So as the EU institutions begin their deliberations on both the next multi-year budget (2028-2034) and a successor to Horizon Europe (FP10), how will Ms. von der Leyen’s rhetoric play out in reality? This question lies at the heart of the 2025 Science|Business Annual Network Conference. Among the key issues to be explored in February: Can member-states be persuaded to put more money into the R&I pot, or is a fully-fledged capital markets union the only realistic way to achieve the desired scale of investment? Will the prospective competitiveness fund transform R&I funding and governance for better or for worse? Should the Commission opt for revolution or evolution when it comes to FP10, not least in the context of the Widening agenda and industry-led partnerships? How would a “whole-of-government” approach work in practice in the next framework programme? Does Europe need its own ARPA-style mechanism to foster breakthrough innovation? And how will geopolitics affect future models of international cooperation and the balance between research security, integrity and openness?

On February 6, 2025, Science|Business will convene leading figures from the worlds of policy, industry and research, along with the members of its international Network, to address these questions and more. Join the event in Brussels and online for the first series of public high-level debates on the future of R&I as the EU’s new mandate begins in earnest.