EIC Tech Report 2026 identifies 25 emerging deep tech signals to support Europe’s strategic autonomy and resilience

The European Innovation Council (EIC) has published the EIC Tech Report 2026. It identifies 25 signals of emerging deep technologies at low to mid maturity levels, that may play a key role in shaping Europe’s future innovation, industrial and market capabilities. They are based on EIC portfolio data from 2021 to 2025, including both funded projects and high-quality non-funded proposals.

Three domains of strategic relevance

The 25 signals highlight technological developments with potential relevance for Europe’s competitiveness, resilience and strategic autonomy across three domains aligned with the Strategic Technologies for Europe Platform (STEP):

The report provides a curated snapshot rather than an exhaustive mapping of emerging technologies. These signals are not predictions, rankings or funding priorities, but structured insights that may evolve into more defined technological trajectories through further validation, scaling or convergence.

The EIC covers the full innovation lifecycle, from early research to market deployment, generating unique portfolio-based evidence on emerging deep tech developments. The report transforms EIC data into actionable intelligence, strengthening feedback from early innovation to EU policymaking and contributing to EU foresight capacity.

The selection of signals was guided by scientific and technological novelty and their potential relevance for Europe’s resilience and strategic autonomy. Their assessment was based on a combined quantitative and qualitative methodology, steered by EIC Programme Managers and external experts, and supported by the Joint Research Centre.