Science and Innovation

The Proof of Concept grants awarded by the European Research Council (the institution created in 2007 with the aim of granting funding for pioneering and excellent research) have largely gone to Barcelona. The grants, intended for frontier research (that which is innovative and provides new ideas) will grant a total of 22.5 million euros to 150 projects during 2025, with the aim of applying them practically and being able to market the different products that derive from them.

In Spain, these grants have financed 20 projects, of which 7 in Barcelona (endowed with 1.050.000 euros). The Catalan capital is once again consolidating itself as a leading city on the European scientific scene and is in third place, behind only Munich and Paris.

Proof of Concept

The aim of these Proof of Concept grants is to reward researchers who have already conducted a project funded by the European Research Council, in order to go further and now explore its commercial or social potential. The grants accompany the different beneficiaries to reduce the distance between the results of pioneering science and these first phases of commercialization or application to society. Each research group will receive 150.000 euros to be able to analyze the viability of the products and protect the results with intellectual property.

The figures once again highlight the good health enjoyed by the entire science ecosystem in Barcelona. The city is at the forefront of the entire state and occupies one of the first places in Europe in this area, with 22,688 publications, according to figures derived from the Knowledge Cities Ranking, prepared based on the Science Citation Index, a reference archive where all the contributions of indexed scientific journals are collected.

For the fourth deputy mayor of Economy, Housing, Finance and Tourism, Jordi Valls, “Barcelona’s good position in obtaining these grants shows that our city is not only the undisputed Spanish capital of research, but one of the main ones in Europe. And it is, very especially, in frontier research, the most advanced”. And he adds that “this grant will help us strengthen the impact of research in the creation of companies and jobs, and demonstrates the success of Barcelona’s commitment to science and research as an economic engine and progress, something we want to continue to deepen.”

These grants will help consolidate the city’s commitment to innovation and science as drivers of economic and social progress. A strategy that it wants to continue to deepen in the future, as evidenced by the Barcelona Impulsa plan, the Strategic Plan for Science and Innovation or the boost to projects within the Barcelona Innovation Coast that will double investment during the period 2025-2027.

Pioneering projects

The Proof of Concept grants cover various areas of research, such as artificial intelligence applications to predict the escalation of conflicts, or innovative tools such as the new platform for testing new cancer drugs.

The subsidized projects, including that of Laura Soucek (who received one of the awards at the Premis Ciutat de Barcelona), are the following:

• André Gröger – Barcelona School of Economics– Monitoring War Destruction
• Jose Ignacio Martin- Subero – IDIBAPS Institut d’Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer– Translating Epigenetic Memory into Personalized Prognostic Solutions for Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia
• Xavier Rovira Clavé–  Institut de Bioenginyeria de Catalunya– An evolution-focused platform for cancer drug discovery
• Giulio Ruffini –  Neuroelectrics Neuroelectrics – GALVANIScalable Workflow Innovation for Focal tES Therapy
• Manuel Salmeron Sánchez – Institut de Bioenginyeria de Catalunya– Functional bioinks for engineered tissues
• Laura Soucek – Institut d’Investigació Oncològica de Vall Hebron– Bringing MYC inhibition to the brain by ultrasound Technology
• Victor Vilarassa – Institute of Environmental Assessment and water research (IDAEA) – Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas– A new paradigm for forecasting injection-induced earthquakes.

The ERC Proof of Concept 2025 programme includes two calls for proposals for proof of concept projects, with a total budget of €45 million. The second funding round will be open for new applications until 18 September.