PhotonHub Europe will establish a single pan-EU Photonics Innovation Hub which integrates the best-in-class photonics technologies, facilities, expertise and experience of 53 partners from all over Europe, including the coordinators of EU pilot lines and local photonics hubs representing 18 regions, as a one-stop-shop solution offering a comprehensive range of supports to industry for the accelerated uptake and deployment of photonics. PhotonHub will provide European companies, in particular “non-photonics” SMEs and mid-caps that are first users and early adopters of photonics, with open access and guided orienteering to the following key support services: training and upskilling opportunities within PhotonHub’s Demo and Experience Centres throughout Europe and enhanced by digital tools for online learning; “test before invest” innovation support capabilities to engage with companies on highly collaborative Innovation Projects aimed at TRL acceleration from prototyping (TRL3-4) to upscaling (TRL5-6) to manufacturing (TRL7-8), and complemented by targeted business and IP advisory supports; and support to find investment through investment-readiness coaching and investor match-making organised in collaboration with major regional and European venture fora and deep tech Investor Days. PhotonHub will uniquely support cross-border innovation activities of European companies, while simultaneously working closely with the local photonics hubs to develop and roll out best practices of the “lighthouse” regions for ongoing regional financial support of SME innovation activities and to support the creation of new innovation hubs covering most regions of Europe. Finally, PhotonHub will fine-tune and implement its business plan for long-term sustainability in the form of the PhotonHub Europe Association as a durable entity which is deeply rooted within the wider ecosystem of local, regional and EU-DIHs for maximum leverage and impact on European competitiveness and sovereignty.

The S4I2T project seeks to develop a cost-effective and environmentally friendly solar electric water propulsion system. It aims to use water as a propellant to enable autonomous spacecraft docking and propellant refilling, promoting economic and environmental sustainability and facilitating in-orbit servicing, robotics, and in-space manufacturing. Furthermore, the project explores in-space water extraction and utilization from celestial bodies, contributing to a self-sustaining circular space economy based on solar energy harvesting. The three technological elements at the project's core are: 1. Solar-Electric Water Electrolysis Propulsion: Water is used as a propellant and decomposed into gaseous oxygen and hydrogen, outperforming traditional chemical propulsion systems. Water's non-toxicity, versatility, and availability make it a cost-effective choice. It also utilizes solar energy for propulsion. 2. Autonomous Proximity/Docking Operations and Propellant Refilling: Water simplifies in-orbit refueling, reducing launch mass and extending satellite lifetimes. This supports in-orbit servicing and assembly, enhancing the impact of solar energy harvesting. 3. In-Space Water Extraction and Utilization: Water extraction from celestial bodies combined with the other technologies creates a self-sustainable space mobility infrastructure, offering long-term, Earth-independent operation. The project aims to achieve several breakthroughs in developing a novel solar-powered propulsion system, addressing technological challenges and bottlenecks. It includes the development and lab demonstration of innovative components for a Solar Electric Water Electrolysis Propulsion System, autonomous proximity/docking algorithms, and end-to-end In-Space Resource Utilization (ISRU) validation. Ultimately, the S4I2T project strives to position Europe as a leader in solar-energy-powered space mobility, fostering a sustainable and self-sustaining space economy.

InnoRate is set on deploying a trusted, objective and recognised service platform across the EU and AC to support and improve the decision-making processes of investors and lenders for vetting, prioritising and providing access to finance to innovative high growth potential SMEs. The suite of digitally-enabled decision support tools and services provided through our platform are underpinned by well-customised innovation assessment and rating methodologies that go beyond the unsuitable, backward-looking and costly practices currently employed, so as to evaluate and signal the technological and business potential and risks of market-creating innovations, efficiently and cost-effectively. To this end, we leverage semantic technology, existing data sources and in-depth human expertise, to minimise the time and resources (human and financial) required by investors and lenders in this respect, reducing knowledge / information asymmetries and ultimately risk premiums paid by innovative project managers. In doing so, our ambition is clearly to disrupt the largely risk-averse financial sector of the EU and AC, enhancing the innovation capacity of high growth technology sectors and SMEs, paving the way for drastical innovations to flourish and placing Europe in the forefront of the global innovation game. To put it simply, we want to bring innovation to finance and finance to innovation.

The European Space Programme (EUSpace) holds vast potential to fulfil the EU green and digital (twin) transition, but SMEs’ limited uptake and technological capacity is preventing them from fully unlocking the green and digital transformation. FIERCE aims to address these limitations by mobilising 140 SMEs, start-ups and scale-ups with specialised technical and business advisory to design business solutions and engage in process innovation using downstream space data in areas such as circularity, raw materials, environmental monitoring and corporate sustainability (space-enabled green solutions). We mobilise 2.5 million EUR in financial support providing 70 SMEs with access to market services and key infrastructure to realise their vision through Transformation Projects, supporting ideation, scaling up and commercialization of space-enabled solutions, accelerating SMEs journey to the market. We complement our support for SMEs with 10+ Local Entrepreneurship Initiatives driven by innovation intermediaries and business support networks (DIHs, clusters etc.) aimed creating more SME opportunities for space-enabled green innovation through synergies with regional industrial, research and market actors and infrastructure providers (OITBs). We reach further to key EU-wide networks (EEN, SME Alliance, EARSC) through our Strategic Partnership Network to create synergies and joint activities to navigate SMEs and innovation intermediaries towards exploiting high-impact opportunities for funding, collaboration and knowledge exchange, as well as jointly organized FIERCE investment tracks in the frame of key industry and business events. We deploy the FIERCE digital toolbox to enrich our support with 50+ learning resources, 10+ practical tools and 70+ qualified service providers to create a vibrant dedicated community. Finally, we monitor our performance and impact to design practical replication handbooks to inspire wider application and recommendations for enabling policies.

The MPowerBIO project will obtain feedback from clusters, SMEs and investors on the concrete challenges they have regarding investments and build an online platform containing digital tools for evaluating investment readiness, as well as online training modules to build the capacity of clusters to train their SME members. The project will provide 10 training the trainers events for a total of 90 clusters across the bioeconomy, covering most of Europe, supported by the online platform. This will the improve the capacity of participating clusters to service their SME members, and allow them to test the learning on SMEs in a supervised manner, at a series of 10 regional events, helping the SMEs to prepare and present high-quality projects to investors. The best SME projects will be selected by investors, and invited to one of two European finals, which are based on the European Bioeconomy Venture Forum model, run by the consortium members. A total of 72 high-quality, screened and investment-ready SME are expected to pitch at the two final events. The proposal is based on two consecutive cycles, allowing 350 SMEs to be screened and supported over the project, with experience from the first cycle being used to improve the project second cycle. The proposal takes account of the difference in Europe in investment activities, the required skills for trainers and the different types of investors in each country. MPowerBIO will ensure that clusters become self-supporting in this respect on completion of the project, with the ability to maintain these skills within their own organisations. The project will produce a replication guide to ensure that project results can be widened to other areas after completion.