Instrument navigator for policy makers

Decision support, not legal advice. This navigator orders options from your answers with a fixed, published rule set; it does not decide. The legal basis, the work programme, the call conditions and the Financial Regulation prevail. Check with the responsible Directorate-General, the implementing body and your legal service before choosing an instrument.

Something to do and not sure which EU instrument fits? Answer a few questions (each has "Not sure") and the navigator ranks the instruments that could do it: Horizon Europe actions and partnerships, Digital Europe, the Connecting Europe Facility, the EuroHPC and Chips Joint Undertakings, procurement procedures, pre-commercial procurement and public procurement of innovation, EIC and EIB Group finance, State aid and IPCEI, Member State-managed funds and networks. Each result says why it fits, why not, who runs it and what to read next.

Download the knowledge base (CSV) · Download the knowledge base (JSON) · Funding instruments · Who can participate? · Programme pipeline · EU legislation tracker

Questionnaire

Answer what you know; "Not sure" never counts against an instrument. Questions that do not matter for your goal are set aside.

1. What do you want to do?

The main purpose of the action. Pick the closest; the other questions refine it.

Research: new knowledge, early-stage science Innovation: develop, test or demonstrate a technology Deploy infrastructure (computers, networks, testbeds, facilities) Buy a product or service for public use Skills and talent: train or attract people Scale up companies: finance and growth Coordinate, network, align programmes or standards Build industrial or manufacturing capacity Not sure

2. How should the EU act?

Funding others (grants), buying for itself or for public authorities (procurement), investing or lending, or pooling Member States and national programmes.

Fund others' projects (grants) Buy as a public customer (procurement) Invest, lend or guarantee Pool or align Member States and national programmes Not sure

3. How mature is the technology?

Technology readiness levels (TRL) as in the Horizon Europe General Annexes: 1-3 basic principles to proof of concept, 4-6 validation and demonstration in a relevant environment, 7-8 prototype in an operational environment to a qualified system, 9 proven in operation.

TRL 1-3: ideas, principles, proof of concept TRL 4-6: lab or relevant-environment validation TRL 7-8: prototypes and pilots in real conditions TRL 9: proven products or services Not sure

4. Who should do the work or receive the support?

The organisations that carry out the action or are supported.

Universities, research organisations or individual researchers Companies, including large industry Start-ups and SMEs Mixed consortia of industry and academia Public authorities as buyers or operators Member States or national funders Not sure

5. How many countries take part?

Where the action takes place and who must join.

6. Will national or regional money co-fund it?

Some instruments need Member State or national co-funding; others are funded by the EU budget alone.

Yes, national or regional co-funding is part of the plan No, EU money alone (with the participants' own share) Not sure

7. What is the order of magnitude of the money involved?

Total public money for the action, EU and national together.

8. When must it start?

Instruments that need a new work programme, a Member State agreement or a Commission decision take longer than a call already planned.

Within a year In one to two years More than two years: a multi-annual plan Not sure

9. Must the results belong to the public buyer?

In grants the beneficiaries own the results; in procurement the buyer usually owns or uses them; in pre-commercial procurement the suppliers keep the intellectual property and the buyer gets use rights.

Yes, the public side must own the result or the asset Use or licence rights for the public side are enough No, the performers may own the results Not sure

10. Is the subject security-sensitive?

Security-sensitive: participation may be limited to EU-controlled entities (as Horizon Europe Article 22(5) and Digital Europe Article 12 allow). Defence: military use or classified information.

No, open civil subject Yes, security-sensitive but civil Defence or classified Not sure

Start again

Security or defence goals: the defence instruments are shown in the restricted view for Commission and Member State users.

Compare instruments

Tick two to four instruments; the first four ticked are compared.

