Big Data Innovation Hubs

Topic description

Specific Challenge:

The challenge is to break "data silos" and stimulate sharing, re-using and trading of data assets by launching a second-generation data-driven innovation hub, federating data sources and fostering collaborative initiatives with relevant digital innovation hubs. This shall promote new business opportunities notably for SMEs as part of the Common European Data Space.

All grants under this topic will be subject to Article 30.3 of the grant agreement (Commission right to object to transfers or licensing).

This topic calls for Digital Innovation Hubs that strengthen European SMEs and empower European citizens by supporting them to use and combine data sources from different sectors and communities (e.g. retail, tourism, manufacturing, finance and insurance, media, healthcare, consumer support, transport, energy, public administration…) to develop innovative products and services. Special attention should be paid to fostering and facilitating the "fitness to the market" of the new solutions and data-driven business concepts, and to introducing best practices to sectors whose business models are not yet data-driven.

• Sub-topic 1: Federate and network the relevant actions and initiatives^[1], especially digital innovation hubs (including national and regional hubs), that contribute to the creation of a Common European Data Space. Targeted organizations and individuals, especially SMEs, web entrepreneurs and start-ups, will be attracted to use federated data sources (including data platforms), digital infrastructures, tools and methods as accelerators for developing innovative products and services based on data sharing across sectors and borders. The federating hub is expected to run specific communication and training activities (e.g. on tools, data sources and stakeholder needs) and address, where appropriate, data standardization and interoperability issues.
• Sub-topic 2: Select, launch and incubate innovation experiments in view of bringing to the market new solutions and services based on secure and trusted data value chains, such as those based on actions resulting from ICT-14-2016-2017 and ICT-18-2016. Appropriate computing infrastructure, tools and support services (e.g. for GDPR compliance and data mentoring) must be made available by the Innovation Actions. Each experiment may involve support to third parties as a mini project following an open call, up to the amount of EUR 120.000^[2] for each such project.
• Sub-topic 3: Select, launch and incubate innovation experiments for data driven services and tools able to reshape the media value chain, including social media. Experiments should involve one or both of the following aspects:
  1. to explore new ways in which citizens can exploit data to better target and extend the reach of user generated content so as to increase content diversity, transparency and accountability, in a way that enables bottom-up quality journalism, science education or digital democracy.
  2. to explore new ways in which artists and more generally the creative sectors could be integrated in the development of innovative data exploitation for content creation^[3].

     For both aspects, experiments will consider the application of innovative business models and the necessary aggregation and secure handling of data available from sources such as sensors, observation data, visual data or social media supported by AI systems. Each experiment may involve support to third parties as a mini project following an open call, up to the amount of EUR 80.000^[2] for each such project.

One innovation action will be selected for sub-topic 1 and sub-topic 3. Innovation Actions are expected to collaborate closely with the CSAs under ICT-51-2020 and ICT-13-2018.

One innovation action will be selected for sub-topic 1 and one innovation action for sub-topic 3. At least one innovation action will be selected for sub-topic 2. Innovation Actions are expected to collaborate closely with the CSAs under ICT-51-2020 and ICT-13-2018.
The Commission considers that proposals requesting a contribution from the EU of EUR 8 to 12 million for sub-topic 1, EUR 5 to 7 million for subtopic 2, and EUR 5 million for sub-topic 3 would allow the sub-topics to be addressed appropriately. Nonetheless, this does not preclude submission and selection of proposals requesting other amounts.

• Substantial increase in the total amount of data shared and exchanged in the federated incubators, including closed/proprietary/industrial data;
• At least 150 SMEs and web entrepreneurs, including start-ups, participate in federated incubators, with an average 30% annual increase in the sales of the incubated companies;
• Improved service quality and user satisfaction resulting from optimized data-driven processes and business models.

Contractual Public-Private Partnerships (cPPPs)
BigData

[1]Including iSpaces and other relevant actions of the Big Data Value Association (www.bdva.eu), the European Open Science Cloud (www.eosc-portal.eu/), and the European Data Portal (www.europeandataportal.eu/).

[2]In line with Article 23 (7) of the Rules for Participation the amounts referred to in Article 137 of the Financial Regulation may be exceeded when this is necessary to achieve the objectives of the action.

[3]Building on activities developed as part of the STARTS initiative in DG CONNECT (ICT-32-2018 and www.starts.eu)

[4]In line with Article 23 (7) of the Rules for Participation the amounts referred to in Article 137 of the Financial Regulation may be exceeded when this is necessary to achieve the objectives of the action.