the Sectors
ICT & Telecommunications
Features information and communication technologies, digital systems, and telecommunications infrastructure and services.
Key areas:
- ICT systems, software, and digital solutions
- Telecommunications networks and services
- Digitalization, data, and communication tools
Research & Innovation
Focuses on collecting data, generating new knowledge, and applying it to develop improved methods, technologies, products, and solutions across sectors.
Key areas:
- Scientific research, studies, and investigations
- Innovation programs and applied R&D initiatives
- Technology development
- Space-related research and exploration themes
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