Horizon Europe: collaborative actions

Horizon Europe RIA Horizon Europe IA Horizon Europe CSA Horizon Europe prize

European Innovation Council

EIC Pathfinder EIC Transition EIC Accelerator EIC Fund (equity)

European partnerships and Missions

Programme co-fund (co-funded partnership) Co-programmed partnership Institutionalised partnership (JU) Horizon Europe Mission

Digital Europe Programme

Digital Europe grant Digital Europe SME support action Digital Europe procurement EDIC (Digital Infrastructure Consortium) EuroQCI national projects (DEP)

Connecting Europe Facility (Digital)

CEF Digital (EuroQCI links)

Joint Undertakings (EuroHPC, Chips)

EuroHPC JU quantum computer procurement EuroHPC JU quantum grants Chips JU pilot lines Chips competence centres

Procurement procedures (Financial Regulation)

Innovation procurement (PCP and PPI)

Horizon Europe PCP/PPI action Pre-commercial procurement (PCP) Public procurement of innovative solutions (PPI)

Finance: equity, loans and guarantees

InvestEU EIB venture debt EIF equity (funds of funds)

State aid and IPCEI

IPCEI GBER (block-exempted aid) State aid R&D&I framework

Funds managed by the Member States

Cohesion policy funds (ERDF) Recovery and Resilience Facility

Networks and national partnerships

QuantERA COST Action EUREKA and Eurostars

Decision tree

What you want to do, then how the EU acts, then the instruments the rules rank first from those two answers alone. The full questionnaire refines the order. Each branch opens the questionnaire with those two answers.

Research: new knowledge, early-stage science
- Fund others' projects (grants)
  - Horizon Europe RIA (100%)
  - ERC grant (100%)
  - EIC Pathfinder (100%)
- Buy as a public customer (procurement)
  - Institutionalised partnership (JU) (79%)
  - Pre-commercial procurement (PCP) (79%)
- Invest, lend or guarantee
  - No instrument fits this combination.
- Pool or align Member States and national programmes
  - QuantERA (100%)
  - Programme co-fund (co-funded partnership) (79%)
  - Co-programmed partnership (79%)
Innovation: develop, test or demonstrate a technology
- Fund others' projects (grants)
  - Horizon Europe IA (100%)
  - Horizon Europe prize (100%)
  - EIC Transition (100%)
- Buy as a public customer (procurement)
  - Pre-commercial procurement (PCP) (100%)
  - Horizon Europe PCP/PPI action (79%)
  - Institutionalised partnership (JU) (79%)
- Invest, lend or guarantee
  - EIC Accelerator (100%)
- Pool or align Member States and national programmes
  - EUREKA and Eurostars (100%)
  - Co-programmed partnership (79%)
  - Institutionalised partnership (JU) (79%)
Deploy infrastructure (computers, networks, testbeds, facilities)
- Fund others' projects (grants)
  - Digital Europe grant (100%)
  - EuroQCI national projects (DEP) (100%)
  - CEF Digital (EuroQCI links) (100%)
- Buy as a public customer (procurement)
  - EuroHPC JU quantum computer procurement (100%)
  - Institutionalised partnership (JU) (79%)
  - Digital Europe procurement (79%)
- Invest, lend or guarantee
  - InvestEU (79%)
- Pool or align Member States and national programmes
  - EDIC (Digital Infrastructure Consortium) (100%)
  - EuroQCI national projects (DEP) (100%)
  - CEF Digital (EuroQCI links) (100%)
Buy a product or service for public use
- Fund others' projects (grants)
  - Horizon Europe PCP/PPI action (79%)
- Buy as a public customer (procurement)
  - EuroHPC JU quantum computer procurement (100%)
  - Open procedure (100%)
  - Restricted procedure (100%)
- Invest, lend or guarantee
  - No instrument fits this combination.
- Pool or align Member States and national programmes
  - EuroHPC JU quantum computer procurement (100%)
Skills and talent: train or attract people
- Fund others' projects (grants)
  - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (100%)
  - ERA Chairs (100%)
  - ERC grant (79%)
- Buy as a public customer (procurement)
  - No instrument fits this combination.
- Invest, lend or guarantee
  - No instrument fits this combination.
- Pool or align Member States and national programmes
  - Teaming for Excellence (79%)
  - Chips competence centres (79%)
Scale up companies: finance and growth
- Fund others' projects (grants)
  - EIC Accelerator (100%)
  - Digital Europe SME support action (79%)
  - EUREKA and Eurostars (79%)
- Buy as a public customer (procurement)
  - No instrument fits this combination.
- Invest, lend or guarantee
  - EIC Accelerator (100%)
  - EIC Fund (equity) (100%)
  - InvestEU (100%)
- Pool or align Member States and national programmes
  - EUREKA and Eurostars (79%)
  - Chips competence centres (58%)
Coordinate, network, align programmes or standards
- Fund others' projects (grants)
  - Horizon Europe CSA (100%)
  - Programme co-fund (co-funded partnership) (100%)
  - Co-programmed partnership (100%)
- Buy as a public customer (procurement)
  - Institutionalised partnership (JU) (100%)
  - Digital Europe procurement (58%)
  - Framework contract (58%)
- Invest, lend or guarantee
  - No instrument fits this combination.
- Pool or align Member States and national programmes
  - Programme co-fund (co-funded partnership) (100%)
  - Co-programmed partnership (100%)
  - Institutionalised partnership (JU) (100%)
Build industrial or manufacturing capacity
- Fund others' projects (grants)
  - Chips JU pilot lines (100%)
  - Horizon Europe IA (79%)
  - Institutionalised partnership (JU) (79%)
- Buy as a public customer (procurement)
  - Institutionalised partnership (JU) (79%)
- Invest, lend or guarantee
  - InvestEU (79%)
  - EIB venture debt (79%)
  - EIC Accelerator (58%)
- Pool or align Member States and national programmes
  - Chips JU pilot lines (100%)
  - IPCEI (100%)
  - Institutionalised partnership (JU) (79%)

