Demonstrating place-based experimentation and innovation spaces as enabling environments for scaling EU Missions

Expected Outcome:

Project results are expected to contribute to all of the following expected outcomes:

• The territorial anchoring of the EU Mission(s) is strengthened through multi-layered governance
• Enabling environments for the scaling of novel solutions contributing to the EU Missions are established
• Analytical insights are turned into territorial experimentation and best practices for replication in a wide array of EU funding instruments

Scope:

This topic is a strategic instrument to support the transition to the second phase of the EU Missions’ lifecycle (2026–2030), focused on scaling up and wider deployment of novel mission-relevant solutions. To this end, territories (countries, regions and interregional partnerships) in EU Member States and Associated countries are called upon to design and demonstrate governance, regulatory experimentation, innovative public-public and public-private financing solutions, and procurement strategies that enable scaling. Consortia should be led by local authorities established in countries, regions and interregional partnerships.

Proposals submitted to this topic should:

• Address barriers at territorial level and build on them to demonstrate concrete governance, finance, and policy models that foster scaling and deployment of EU Missions across diverse territories.
• Provide operational support for the transition to the next MFF by delivering tested, replicable models suitable for multi-level governance and place-based implementation.
• Co-develop and demonstrate innovative governance, policy, and finance models that enable scaling and wider deployment of tested solutions on the ground.
• Support the co-creation of place-based and pathways allowing for scaling and wider take up of EU Missions across EU and associated country territories, integrating multi-level governance, regulatory experimentation, innovative public-public and public-private financing solutions and procurement strategies.
• Test innovative policy, governance and finance models that favour scaling EU Missions by creating enabling conditions allowing to overcome identified systemic constraints such as fragmented regulation, limited risk appetite, lack of blended financing, or insufficient cross-sector coordination. The models should demonstrate innovation impact pathways that facilitate wider deployment of solutions that are already proven but underutilised.
• Ensure continuous stakeholder engagement throughout the process of developing and testing new models. The focus on co-creation and participatory approaches will ensure credibility and legitimacy of the tested models and will build on the strong EU Missions community developed during the first phase of the EU Missions.

Rather than funding individual technologies, the topic should fund place-based models creating enabling conditions for scaling these technologies, combining policy, regulatory, financial and governance innovation. The projects activities should cover one or several EU Missions of choice of the local authorities involved in the actions.

Submissions open on 06 October 2026.

Part of call HORIZON-MISS-2026-07

Type of action: HORIZON Innovation Actions

Programme period: 2021 - 2027

Priorities: AI, DigitalAgenda

"> General conditions

1. Admissibility conditions: Proposal page limit and layout

described in Annex A and Annex E of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes.

Proposal page limits and layout: described in Part B of the Application Form available in the Submission System.

2. Eligible countries

described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes. A number of non-EU/non-Associated Countries that are not automatically eligible for funding have made specific provisions for making funding available for their participants in Horizon Europe projects. See the information in the Horizon Europe Programme Guide .

3. Other Eligibility Conditions

If projects use satellite-based earth observation, positioning, navigation and/or related timing data and services, beneficiaries must make use of Copernicus and/or Galileo/EGNOS (other data and services may additionally be used).

described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes.

4. Financial and operational capacity and exclusion

described in Annex C of the Work Programme General Annexes.

5a. Evaluation and award: Award criteria, scoring and thresholds

described in Annex D of the Work Programme General Annexes.

5b. Evaluation and award: Submission and evaluation processes

described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes and the Online Manual .

5c. Evaluation and award: Indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement

described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes.