The European Commission reshapes the future of the Joint Undertakings

The European Commission has launched the process to define the future Joint Undertakings — institutionalised partnerships that bring together the European Union, industry and other public and private stakeholders to fund and manage large-scale research and innovation programmes — that will be incorporated into the next Framework Programme (FP10 or, as it is commonly referred to, Horizon Europe), covering the 2028–2034 period.

The first step has been the launch of a public consultation on the future Single Basic Act, the legislation that will govern these entities, the initiatives established under Article 185 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and the thematic priorities of the future European Partnerships. Open until 16th October 2026, the consultation seeks input from businesses, technology centres, universities, Member States and other stakeholders on how these instruments should evolve to strengthen Europe’s competitiveness. It is, however, only one element of a much broader strategic review and policy design process that Brussels has been developing over recent months.

What are the different stages in defining the future Joint Undertakings?

Alongside the public consultation, the Commission is carrying out a strategic exercise to shape the future portfolio of European Partnerships. The process combines several consultation mechanisms:

• a previous Call for Evidence;
• the current public consultation;
• targeted consultations with Member States and associated countries;
• meetings with the existing Joint Undertakings;
• consultations with industry and research organisations; and
• an impact assessment process that will lead to the legislative proposal for the future Single Basic Act.

The consultations with Member States, which play an active role in defining strategic priorities and assessing future institutionalised partnerships, are proving particularly significant. These discussions aim to identify which technological fields justify maintaining a Joint Undertaking-based structure and which could instead be supported through other instruments.

What is the expected timeline?

The design of the future Joint Undertakings will follow a phased timetable, enabling the European Commission to consolidate input from all relevant stakeholders before presenting the legislative proposal for the next Framework Programme.

Over the coming months, the European Commission will consolidate the feedback received, assess the different governance options and determine which institutionalised partnerships are genuinely needed to support the EU’s strategic priorities.

From today’s landscape to a more focused portfolio

Under the current Horizon Europe programme, more than 50 European Partnerships — including institutionalised, co-programmed and co-funded partnerships — coexist within a landscape that many stakeholders consider overly complex and fragmented.

As part of the legislative package for the next Framework Programme, Brussels has proposed streamlining this landscape into around 15 major European Partnerships, aligned with the EU’s strategic priorities and designed to deliver greater industrial and technological impact.

Under the new model, tripartite partnerships involving the European Commission, Member States and industry would become the default approach, while Joint Undertakings and Article 185 initiatives would be reserved exclusively for areas where their scale, complexity or strategic importance provides a clear justification.

This represents a significant shift from the current model and will require each future Joint Undertaking to demonstrate its genuine European added value.

The portfolio process: deciding which Joint Undertakings Europe needs

Developing the new portfolio is arguably the most important element of the process. Rather than simply deciding which Joint Undertakings should continue, the European Commission is assessing which major industrial, technological and societal challenges require an institutionalised partnership and which can be addressed through other funding instruments.

To that end, the Commission is assessing factors such as:

• the expected impact on Europe's competitiveness;
• the ability to leverage public and private investment;
• the catalytic effect on industrial value chains;
• synergies across different technology sectors;
• complementarity with the future European Competitiveness Fund; and
• the contribution of each partnership across the entire innovation journey, from research through to market deployment.

What does Zabala Innovation recommend for the future of the Joint Undertakings?

Zabala Innovation believes that the future Joint Undertakings should be strengthened around four key principles:

Open and transparent governance, with inclusive mechanisms that enable the participation of all relevant actors across the value chain and a bottom-up approach to setting priorities.

Broad and balanced participation, ensuring meaningful opportunities for large companies, SMEs, technology providers, research organisations and other innovation stakeholders, while also promoting a more balanced geographical representation across Member States.

A more open and centralised funding model, inspired by schemes such as the European Defence Fund, combining strategic actions with competitive calls and relying primarily on centrally managed EU funding, thereby reducing the barriers associated with national co-funding.

Greater innovation impact, by encouraging the integration of existing initiatives to reduce fragmentation across the ecosystem and supporting the full innovation cycle, from research through validation, demonstration and the deployment of solutions (up to Technology Readiness Level 8 – TRL 8).

A defining moment for Europe’s innovation ecosystem

The decisions taken over the coming months will determine how Europe organises collaboration between public institutions, industry and the scientific community to address the major technological and industrial challenges of the 2028–2034 period.

The public consultation therefore offers an opportunity for all stakeholders across the European R&I ecosystem to help shape a partnerships model that is more strategic, more efficient and better equipped to strengthen Europe’s competitiveness.