Worked examples

Install a quantum computer for European users
A Member State and its national supercomputing centre want a quantum computer coupled to a supercomputer, open to European users, owned by the public side.
The rules rank first: EuroHPC JU quantum computer procurement; Competitive dialogue
Open this example in the questionnaire
QKD testbeds and links across Member States
Several Member States want national quantum communication infrastructures connected across borders as part of EuroQCI.
The rules rank first: EuroQCI national projects (DEP); CEF Digital (EuroQCI links)
Open this example in the questionnaire
A public need no product meets yet
Public authorities need a quantum-safe sensing or timing service that does not exist yet; they want suppliers to develop and test competing solutions.
The rules rank first: Pre-commercial procurement (PCP); Innovation partnership
Open this example in the questionnaire
Scale up a quantum start-up
A European quantum hardware start-up with a working prototype needs money to grow and reach the market.
The rules rank first: EIC Accelerator; EIC Fund (equity)
Open this example in the questionnaire
A pilot line for quantum chips
Research and technology organisations from several Member States want a shared pilot line to fabricate and test quantum chips, with national co-funding.
The rules rank first: Chips JU pilot lines; IPCEI
Open this example in the questionnaire
Attract and train quantum researchers
A ministry wants more top quantum researchers and doctoral candidates in its universities.
The rules rank first: Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions; ERA Chairs
Open this example in the questionnaire
Align national quantum research programmes
National funders of several countries want joint calls for quantum research, each funding its own teams.
The rules rank first: Programme co-fund (co-funded partnership); QuantERA
Open this example in the questionnaire
Collaborative research on quantum sensing
Universities and companies from several countries want to advance quantum sensors from proof of concept to lab validation.
The rules rank first: Horizon Europe RIA; EuroHPC JU quantum grants
Open this example in the questionnaire
Support standardisation and a community roadmap
The Commission wants European stakeholders to coordinate their input to quantum standards and update a strategic roadmap.
The rules rank first: Horizon Europe CSA; COST Action
Open this example in the questionnaire
A first industrial deployment across Member States
Several Member States want to support companies in a large first industrial deployment of quantum technologies, beyond what the market would fund.
The rules rank first: IPCEI; Chips JU pilot lines
Open this example in the questionnaire
Buy an existing service
A Commission service needs a study or an off-the-shelf service on post-quantum migration, available on the market today.
The rules rank first: Open procedure; Restricted procedure
Open this example in the questionnaire
Network researchers across Europe and beyond
Researchers want a pan-European network with partners outside the EU for meetings, training schools and short visits.
The rules rank first: COST Action; Horizon Europe CSA
Open this example in the questionnaire
A regional quantum programme
A region wants to fund quantum testbeds and company projects from its regional development programme.
The rules rank first: Cohesion policy funds (ERDF); Teaming for Excellence
Open this example in the questionnaire

All instruments

European Research Council (ERC) grants: Starting, Consolidator, Advanced, Synergy, ERC Plus and Proof of Concept (Partly verified)

Kind

Grant (the beneficiaries carry out and own the work)

