European Research Council grants €652 million to leading researchers in Europe

The European Research Council (ERC) has announced the names of 255 research leaders in Europe set to be awarded ERC Advanced Grants. The funding is amongst the EU’s most prestigious and competitive, providing leading senior researchers with the opportunity to pursue ambitious, curiosity-driven projects. The new grants worth €652 million in total are funded by the EU’s research and innovation programme, Horizon Europe.

Iliana Ivanova, Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth, said: “To all the new ERC grantees, my heartfelt congratulations! These grants will not only support leading researchers in pushing the boundaries of knowledge, but also create some 2500 jobs for postdoctoral fellows, PhD students and other research staff across Europe. This investment nurtures the next generation of brilliant minds. I look forward to seeing the resulting breakthroughs and fresh advancements in the years ahead.”

The announced grants will support cutting-edge research in a wide range of fields, from life sciences and physical sciences to social sciences and humanities. The successful candidates proposed to host their projects at universities and research centres in 19 EU Member States and countries associated to Horizon Europe. Among the EU countries, the highest numbers of grants will be hosted by institutions in Germany (50), France (37), and Netherlands (23). Among the laureates, there are Germans (50 researchers), French (31), Britons (28), Italians (22) and citizens of other 28 nations. The competition attracted 1,829 proposals, out of which nearly 14% were selected for funding. Estimates show that the grants will create 2480 jobs in the new grantees’ teams.