The European Commission’s Next Generation Initiative (NGI) announces 41 new projects awarded NGI Zero grants, marking a significant step towards shaping the future of the internet. These projects, led by talented innovators, span across eight layers of the NGI technology stack, showcasing a diverse range of contributions, from trustworthy open hardware to services and applications empowering end-users with autonomy.
A notable highlight of this round of grants is the surge in open hardware projects and innovations, reflecting a growing interest in securing user autonomy at the chip level. However, the need for additional tools to realise this ambition is evident. The abundance of projects in this cycle signals a fruitful phase for reinforcing open-source practices within the hardware domain. Another noteworthy trend is the increasing popularity of memory-safe languages across various layers of the technology stack. These languages play a crucial role in protecting against memory safety vulnerabilities by automating memory management.
Two NGI Zero programs, namely the NGI0 Entrust and NGI0 Core programs, provided funding in this round. The NGI0 programs operate on a rolling call basis, with deadlines every two months. If you possess an innovative idea contributing to a human-centred internet, we encourage you to submit a proposal.
For a comprehensive list of the new innovations awarded NGI0 grants, visit the NGI0 webpage here.
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