What it is for

The ERC funds talented individual researchers and their teams to pursue frontier research in any field, selected through Union-wide competition on excellence alone, regardless of nationality. (Regulation (EU) 2021/695 establishing Horizon Europe, laying down its rules for participation and dissemination, Annex I, Pillar I, point (a) ERC)
The ERC Proof of Concept Grant lets holders of ERC main grants explore the commercial and social innovation potential of their ERC-funded research. (ERC Work Programme 2027, Annex to Commission Decision C(2026)4907, Section 2.1.1 Objectives, p. 38)

Designed by

The independent ERC Scientific Council establishes the ERC strategy, its work programme and the peer-review and evaluation methods; the Commission may depart from its positions only if it considers the Specific Programme Decision not respected. (Council Decision (EU) 2021/764 establishing the Specific Programme implementing Horizon Europe, Article 9(2))
The ERC 2027 work programme states that it is established by the ERC Scientific Council and then adopted by the Commission (Decision C(2026)4907). (ERC Work Programme 2027, Annex to Commission Decision C(2026)4907, About this Document, p. 4 and footnote 1)

Implemented by

An ERC dedicated implementation structure is responsible for the administrative implementation and execution of the ERC component and supports the Scientific Council. (Council Decision (EU) 2021/764 establishing the Specific Programme implementing Horizon Europe, Article 10(1))
Calls are run by the European Research Council Executive Agency (ERCEA), whose Director may shift call opening dates or deadlines. (ERC Work Programme 2027, Annex to Commission Decision C(2026)4907, Table 1 footnote 5, p. 10)

Who can apply or take part

Starting, Consolidator, Advanced and ERC Plus grants support a single Principal Investigator and team; Synergy grants fund two to four Principal Investigators with a corresponding PI. (ERC Work Programme 2027, Annex to Commission Decision C(2026)4907, Section 1.1, p. 11)
Researchers of any age and nationality may apply if they will carry out the work at a host institution based in an EU Member State or Associated Country. (ERC Work Programme 2027, Annex to Commission Decision C(2026)4907, Section 1.4.2.2, p. 18)
For the 2027 calls, Starting Grant applicants need a PhD defended more than 0 and up to 10 years before 1 January 2027, and Consolidator applicants more than 5 and up to 15 years, with extensions for documented circumstances. (ERC Work Programme 2027, Annex to Commission Decision C(2026)4907, Table 4 The Eligibility Period, p. 18)
The host institution must be a legal entity established in an EU Member State or Associated Country and must confirm its support in a binding host institution letter. (ERC Work Programme 2027, Annex to Commission Decision C(2026)4907, Sections 1.4.1 and 1.4.2.4, pp. 17 and 20)
Proof of Concept grants are only open to Principal Investigators whose proposals draw substantially on their ERC main grant. (ERC Work Programme 2027, Annex to Commission Decision C(2026)4907, Section 2.1.1, p. 38)

Funding rate or co-funding

Starting, Consolidator and Synergy grants reimburse actual costs at 100% of direct costs plus a 25% flat rate for indirect costs; Advanced and ERC Plus grants are single lump sums. (ERC Work Programme 2027, Annex to Commission Decision C(2026)4907, Section 1.2, p. 14)

Typical size

Maximum grant amounts are EUR 1 500 000 (Starting, 60 months), EUR 2 000 000 (Consolidator, 60 months), EUR 2 500 000 (Advanced, 60 months), EUR 7 000 000 (ERC Plus, 84 months) and EUR 10 000 000 (Synergy, 72 months). (ERC Work Programme 2027, Annex to Commission Decision C(2026)4907, Table 3, p. 15)
Additional funding of up to EUR 1 000 000 (Starting, Consolidator, Advanced) or EUR 4 000 000 (Synergy) may be requested; ERC Plus gets none; PIs relocating from outside the EU/Associated Countries may request up to EUR 2 000 000. (ERC Work Programme 2027, Annex to Commission Decision C(2026)4907, Table 3 and footnote 16, p. 15)
ERC 2027 call budgets: Starting EUR 594 m (about 373 grants), Consolidator EUR 618 m (296), Advanced EUR 798 m (311), Synergy EUR 500 m (48), ERC Plus EUR 210 m (30). (ERC Work Programme 2027, Annex to Commission Decision C(2026)4907, Table 1, p. 10)
A Proof of Concept grant is a lump sum of EUR 150 000 for 18 months; the 2027 PoC call has an indicative EUR 60 000 000. (ERC Work Programme 2027, Annex to Commission Decision C(2026)4907, Section 2.1.2, p. 39)

Maturity (TRL)

Not stated in the sources read.

