New approaches for decentralized, federated and sustainable AI data processing (RIA)
Horizon Europe · Grant topic
Summary
A Polish company can use this call for R&D.
Funds research into sustainable distributed AI processing across cloud and edge resources, demonstrated through at least two complementary use cases in different domains.
- Who can apply
- Companies can lead: SME, large company, startup, research org, university.
- Amount
- €18M per projectTotal budget €35,000,000
- Deadline
- 18 Mar 2027 01:00 CETin 145 days
- Status
- Forthcomingopens 17 Nov 2026
Machine-classified from the call text; check eligibility at the source.
Description
Expected Outcome:
Project results are expected to contribute to developing new approaches, tools and techniques that overcome the obstacles of today's centralised AI compute techniques: limits in the availability of energy and AI compute capacity in centralised standalone environments, limited availability of types of AI chips, data quality and security and latency in AI data processing. The ultimate objective is to help overcome EU’s AI compute capacity bottlenecks by offering alternative decentralised and sustainable AI compute models that enable exploitation of diverse hardware processing architectures and scaling approaches.
Scope:
This topic focusses on technologies and techniques that enable AI data processing to leverage distributed compute resources across the cloud and edge computing continuum throughout the whole AI model lifecycle from data collection, training, fine-tuning, and deployment. To overpass today’s state of the art in the area, the considered research areas include:
• To research on distributed, decentralised, and federated “compute continuum” enabled AI architectures beyond federated learning and integrating model compression tools and new mechanisms to enable AI data processing to scale across multiple and diverse computing infrastructures.
• Development, deployment, and operation of AI workflows across heterogeneous and distributed infrastructures along the compute continuum (edge, cloud, HPC), including the possibility of incorporating innovative computing paradigms (neuromorphic and quantum computing) and hardware efficiency enhancements ((e.g., including in-memory computing, and hardware and software approximation).
• Novel methods and techniques to improve data availability and consistency for decentralised AI data processing. These consider tools to ensure data quality (e.g. prevention of data sets imbalance or inconsistency across distributed data sources), volume optimisation for data transfers across environments, and distributed data management, all while preserving data privacy and preventing data leaks (e.g. via advanced cryptographic protection such as post-quantum cryptography for resistance to emerging quantum threats).
• New tools and mechanisms to measure, monitor and improve end-to-end energy efficiency and sustainability of AI data processing across the compute continuum, including the exploration of energy and sustainability implications of the heterogeneous AI processing architectures and their impact in the compute infrastructure design and long-term sustainability.
Successful project proposals should showcase proposed developments in at least two complementary use cases in different domains. These use cases should demonstrate the value gained and potential impact of project achievements in real-world situations, as well as address key applications and sectors critical to Europe's competitiveness. Use cases should provide compelling examples and scenarios and cater for the reproducibility of results' added value and impact in additional economic sectors.
Technology Readiness Level - Technology readiness level expected from completed projects
Activities are expected to start at TRL 3 and achieve TRL 6-7 by the end of the project – see General Annex B.
Who can apply, in detail
- Applicant types
- SME, Large company, Startup, Research org, University
- Purpose
- Research and innovation
- R&D relevance
- 3 of 3
- Poland eligible
- Yes
- Country limit
- —
- Region
- Any
- Consortium
- Required
- Readiness level (TRL)
- —
- Topics
- Decentralised AI computing
- Federated AI processing
- Cloud-edge computing
- Sustainable AI infrastructure
- Distributed model training
Machine-classified from the call text; check eligibility at the source. 23 Oct 2026
Conditions
Typed facts extracted from the source documents by Scindu's grant-data review. Each value keeps its own conditions. Unknown means unstated, not zero or unlimited.
- Eligible project scope
- Successful project proposals should showcase proposed developments in at least two complementary use cases in different domains.
- Other condition
- Horizon Europe General Annexes describe personnel as actual costs unless declared as a unit cost; they separately list SME-owner/natural-person personnel unit costs, subcontracting as actual costs, purchases as actual costs unless unit cost, and FSTP only if provided by the specific call. Therefore these personnel categories do not turn an external service purchase or subcontract into a hire, and no specific FSTP entitlement is asserted for this topic.
