27/01/2026 (Agence Europe) – On Tuesday 27 January, the European Research Council (ERC) unveiled the results of its latest round of ‘Proof of Concept’ 2025 grants: 136 projects have been awarded grants of €150,000 each. This funding must facilitate the practical or commercial use of scientific discoveries in everyday life. A total of 300 projects have been supported under the ERC 2025 programme, with a budget of €45 million from the EU’s ‘Horizon Europe’ framework programme for research and innovation. These projects include, for example, the use of satellite images and artificial intelligence to assess damage in wartime, ultrasound techniques to visualise the smallest blood vessels in a human kidney and the development of cost-effective methods to protect buildings against earthquakes. (AD)