European Research Council awards €838 million to 319 top scientists to deliver groundbreaking discoveries

The European Research Council (ERC) has unveiled the winners of its 2025 Advanced Grants, awarding €838 million to 319 leading researchers across Europe. These prestigious grants empower senior scientists to pursue high-risk, high-reward research with the potential to deliver groundbreaking discoveries.

Funded under the EU's multi-billion research programme Horizon Europe, the grants support ambitious and curiosity-driven projects spanning diverse fields, from medicine and neuroscience to mathematics and quantum physics.

The new grantees' work will cover a wide range of subjects, such as vulnerability to drug addiction, women's fertility and health, and stuttering. Other fields of research include the development of new mathematical and algorithmic tools to tackle the growing complexity of large-scale networks, from transport systems to the internet, as well as magnets and quantum materials.

The grantees will conduct their research at universities and research centres in 24 EU Member States and associated countries. The winners represent 30+ nationalities, including 52 Germans, 45 Britons, and 29 Italians.

This year's competition saw a 31% surge in applications, with 3,329 proposals submitted, with 9.6% selected for funding. The projects are expected to create over 3,000 new jobs within the grantees' research teams.

‘Choose Europe' initiative attracting global talent

As part of the ‘Choose Europe for Science' initiative—designed to attract and retain top researchers in Europe—the ERC now offers relocating scientists up to €2 million extra to establish new labs or research teams in Europe.

This year, 13 researchers based outside Europe (4% of winners) secured funding – nine from the United States, two from Australia and two from Canada – up from four (1.4% of successful applicants) last year. Seven of these scientists took advantage of the additional relocation funding.

Applications from researchers based outside of Europe also tripled, rising from 44 in 2024 to 164 in 2025, demonstrating growing global interest in Europe as a hub for cutting-edge research.

Next steps

The newly selected grantees will now begin their five-year research projects.

The next Advanced Grants 2026 scheme is open with the deadline for applications set for 27 August 2026.

Background

The ERC, set up by the European Union in 2007, is the premier European funding organisation for excellent frontier research. It offers four core grant schemes: Starting Grants, Consolidator Grants, Advanced Grants and Synergy Grants. With its additional Proof of Concept Grant scheme, the ERC helps grantees to bridge the gap between their pioneering research and early phases of its commercialisation. The ERC is led by an independent governing body, the Scientific Council. Its €16 billion budget is part of the Horizon Europe programme.

For more information

List of winners