Strong interest in network grant for planning future excellence clusters for groundbreaking technologies

The network grant call was the first step in a government initiative to invest in clusters of excellence for groundbreaking technologies.

“It has been incredibly exciting to see the breadth of Swedish technologies research! The response to this initiative has been very strong, with 191 applications for the network grant,” says Marika Edoff, Secretary General for Engineering Sciences at the Swedish Research Council.

The highest number of applications came from Lund University: 30 in total, closely followed by KTH with 28, Uppsala University with 25, and Karolinska institutet with 24. In total, the applications involve 1 177 project leaders and participating researchers.

The applications span a wide range of research areas, including medical biotechnology, electrical engineering and electronics, condensed matter physics, materials chemistry, neuroscience, and nanotechnological life sciences and medicine.

"It is striking how many applications make use of artificial intelligence. For example, AI may be used to search for new material candidates."

Developing reports on future excellence cluster

Out of the 191 applications, the Swedish Research Council has now awarded grants to 40 networks. Each network receives 1.2 million SEK to develop, over six months, a detailed report on the future cluster of excellence they aim to establish. The report must include an analysis of the research field, a strategy for collaboration, and an assessment of the technology’s long-term societal impact, including security policy aspects. The report must be submitted to the Swedish Research Council by March 2026.

Call for grants to establish excellence cluster

The next step in the program is the third phase: the call for grants to establish clusters of excellence, which will open in 2026.

“An important part of this phase is collaboration with Vinnova, which is running a parallel initiative. Together, we cover the technology spectrum from fundamental to more applied network grants. It is not necessary to have applied for or received a network grant in order to apply for a cluster in the next phase, but the researchers’ reports will be crucial in shaping the cluster calls,” concludes Marika Edoff.

See the decision for the call for network grants for clusters of excellence in groundbreaking technologies.