The project has developed and implemented an Open Calls platform (
http://grants.ngiatlantic.eu/(öffnet in neuem Fenster)) operating as the core engine of the project architecture to provide an agile, dynamic cascade funded programme. The platform is used for a continuous open call for the external pool of evaluators (EPE), the individual open calls, and the platform for evaluation of the submitted applications. The platform also is coupled with the overall project site, which houses the operational functions of the project activities.
The project has initiated the fostering of an EU-US NGI experiments ecosystem, drawing upon the existing platforms in EU and US for bridging the communities to carry out NGI experiments, and the project has provided a Twinning Lab (
https://ngiatlantic.eu/twinning-lab(öffnet in neuem Fenster)) for a support system for twinning the teams to work productively together in development of applications for submission to the Open calls.
For the first year of the project in 2020, there was no specific funding available for US participants taking part in the open calls, which caused many questions from the applicants on this topic, and some challenges in garnering interest from the US communities. There had been a previous programme entitled the US National Science Foundation (NSF) ICE-T program – US-EU Internet Core & Edge Technologies (ICE-T), which started in the previous year before NGIatlantic.eu and, hence, was not aligned particularly with the project’s open calls. However, the project reached out to many of these ICE-T project participants in the US to see if they had interest in becoming involved in NGIatlantic.eu open calls, and some of them were interested and indeed participated in the project’s Twinning Lab and subsequent applications.
During 2020, the EC kept in regular contact with the NSF about a more specific programme with NGIatlantic.eu and this came to fruition on 16 February 2021 with the launch of a Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) Supplemental fund for existing NSF grant holders, NSF US-EU DCL 21-048 – a new dedicated supplemental fund for existing US NSF grantees to team up with NGIatlantic.eu partners if they are in successful NGIatlantic.eu applications. The project team and the European Commission officers had weekly virtual meetings with the NSF early in 2021 to ensure the DCL would be launched and become available for the project’s Open call 3 in time. To give an impression of the success of this NSF DCL program for USA – EU projects in NGIatlantic.eu as of February 2023, in open calls 3, 4, and 5 of NGIatlantic.eu there have been 20 applications submitted to the USA NSF DCL programs resulting in 11 NSF DCL awards in the open calls of NGIatlantic.eu (an overall >50% success rate). At the NGIatlantic.eu final meeting, the NSF announced that the DCL will be continued into Horizon Europe within HORIZON-CL4-2022-HUMAN-01-07 EU – USA – CANADA project and further enhanced within the following HORIZON-CL4-2023-HUMAN-01-13 EU – US programme.
The project has attracted and enabled innovators from EU and US to twin together to apply for applications into five open calls. In its five open calls, there has been 120 applications submitted with 150 EU based third parties and 133 USA third parties, and the project has funded 35 projects with 43 EU-based third parties and 43 USA-based third parties.
In addition, the project has focused closely on working closely with the entire NGI initiative ecosystem with a view to achievement of major impacts on widening the community of innovators interested in EU – US collaboration, raising visibility to the entire community and beyond, and focusing on best practices in relation to exploitation and sustainability models as core principles.
