Automated Scientific Discovery – Food (RAISE pilot)

The Horizon Europe pilot "Automated Scientific Discovery – Food (RAISE pilot)" targets scientific, educational, and research institutions as well as companies from EU Member States and associated countries that already demonstrate advanced laboratory digitization. The objective is to develop trustworthy closed-loop laboratory systems in which AI-supported decision-making processes, laboratory automation, and scalable data infrastructures are interconnected for fully automated food experiments. In a consortium of at least three independent partners, personnel costs, consumables and equipment acquisitions, as well as subcontractor services, are co-financed at 100%, while the acquisition of real estate and retrospective costs are excluded. The maximum funding amount is €3 million. Applications must be submitted by 2 February 2027, 17:00 (Brussels time) via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal. Required documents include an applicant data sheet, a project description, CVs of key personnel, a financial plan, and ethics application documents.

In the three-phase evaluation, the criteria of innovativeness, methodological quality, impact, and efficiency are assessed. Projects should present prototype demonstrators enabling semi- or fully autonomous planning, execution, and analysis of experiments while simultaneously implementing data management, resource optimization, and safety by design. The results promise accelerated discovery processes, higher reproducibility, and best practices for laboratory automation with particular emphasis on alternative protein sources and bio-based materials. National Contact Points and the online manual provide support during submission. Interested consortia are encouraged to collaborate interdisciplinarily and internationally to decisively advance the future of automated scientific experimentation in food and biotechnology research.