INNTERCONECTA-STEP 2026: The Call Is Not Open Yet. Your Project Should Be

INNTERCONECTA-STEP 2026 will open in October, with €138 million in grants available for collaborative R&D projects focused on strategic STEP technologies. The application period will run until November, with the resolution expected during the first half of 2027.

But for companies considering applying, there is an important message behind these dates:

October is not when preparation should start. It is when submission starts.

The CDTI has announced the call in advance precisely to give companies and research organisations time to develop and strengthen their proposals.

That makes the weeks ahead particularly important.

A significant budget, but a targeted opportunity

INNTERCONECTA-STEP supports collaborative R&D projects focused on three strategic technology areas:

• Digital and deep technologies

• Clean and resource-efficient technologies

• Biotechnology

The 2026 call also includes a new feature: €10 million reserved for projects related to women's health.

However, having a project in one of these sectors is not enough.

The proposal needs to demonstrate a clear connection with STEP objectives and explain precisely what technology is being developed, what technological challenge is being addressed and what advance the project will deliver.

What should companies be doing now?

There are four elements that should already be taking shape before the call opens.

1. Define the technological challenge.
The project should be built around a genuine R&D challenge, with clear technological uncertainty and a measurable advance beyond the current state of the art.

2. Build the right consortium.
Partners should bring complementary capabilities and have clearly differentiated roles. The consortium should be part of the project's technical logic, not simply an eligibility requirement.

3. Structure the work plan.
The main activities, responsibilities and expected results should be sufficiently defined to show how the project will address the technological challenge.

4. Align the budget with the work.
The distribution of costs between partners should reflect the activities they actually perform and the resources required to deliver them.

These are decisions that are difficult to make — and even harder to fix — once the application period has started.

Competition makes preparation even more important

The previous INNTERCONECTA-STEP call received 318 applications requesting more than €518 million, well above the initial available budget.

The lesson is straightforward: a significant funding envelope does not necessarily mean an easy funding opportunity.

When competition is high, project quality and strategic positioning become critical.

The deadline is in November. The preparation deadline is now.

The official call may not open until October, but companies that want to compete for INNTERCONECTA-STEP 2026 should already be working on the fundamentals.

The strongest proposals will not necessarily be those written fastest once the call opens.

They will be those that arrive in October with the difficult decisions already made: the right technology, the right consortium, a coherent R&D plan and a clear strategic rationale.

INNTERCONECTA-STEP 2026 is not open yet.

But for companies targeting this €138 million funding opportunity, the project should already be taking shape.