Who owns the results

Beneficiaries own the results they generate. (Regulation (EU) 2021/695 establishing Horizon Europe, laying down its rules for participation and dissemination, Article 38(1))
Specific provisions on ownership, exploitation, transfer, licensing and access rights may apply to ERC actions, set out in the grant agreement. (Regulation (EU) 2021/695 establishing Horizon Europe, laying down its rules for participation and dissemination, Article 42(1)-(2))
For up to four years after the action the granting authority may object to transfers of ownership or exclusive licensing of results, and in a public emergency it may require non-exclusive licences. (ERC Work Programme 2027, Annex to Commission Decision C(2026)4907, Section 1.7.4 Intellectual Property Rights, p. 37)
ERC grants are portable: a PI may ask to transfer the grant to a new beneficiary under conditions in the Model Grant Agreement. (ERC Work Programme 2027, Annex to Commission Decision C(2026)4907, Section 1.2, Table 3 footnote 17, p. 15)

Time to grant or contract

The Horizon Europe maxima of 5 months to inform applicants and 8 months to sign may be exceeded for ERC actions. (Regulation (EU) 2021/695 establishing Horizon Europe, laying down its rules for participation and dissemination, Article 31(1) and 31(3))
Provisional 2027 timeline: Starting Grant deadline 14 October 2026 with grant signature by 22 December 2027; Consolidator deadline 12 January 2027 with signature by 8 April 2028. (ERC Work Programme 2027, Annex to Commission Decision C(2026)4907, Table 1, p. 10)

Legal basis

Horizon Europe Regulation: ERC under Pillar I with EUR 15 027 000 000 indicative for 2021-2027; definition of 'ERC frontier research action'. (Regulation (EU) 2021/695 establishing Horizon Europe, laying down its rules for participation and dissemination, Article 12(2)(a)(i); Article 2 definitions)
The ERC, its Scientific Council and dedicated implementation structure are established by the Specific Programme Decision. (Council Decision (EU) 2021/764 establishing the Specific Programme implementing Horizon Europe, Articles 8-10)

Work programme, committee or other step needed

The ERC work programme is established by the Scientific Council and adopted under the advisory procedure; the examination procedure applies only if the Commission departs from it. (Council Decision (EU) 2021/764 establishing the Specific Programme implementing Horizon Europe, Article 13(2)(a))
ERC actions are excluded from the requirement for comitology approval of individual funding decisions of EUR 2.5 million or more. (Council Decision (EU) 2021/764 establishing the Specific Programme implementing Horizon Europe, Article 13(4)(a))

Conditions and limits

Excellence is the sole award criterion for ERC frontier research proposals. (Regulation (EU) 2021/695 establishing Horizon Europe, laying down its rules for participation and dissemination, Article 28(2))
ERC frontier research actions may be carried out by one legal entity if it is established in a Member State or associated country. (Regulation (EU) 2021/695 establishing Horizon Europe, laying down its rules for participation and dissemination, Article 22(3))
Proposals scored 'A' but unfunded may be funded with Member State shared-management funds transferred to Horizon Europe, with portability then limited to that Member State. (ERC Work Programme 2027, Annex to Commission Decision C(2026)4907, Table 1 footnote 6, p. 10; footnote 17, p. 15)

Quantum examples

OPEN-2QS (Open 2D Quantum Simulator), ERC Synergy Grant call ERC-2024-SyG, EU contribution EUR 9 981 952, 2025-2031. (CORDIS: OPEN-2QS - Open 2D Quantum Simulator, CORDIS project 101164443 (call code from CORDIS programme data))
EQUATE (early fault-tolerant quantum computers: characterisation, testing and emulation), ERC Starting Grant ERC-2026-STG, EU contribution EUR 1 498 972, starting March 2027. (CORDIS: EQUATE - Early fault-tolerant quantum computers, CORDIS project 101300540)
ComPQT (compact plug-and-play quantum network terminals), ERC Proof of Concept ERC-2025-POC, EUR 150 000, October 2025 to March 2027. (CORDIS: ComPQT - Compact plug-and-play quantum network terminals, CORDIS project 101248542)
In CORDIS, 244 of the 642 Horizon Europe projects with 'quantum' in the title are under the ERC programme line HORIZON.1.1. (CORDIS project search (JSON): Horizon Europe projects with 'quantum' in the title, with programme/call codes, CORDIS search result counts by programme code)

Who to contact

European Research Council Executive Agency (ERCEA)

Next steps

The ERC is investigator-driven: there are no topics to set; researchers apply with a host institution.
To attract top researchers, point them to the ERC calls and support hosts.

