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28th April 2025

VInnovate 2025 Funding Call – Wales

What is VInnovate 2025?

VInnovate 2025 is a funding model supported by the Vanguard Initiative, which is a collaborative programme supporting industrial modernisation and innovation through industry-led and cross-regional cooperation. The Vanguard Initiative consists of 38 industrial and innovation-intensive regions in Europe, 12 of which are part of VInnovate 2025.

VInnovate 2025 itself is an inter-regional funding call for collaborative Research, Development and Innovation (RD&I) projects between participating regions. The VInnovate model uses funding provided through existing regional mechanisms, with that being Smart Flexible Innovation Support (SFIS) in Wales. VInnovate projects will involve at least 2 partners from different VInnovate regions, both of which will be funded by their own regional RD&I funding mechanisms.

Eligibility criteria
To be eligible for VInnovate 2025 funding, projects must meet the following criteria:

  • Involve at least two participating organisations located in at least two VInnovate regions.
  • Include one or more Small and Medium-sized Enterprise (SMEs)
  • In Wales, organisations can be SMEs, large businesses, universities, Research and Technology Organisations (RTOs) or third sector bodies.
  • The target technology readiness levels (TRLs) for projects must be between 6 and 8. (TRL 5 may be considered if more than 50% of a project’s resource is spent once its TRL exceeds 5).
  • VInnovate projects must have a minimum project cost of €100,000 (circa £86,000).
  • Projects cannot have a duration that exceeds 36 months.
  • Projects must align to one of the following: Smarter Industry, More Sustainable Industry, More Autonomous/Less Dependent Industry.
  • Projects must align with one or more of the VInnovate 2025 themes.

Information and Support
The VInnovate secretariat team in Brussels are organising an online information day on May 6th 2025 (10:00 – 11:30 CET) to provide more information about the initiative and how to apply. You can register for the webinar via the link here.

Welsh Government are also holding an online information session on its activities on innovation internationalisation on May 20th at 10:00. You can register for the International Collaboration Opportunities webinar here.