Autonomous vessels in short sea shipping and inland waterways

In short

This is an Innovation Action under Horizon Europe. The budget is €15 million for about 2 grants of €7.5 million each. It is paid as a lump sum, so you report results instead of costs. Submission opens on 15 December 2026. Deadline: 14 April 2027.

What the call wants to achieve

• Demonstration of remote-control operation of vessels without crew, controlled remotely (degree three [1] ).
• Development of concepts for fully autonomous ship where the operating system on the vessel is able to make decisions and determine actions by itself (degree four [2] ).
• Strengthen market confidence in the integration of remote and automated navigation in ship types and services that may see a shortage of workforce in the next decade.
• Contribute to the EU Port Strategy and the EU Industrial Waterborne Strategy, as well as the EU AI Continent Action Plan [3] and the upcoming EU Apply AI Strategy.

Source: EU Funding & Tenders Portal, © European Union, CC BY 4.0, summarised. The official call text and its annexes decide eligibility, budget and deadlines.

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