- Other condition
- For A.1 employees/equivalent, the HE MGA states annual personnel costs divided by 215 as the daily-rate basis; declared day-equivalents must be identifiable and verifiable. The total declared day-equivalents per person across EU grants in a year cannot exceed 215, minus parental leave time where applicable.
- Other condition
- Exact source identifies budget-based HORIZON-AG; General Annexes describe actual-cost grants. Eligibility/reimbursement terms depend on applicable MGA and grant agreement.
Amounts and costs
- Indicative budget
- €35,000,000
Topic budget as stated in the portal's budget table. Lump-sum and per-project limits are in the call conditions.
- Eligible cost
- Directly contracted natural persons (under a non-employment contract) and paid seconded persons may be personnel costs when assigned to the action and meeting general eligibility conditions; they must work under conditions similar to employees, results belong to the beneficiary unless agreed otherwise, and actual costs must not be significantly different from employees performing similar tasks.
- Eligible cost
- Employees/equivalent may be charged as personnel costs only if general eligibility conditions are met, the person works for the beneficiary under an employment contract or equivalent appointing act, is assigned to the action, and remuneration-linked amounts arise under national law or the employment terms; this category is based on costs actually incurred.
- Eligible cost
- The HE MGA allows nonsalaried SME owners and natural-person beneficiaries to claim personnel costs as unit costs under Annex 2a, subject to general eligibility conditions; the AGA gives a daily-rate formula of EUR 8,745.4 divided by 18 days, multiplied by the applicable country-specific correction coefficient for calls opened on or after 30 July 2024. This is a unit-cost calculation, not an employee salary cap or rate guaranteed for every country.
- Funding intensity, maximum
- 100
General maximum for exact HORIZON-RIA code; topic and GA control; not a staff pay rate.
- Expected project funding, up to
- €17,500,000
Approximate expected contribution per project, not an award floor/cap; the topic expressly permits different requested amounts.
- Expected project funding, from
- €17,500,000
Approximate expected contribution per project, not an award floor/cap; the topic expressly permits different requested amounts.
- Topic allocation
- €35,000,000
Indicative topic allocation, distinct from expected EU contribution per project and staff costs.
Personnel and services
Other role
Staff cost the grant can fund
Potential fundable personnel category only when the grant conditions and Article 6.2.A.2 apply; assigned to the action, work under conditions similar to an employee, result belongs to beneficiary unless agreed otherwise, and actual direct-contract costs are not significantly different from comparable employees. It is a contractor engagement category, not employee payroll; no qualification, headcount, FTE, duration or rate is set by this topic.
Other role
Staff cost the grant can fund
Potential fundable personnel category under the applicable Horizon Europe General MGA, conditional on actual action assignment and all eligibility rules. This is not a call-specific required team, named job, or promise of award. Qualification, headcount, FTE, duration and salary are not stated by the topic. Employee remuneration must be actual and linked to national law/employment terms; daily-rate and reporting rules are described in the cited MGA.
Other role
Staff cost the grant can fund
Potential personnel unit-cost category where the applicable grant agreement includes Article 6.2.A.4. Applies only to an SME owner not receiving a salary or a natural-person beneficiary not receiving a salary, with work assigned to the action and general unit-cost conditions met. The daily unit rate is country-adjusted; it is not a salary and this packet does not assert a per-person EUR rate without the recipient country coefficient. No required headcount, FTE, duration or qualification is named in this topic.
Other role
Staff cost the grant can fund
Potential fundable personnel category only when the grant conditions and Article 6.2.A.3 apply; assigned to the action, works under conditions similar to an employee and actual costs are not significantly different from comparable beneficiary employees. This is a paid secondment, not a new employment contract with the beneficiary. No call-specific qualification, headcount, FTE, duration or pay rate is stated.
Source documents
Call facts
- Opens
- 17 Nov 2026
- Deadline model
- Single-stage
- Programme
- Horizon Europe · 2021 - 2027
- Call
- HORIZON-CL4-2027-04 · DIGITAL
- Types of action
- HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions
- Keywords
- Cloud computing
- Edge computing
- Source
- ec.europa.eu
- Checked
- 23 Oct 2026
- Portal updated
- 19 Oct 2026
- Review status
- Partial review
- Reviewed
- 23 Oct 2026
This is a summary of the source page, not the official text. Eligibility, conditions and the submission system are at the source.