Budapest, 3 October 2025 – The European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) has announced that its Governing Board has approved an allocation of €978 million to boost innovation, entrepreneurship, and skills development across Europe for the period 2026–2028.
The EIT’s largest-ever funding round secures fresh resources for six Knowledge and Innovation Communities (KICs), and joint activities such as the EIT Higher Education Initiative – reinforcing the EIT’s position as Europe’s largest innovation ecosystem. The decision reflects both the performance of the KICs and their alignment with EU policy priorities such as the Union of Skills and the Clean Industrial Deal while also supporting the implementation of the Startup and Scaleup Strategy, through entrepreneurial education programmes, stronger corporate engagement in innovation ecosystems, and better knowledge transfer from universities and research centres to business.
Investing in Innovation and Skills to Boost Europe’s Competitiveness
The funding will support EIT Health, EIT Raw Materials, EIT Food, EIT Urban Mobility, EIT Manufacturing, and EIT Culture & Creativity. These partnerships bring together leading businesses, universities, and research centres to address Europe’s most pressing challenges – from sustainable food systems and resilient healthcare to advanced manufacturing, critical raw materials, creative industries, and the future of urban mobility. With this investment, the EIT reaffirms its mission to power innovation, talent, and growth across Europe.
The allocations for 2026–2028 are as follows:
EIT Health: € 67.3 million
EIT Raw Materials: € 74.8 million
EIT Food: € 125.3 million
EIT Urban Mobility: € 206.9 million
EIT Manufacturing: € 163.2 million
EIT Culture & Creativity: € 131.6 million
In addition, €79.3 million will be dedicated to cross-KIC activities, in which KICs that are financially autonomous also participate, including Climate-KIC, EIT Digital and InnoEnergy. These activities enable joint action across sectors to maximise European impact from boosting entrepreneurial education and STEM skills, supporting business creation in areas like AI and women’s entrepreneurship, or fostering international cooperation.
Strengthening Higher Education for Innovation
The decision also foresees €130 million for the EIT Higher Education Initiative, which helps universities across Europe build their innovation and entrepreneurial capacity. Closely aligned with European university alliances and complementary to Erasmus, it also contributes to the EU’s STEM Education plan. Since its launch, the initiative has already involved more than 600 higher education institutions and supported thousands of students, staff, and researchers in developing entrepreneurial skills and turning ideas into market-ready solutions.
Stefan Dobrev, Chair of the EIT Governing Board, said: ‘As a board, we are confident this decision steers resources to the best-performing innovation ecosystems, that effectively integrate the triangle of research, industry and entrepreneurship. It is a substantial catalyst for the engagement of the public and private sector to deploy the skills, technology and businesses we urgently need for a competitive Europe, able to defend its prosperity and its values.’
ABOUT THE EUROPEAN INSTITUTE OF INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY (EIT)
The European Institute of Innovation and Technology is the EU’s largest innovation ecosystem, integrating business, education, and research to drive innovation across Europe. As part of Horizon Europe, the EU’s research and innovation framework, the EIT supports dynamic partnerships known as Knowledge and Innovation Communities (KICs), each addressing specific global challenges such as climate change, health, digitalization, and sustainable energy. Through these KICs, the EIT offers entrepreneurial education, business creation and acceleration services, and innovation-driven research projects, aiming to create jobs,
EIT GOVERNING BOARD APPROVES €978 MILLION FOR EUROPEAN INNOVATION AND SKILLS
