ERC's €628M investment sparks scientific renaissance among young scholars

The European Research Council (ERC) has announced today the winners of the latest round of its Starting Grants.

According to a European Commission press release, the funding, worth €628 million, will help researchers who stand at the beginning of their careers to launch their own projects, form their teams and pursue their best scientific ideas.

It is explained that the funding will enable researchers to, for example, study Venus' atmosphere to better understand habitability beyond Earth, analyse parasites that cause malaria, or investigate how algorithms are used at work to supervise employees. The funded research covers all domains of research from physics and engineering to life sciences and social sciences and humanities.

Τhis new round of grants is estimated to create some 2,600 jobs for postdoctoral fellows, PhD students and other research staff, according to the press release.

The winners of this competition represent 44 nationalities and will carry out their projects at universities and research centres across 24 EU Member States and countries associated to Horizon Europe, it is added.

It is also noted that in this latest call, 2,696 applicants submitted proposals and 14.8% will receive funding, adding that female researchers won some 43% of grants, an increase from 39% in 2022.