BIOntier offers innovative solutions to environmental challenges and establishes a holistic, integrated, and industrial-driven platform for the design, development, and scalable fabrication of the next generation of cost-effective, sustainable, lightweight, recyclable bio-based composites (BioC) with enhanced properties (e.g. thermal, mechanical, chemical), functionalities (e.g. corrosion, chemical and fire resistance, hardness and impact resistance, high temperature resistance, structural health monitoring). BIOntier will also advance manufacturing processes, enhancing synthesis and stability and reducing environmental impact. Such BioC and manufacturing capabilities will allow robust connections with end-users and thus develop and qualify the commercial propositions to high TRLs. BIOntier will develop, demonstrate, and validate the efficacy of BioC-enabled products (6 use cases) which will underlie future technologies for different sectors (e.g. automotive, aerospace, energy (hydrogen economy) and water treatment). BIOntier also supports the innovation output and industrialization efforts of the EU initiatives and strategies for circular bioeconomy, building a credible pathway for the newly accumulated knowledge to impact EU industry and society. BIOntier will support a strong EU value chain in translating technology advances from TRL4-5 into concrete innovation opportunities and production capabilities (TRL6-7), with first-mover market advantages of scale in the defined industrial sectors. The consortium consists of 25 partners from 12 countries, representing the full value chain, with leading OEMs, large industries, world-class research and education organisations, and innovative SMEs. BIOntier is designed to ensure maximum impact for the defined industries and society as a whole, significantly contributing to the evolving field of BioC.

The Evolution of Knowledge shapes our policy choices. Researchers decide what to research, with whom to collaborate, and how much to invest into discovery. While researchers enjoy institutionalized or implicit scientific freedom, two categories govern the researcher's decision which question to address and how much effort to exert: (i) prior knowledge and (ii) the market for ideas. Prior knowledge is vital to determine how knowledge evolves. Researchers stand on the shoulders of giants and use conjectures derived from previous discoveries when they address problems. They assess their ex ante prospects on finding an answer by looking at related findings. However, researchers also operate in the market for ideas. Careers depend on how marketable an idea is, how well researchers exploit synergies and complementarities with collaborators, what topics range high on the policy agenda, and what funding opportunities the researcher can access. In sum, how much effort the researcher invests depends crucially on the market for ideas. Our work combines these two aspects and proposes a flexible model to predict the researcher's choice and determine the evolution of knowledge over time. The model is set up with the data in mind to be able to derive meaningful counterfactuals. We can derive implications for designing the market for ideas, e.g., through adapting the funding architecture. We address questions such as: When should funding focus on cost reductions (e.g., grants), when on rewards (e.g., prizes)? When should we push for "moonshot discoveries" when for incremental research? Should researchers collaborate with experts on similar topics reducing coordination efforts, or with more distant ones exploiting complementarities? Should we let researchers compete on the same topic increasing the probability of finding a solution, or should we urge researchers to differentiate, increasing the number of questions covered?