Horizon Europe DIGITAL Call (HORIZON-CL4-2027-04)

  • Start Date:

  • Deadline:

  • Agency:
    Horizon Europe: Global Challenges and European Industrial Competitiveness

The Office of Grants and Research (OGR), Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), invites eligible organisations and consortia to apply for funding under the Horizon Europe DIGITAL Call (HORIZON-CL4-2027-04). This call supports large-scale innovation actions to validate advanced telco-edge-cloud (3C) infrastructures and unlock the transformative potential of artificial intelligence across strategic sectors in Europe.

Programme Overview
This Horizon Europe call focuses on demand-driven pilot demonstrations that build on existing telco-edge-cloud infrastructure to deliver innovative, AI-enabled services. The programme aims to strengthen Europe’s digital sovereignty, competitiveness, and sustainability by integrating communication, computing, and collaboration capabilities (3C networks). Projects will validate open orchestration platforms and demonstrate real-world applications across key industries such as mobility, energy, health, and manufacturing.

Key Details

  • Programme: Horizon Europe

  • Call: DIGITAL (HORIZON-CL4-2027-04)

  • Funding Type: Innovation Action (IA)

  • Opening Date: 17 November 2026

  • Submission Deadline: 18 March 2027 (17:00 Brussels time)

  • Project Stage: TRL 6–8 (demonstration and validation phase)

  • Funding Model: Budget-based grants (EU contribution typically covers a significant portion of project costs)

Eligibility

  • Consortia comprising multiple partners from eligible countries

  • Participation limited to entities established in EU Member States and associated countries (including the UK, Norway, Switzerland, Canada, Israel, Republic of Korea, and New Zealand)

  • Strong involvement of industry stakeholders, including SMEs, start-ups, and infrastructure providers

  • Collaboration between demand-side users and technology/infrastructure providers

Funding Scope

The call supports large-scale pilot demonstrators that:

  • Validate open orchestration platforms across the telco-cloud-edge continuum

  • Integrate AI, edge computing, and advanced network capabilities (e.g., APIs, slicing, automation, security)

  • Demonstrate real-world applications in at least two sectors, including:

    • Smart mobility and automotive (mandatory pilot)

    • One additional sector (e.g., energy, health, agrifood, manufacturing, smart communities)

  • Develop secure, interoperable, and scalable digital infrastructures

  • Enable data sharing and governance frameworks aligned with European data spaces and initiatives such as Gaia-X

  • Support commercialisation pathways, new business models, and ecosystem development

Scope Limitations

Projects must:

  • Focus on system-level innovation and large-scale pilots, not basic research

  • Align with EU strategic priorities on digital sovereignty and secure infrastructure

  • Ensure compliance with strict eligibility and security conditions, including restrictions on participation from certain non-eligible countries

Strategic Focus Areas

  • Deployment of Connected, Collaborative, Computing (3C) networks

  • Advancement of AI-driven digital services and infrastructure

  • Strengthening Europe’s data economy and digital sovereignty

  • Development of sustainable, energy-efficient, and secure communication systems

  • Support for open-source ecosystems and interoperability standards

How to Apply
Applicants must prepare and submit a single-stage proposal through the Horizon Europe submission system once the call opens. Full details, eligibility rules, and application templates are available via the official Horizon Europe portal:
https://ec.europa.eu/info/funding-tenders/opportunities/portal

Proposals should demonstrate strong cross-sector collaboration, robust technical architecture, clear data governance frameworks, and high-impact innovation potential, with a clear pathway toward scalable deployment and commercialisation across Europe.