Verification

Partly verified. I read the ERC Work Programme 2027 PDF (sections 1.1-1.7 and 2.1), plus Articles 8-10 and 13 of Decision 2021/764 and the cited articles of Regulation 2021/695 via the Publications Office. erc.europa.eu grant pages returned HTTP 403, so ERCEA is named from the work programme text and no ERC web page was read.

Back to all instruments

Open an instrument for all its facts, sources, contact and next steps. The CSV and JSON downloads hold the whole knowledge base.

Horizon Europe: collaborative actions

Horizon Europe Research and Innovation Action (RIA) Grant (the beneficiaries carry out and own the work) (Verified)
Horizon Europe Innovation Action (IA) Grant (the beneficiaries carry out and own the work) (Partly verified)
Horizon Europe Coordination and Support Action (CSA) Grant (the beneficiaries carry out and own the work) (Verified)
Horizon Europe inducement and recognition prizes Prize (Partly verified)

Horizon Europe: researchers, excellence and widening

European Research Council (ERC) grants: Starting, Consolidator, Advanced, Synergy, ERC Plus and Proof of Concept Grant (the beneficiaries carry out and own the work) (Partly verified)
Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions (Doctoral Networks, Postdoctoral Fellowships, Staff Exchanges, COFUND) Grant (the beneficiaries carry out and own the work) (Verified)
ERA Chairs (Widening participation and spreading excellence) Grant (the beneficiaries carry out and own the work) (Partly verified)
Teaming for Excellence (and the 2026 Teaming Synergies action) Grant (the beneficiaries carry out and own the work) (Partly verified)
Twinning Grant (the beneficiaries carry out and own the work) (Partly verified)

European Innovation Council

EIC Pathfinder (Open and Challenges) Grant (the beneficiaries carry out and own the work) (Verified)
EIC Transition Grant (the beneficiaries carry out and own the work) (Verified)
EIC Accelerator (grant, blended finance, equity-only) Equity or blended finance (Verified)
EIC Fund (equity component, EIC STEP Scale Up, Scaleup Europe Fund compartment) Equity or blended finance (Partly verified)

European partnerships and Missions

Horizon Europe Programme Co-fund Action (and co-funded European partnerships) Grant (the beneficiaries carry out and own the work) (Partly verified)
Co-programmed European Partnerships Partnership or body that runs other instruments (Partly verified)
Institutionalised European Partnerships (Article 185/187 TFEU, e.g. Joint Undertakings such as EuroHPC JU and Chips JU) Partnership or body that runs other instruments (Partly verified)
Horizon Europe Missions Grant (the beneficiaries carry out and own the work) (Verified)

Digital Europe Programme

Digital Europe Programme simple grants and lump-sum grants Grant (the beneficiaries carry out and own the work) (Partly verified)
Digital Europe Programme SME Support Actions Grant (the beneficiaries carry out and own the work) (Partly verified)
Digital Europe Programme procurement Procurement (a public buyer contracts and pays for a result) (Partly verified)
European Digital Infrastructure Consortium (EDIC) Partnership or body that runs other instruments (Partly verified)
DEP EuroQCI calls (national QCI deployment, industrial QKD, coordination) and the 2025 IRIS2-funded EuroQCI call Grant (the beneficiaries carry out and own the work) (Partly verified)

Innovation procurement (PCP and PPI)

Horizon Europe Pre-commercial procurement (PCP) and Public procurement of innovative solutions (PPI) actions Grant (the beneficiaries carry out and own the work) (Partly verified)
Pre-commercial procurement (PCP) Procurement (a public buyer contracts and pays for a result) (Partly verified)
Public procurement of innovative solutions (PPI) Procurement (a public buyer contracts and pays for a result) (Partly verified)

