Official call identifier: HORIZON-CL4-2027-02-DIGITAL-EMERGING-52-two-stage
Objective of the call
The objective of this call is to develop human-centred approaches to collaboration between people and AI in manufacturing. Projects should improve workforce productivity, skills, well-being and inclusion while strengthening the competitiveness and resilience of European industry.
Scope of activities
Proposals must address at least two of the following three areas:
- Co-learning between people and AI, including capturing expert knowledge and using it for interactive mentoring, training and upskilling.
- Natural human–AI collaboration and teamwork, including assistance with complex manufacturing tasks and production planning.
- Adaptive and inclusive human–machine interfaces that take account of workers’ abilities, experience, needs and cultural backgrounds.
Solutions should be tested in realistic manufacturing settings. Projects should address accessibility, ergonomics, gender and other sources of bias, ethical and trustworthy AI, and the contribution of social sciences and humanities. Extended reality may support relevant use cases. Proposals must include a business case and exploitation strategy.
Eligible applicants
- SMEs, start-ups and large companies developing or applying innovative technologies
- Universities, research organisations and research and technology organisations (RTOs)
- Public bodies and non-profit organisations with relevant expertise
Applications must normally involve at least three independent legal entities established in three different EU Member States or Horizon Europe Associated Countries, including at least one entity established in an EU Member State. Participation and funding remain subject to the eligibility conditions in the Horizon Europe General Annexes and the topic conditions.
Specific consortium we are looking for:
- Manufacturing companies and industrial end users offering workforce use cases and testing environments
- AI, software, automation and robotics providers
- Research partners specialising in human–AI interaction, ergonomics and inclusive interface design
- Training providers and partners with expertise in workforce development, social sciences and trustworthy AI
Eligible costs
Funding is provided as a lump sum contribution under Horizon Europe. The proposed budget should cover the resources needed to complete the work packages, including:
- Research, development and integration of human–AI collaboration solutions
- Knowledge capture, mentoring tools and workforce training methods
- Adaptive interfaces, accessibility and human factors research
- Prototyping, industrial testing, validation and impact assessment
- Project management, dissemination, exploitation and business planning
Funding conditions
Type of action: Research and Innovation Action (RIA)
Funding rate: Up to 100% of eligible costs
Total topic budget: EUR 30 million
Expected EU contribution per project: EUR 4–6 million
Indicative number of funded projects: 5
Technology Readiness Level (TRL): Activities are expected to start at TRL 4–5 and achieve TRL 6 by the end of the project.
Project duration: To be justified by the proposed work plan; no fixed duration is specified in the topic.
Deadline for submission
First-stage deadline: 2 February 2027, 17:00 Brussels time (CET)
Second-stage deadline: 2 September 2027, 17:00 Brussels time (CEST)
This is a two-stage call. First-stage proposals are evaluated blind: identifying information must not appear in the proposal abstract or Part B. Applicants invited to the second stage must submit a full proposal, including the required business case and exploitation strategy.