The European Research Council (ERC) announced the conclusion of its competition for Proof of Concept funding. In this call, a total of 52 grants have now been awarded. Worth up to €150,000 each, these 'top up' grants are designed to help ERC-funded 'blue sky' research maximise value.

The grants of competition for Proof of Concept funding have been awarded by the European Research Council (ERC). This funding allows researchers who are already ERC grant holders to bridge the gap between research and the earliest stage of an innovation. In this call, a total of 52 grants have been awarded. Worth up to €150,000 each, these 'top up' grants are designed to help ERC-funded 'blue sky' research maximise value. The Proof of Concept call for 2012 is currently open to submissions.

The ERC announced that the projects awarded cover a range of topics, such as the development of a new drug to treat arthritis, the creation of floating robots to detect earthquakes inexpensively, and new ways of measuring the health of corals and aquatic plants. The funding can cover activities related to for instance intellectual property rights, investigation of commercial and business opportunities or technical validation.

The “Proof of Concept” funding initiative was launched in March 2011 by the European Research Council in order to contribute to stimulating innovation. The total funding of the first ERC Proof of Concept call is €10 millions and is foreseen to continue in 2012. The call is open to all Principal Investigators benefitting from an ongoing ERC grant or a grant that ended less than twelve months before the publication date of the call and it aims to stimulate scientific excellence in Europe by encouraging competition for funding between the very best, creative researchers of any nationality and age.