Finance: equity, loans and guarantees

InvestEU (Regulation (EU) 2021/523) Loan, venture debt or guarantee (Partly verified)
EIB financing (venture debt, European Growth Finance Facility, EIB quantum investments) Loan, venture debt or guarantee (Not verified)
EIF equity (European Tech Champions Initiative, ESCALAR, InvestEU equity products) Equity or blended finance (Not verified)

State aid and IPCEI

Important Projects of Common European Interest (IPCEI) - Communication 2021/C 528/02 State aid rules (national money under EU rules) (Verified)
General Block Exemption Regulation (Commission Regulation (EU) No 651/2014) - R&D aid State aid rules (national money under EU rules) (Partly verified)
Framework for State aid for research and development and innovation (2022/C 414/01) State aid rules (national money under EU rules) (Partly verified)

Funds managed by the Member States

Cohesion policy funds (ERDF Regulation (EU) 2021/1058; CPR (EU) 2021/1060; STEP Regulation (EU) 2024/795) Shared management (Member State programmes) (Partly verified)
Recovery and Resilience Facility (Regulation (EU) 2021/241) Shared management (Member State programmes) (Partly verified)

Networks and national partnerships

QuantERA (network of national research funders in quantum technologies; joint transnational calls) Grant (the beneficiaries carry out and own the work) (Verified)
COST Actions (European Cooperation in Science and Technology) Networking support (Verified)
EUREKA network projects and Eurostars-3 (European Partnership on Innovative SMEs, Horizon Europe co-funded partnership) Grant (the beneficiaries carry out and own the work) (Partly verified)

How the navigator decides

Each answer you give (not "Not sure", and not a question set aside for your goal) is compared with the fit profile of every instrument. An instrument earns the question's weight when your answer is one of the options its profile lists; for the goal it earns the weight times the level its profile gives that goal (3 a primary purpose, 2 a common use, 1 possible but not its main use, 0 not for this). The score is the share of the weights it earned among those it could earn, in per cent; a question its profile leaves empty does not matter for it and counts neither way. A mismatch on a blocking question (the goal at level 0, how the EU acts, who must own the results, sensitivity) rules the instrument out and the reason is shown. Ties go to the higher goal level, then to the order of the knowledge base. Results at 75% or more are a strong fit, at 55% or more a good fit, from 40% a possible fit; at most eight are shown. The decision tree uses the same rules with the goal and the role answers alone. Nothing is learned from use and no AI is involved.

Weights of the questions
Question	Weight	A mismatch rules the instrument out
Goal	30	Yes
How the EU acts	18	Yes
Maturity	12	No
Who acts	10	No
Countries	8	No
National co-funding	6	No
Budget	6	No
Timeframe	5	No
Ownership of results	10	Yes
Sensitivity	8	Yes

48 instruments, 165 official sources; compiled 2026-10-25, assembled 2026-11-02; reviewed every 180 days, since work programmes change.

Knowledge base of EU instruments for the instrument navigator, compiled from official sources (EUR-Lex read through the Publications Office where EUR-Lex refused automated reading, the Funding & Tenders Portal, work programmes, Commission, agency and Joint Undertaking pages, CORDIS) on the dates shown with each source. Each fact is written in the portal's own words with its source and locator; figures appear only where the source states them. A record marked partly verified has at least one fact read on a summary page or a key page that could not be read. The fit profiles and weights are the portal's editorial rule set, documented in docs/modules/instrument-navigator.md, not official guidance.

