Horizon Europe
Also known as: HE, EU Framework Programme, FP10 (successor)
The EU's primary research and innovation funding programme (2021–2027, ~€95.5B budget), covering activities from fundamental research to market-ready innovation through ERC, EIC, and Pillar 2 Health Cluster instruments.
Full Definition
Horizon Europe is the European Union's primary research and innovation funding programme, running from 2021 to 2027 with a total budget of approximately €95.5 billion. It funds activities from fundamental research to market-ready innovation. For health innovation, it operates through Cluster 1 (Health) under Pillar 2, the European Research Council (ERC) for frontier research, and the European Innovation Council (EIC) for breakthrough innovation.
Within the GAITS Funding Readiness Framework, Horizon Europe is relevant across multiple funding levels. At Translational and Pre-Seed stage, it supports early-stage research through ERC grants and EIC Pathfinder. At Seed and Seed+ stage, it supports collaborative health research through Pillar 2 Health Cluster consortia and EIC Transition. At Series A stage, the EIC Accelerator blended finance instrument (up to €17.5M) is the most relevant programme.
Grants are generally collaborative and non-dilutive. Timelines from application to funding are typically 12–18 months. UK organisations can participate as associated partners following the UK's association to Horizon Europe in 2023.
A consortium of three university hospitals and two SMEs across France, Germany, and the Netherlands applies for a Horizon Europe Pillar 2 Health Cluster grant to conduct a multi-site clinical trial of a remote patient monitoring system for heart failure. The €6M grant funds clinical infrastructure and health economic analysis across all sites. One SME partner subsequently uses the resulting clinical dataset to support an EIC Accelerator application at the Seed+ stage.