Official pages that could not be read when compiled

https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:32021R0695: HTTP 202 with empty body (EUR-Lex bot challenge); read via Publications Office (2026-10-25)
https://erc.europa.eu/apply-grant/starting-grant: HTTP 403 (2026-10-25)
https://erc.europa.eu/apply-grant/proof-concept: HTTP 403 (2026-10-25)
https://ec.europa.eu/info/funding-tenders/opportunities/docs/2021-2027/horizon/wp-call/2026-2027/wp-2-msca-actions_horizon-2026-2027_en.pdf: HTTP 404 (wrong filename; correct file read instead) (2026-10-25)
https://eic.ec.europa.eu/investment-opportunities/eic-fund_en: HTTP 404 (2026-10-25)
https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/activities/work-programmes-digital: HTTP 403 (curl, WebFetch and browser pane) (2026-10-25)
https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/library/work-programme-2025-2027-digital-europe-programme-digital: HTTP 403 (2026-10-25)
https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/library/amendment-digital-europe-programme-and-work-programme-2025-2027: HTTP 403 (2026-10-25)
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:32021R0694: HTTP 202 with empty body; read via Publications Office instead (2026-10-25)
https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/policies/edic: HTTP 403 (2026-10-25)
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:32022D2481: HTTP 202 with empty body; read via Publications Office (2026-10-25)
https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/policies/european-quantum-communication-infrastructure-euroqci: HTTP 403 (2026-10-25)
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:32021R1153: HTTP 202 with empty body; read via Publications Office (2026-10-25)
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:32021R1173: HTTP 202 with empty body (bot challenge); read via Publications Office instead (2026-10-25)
https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/news/eu-invests-eu65-million-quantum-chips: HTTP 403 (2026-10-25)
https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/factpages/european-chips-act-chips-europe-initiative: HTTP 403 (2026-10-25)
https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/news/chips-competence-centres-strengthen-semiconductor-expertise-across-europe-about-kick: HTTP 403 (2026-10-25)
https://www.chips-ju.europa.eu/CompCentres/: Page Not Found (2026-10-25)
https://aar2024.chips-ju.europa.eu/annual-report/competence-centres: HTTP 404 (2026-10-25)
https://www.cost.eu/funding/how-to-get-funding/: HTTP 404 (2026-10-25)
https://eurekanetwork.org/programmes-and-calls/eurostars/: HTTP 403 (2026-10-25)
https://eurekanetwork.org/programmes-and-calls/network-projects/: HTTP 403 (2026-10-25)
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:32024R2509: AWS WAF challenge / empty content; read via Publications Office instead (2026-10-25)
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:32014L0024: AWS WAF challenge; read via Publications Office instead (2026-10-25)
https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/policies/pre-commercial-procurement: HTTP 403 (WebFetch, curl and browser) (2026-10-25)
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:52021XC0706(02): EUR-Lex empty / WAF; the guidance was read from the Commission docsroom PDF (2026-10-25)
https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/policies/public-procurement-innovative-solutions: HTTP 403 (WebFetch, curl and browser) (2026-10-25)
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:32021R0697: Empty response (HTTP 202, 0 bytes); acts read via Publications Office instead (2026-10-25)
https://www.eib.org/en/products/equity/venture-debt/index: HTTP 403 (Cloudflare block) via curl, WebFetch and browser (2026-10-25)
https://www.eib.org/en/press/all/2022-207-finland-iqm-s-quantum-fabrication-facility-gets-a-eur35-million-boost-from-the-eib: HTTP 403 (Cloudflare block) (2026-10-25)
https://www.eif.org/etci/index.htm: HTTP 403 (2026-10-25)
https://www.eif.org/what_we_do/equity/escalar/index.htm: HTTP 403 (curl and WebFetch) (2026-10-25)
https://kohesio.ec.europa.eu/en/projects?keywords=quantum%20computer: HTTP 403 (curl and browser) (2026-10-25)
https://commission.europa.eu/business-economy-euro/economic-recovery/recovery-and-resilience-facility_en: Redirects to a language-selection page; content read at reforms-investments.ec.europa.eu instead (2026-10-25)
https://eda.europa.eu/what-we-do/eu-defence-initiatives/projects: HTTP 404 (2026-10-25)

Instrument navigator for policy makers

Questionnaire

Compare instruments

Decision tree

Worked examples

Install a quantum computer for European users

QKD testbeds and links across Member States

A public need no product meets yet

Scale up a quantum start-up

A pilot line for quantum chips

Attract and train quantum researchers

Align national quantum research programmes

Collaborative research on quantum sensing

Support standardisation and a community roadmap

A first industrial deployment across Member States

Buy an existing service

Network researchers across Europe and beyond

A regional quantum programme

All instruments

European Research Council (ERC) grants: Starting, Consolidator, Advanced, Synergy, ERC Plus and Proof of Concept (Partly verified)

Horizon Europe: collaborative actions

Horizon Europe: researchers, excellence and widening

European Innovation Council

European partnerships and Missions

Digital Europe Programme

Connecting Europe Facility (Digital)

Joint Undertakings (EuroHPC, Chips)

Procurement procedures (Financial Regulation)

Innovation procurement (PCP and PPI)

Finance: equity, loans and guarantees

State aid and IPCEI

Funds managed by the Member States

Networks and national partnerships

How the navigator decides