COP-PILOT Open Call 1

COP-PILOT Open Call 1 under Horizon Europe (Grant Agreement 101189819) offers cascade funding to integrate, validate and extend Cloud-Edge-IoT solutions on the COP-PILOT platform. Total budget is €1,600,000 to fund up to eight projects with a maximum €200,000 per project, covering 100% of eligible costs and disbursed 50% at signature and 50% upon final report acceptance. Eligible applicants are single SMEs or SME-led consortia (minimum two partners) established in EU Member States or Horizon Europe Associated Countries, and projects must integrate with COP-PILOT core components and target one of the predefined pilot clusters. The call opens 3 March 2026 and closes 4 May 2026 at 22:00 Brussels time, with an 8-month project duration plus 2 months for reporting and evaluation through eligibility checks, feasibility screening, independent expert review and consensus.

What it funds

Scope summary

Grants to validate, extend and integrate third-party solutions with the COP-PILOT cloud-edge-IoT platform. Activities include platform feature extensions, testing third-party solutions in real-world pilot environments, cross-sector integrations, edge-to-cloud innovations, and sustainability/ESG-aligned applications. Purely vertical solutions that do not integrate with core COP-PILOT components are out of scope.

Budget and awards:Total fund available €1,600,000; up to €200,000 per project; expected 8 projects; 100% grant funding; 8-month projects; payments: 50% on signature, 50% on final report ¹.

1. 1Eligible applicants: SMEs, startups, research organisations, enterprises and SME-led consortia (minimum 2 participants).
2. 2Geographical eligibility: organisations established in EU Member States or Horizon Europe associated countries as specified in the programme guidance.
3. 3Submission: single-stage online application in English via cop-pilot.eu by 4 May 2026, 22:00 CET (late or incomplete submissions not accepted).
4. 4Required documents: proposal, Declaration of Honor, SME checklist, Privacy and Ethics annex, Consortium Agreement.

Evaluation:eligibility check, feasibility screening, independent expert review and consensus meeting. Minimum score 60/100 with thresholds per criterion. Timeline: submission March–May 2026; evaluations May–June; awards announced July 2026; project kickoff in July 2026.

Footnotes

1. 1Full call documentation, applicant guides and submission portal are available at the COP-PILOT open calls page COP-PILOT Open Calls and on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal. Eligibility of associated countries follows the Horizon Europe participating countries list.

COP-PILOT Open Call 1 is a cascade funding opportunity under Horizon Europe topic HORIZON-CL4 (Piloting emerging Smart IoT Platforms and decentralized intelligence, Innovation Action). It provides financial support to third parties to validate, integrate, and extend the COP-PILOT Cloud-Edge-IoT platform across real-world pilots in multiple sectors. The call targets projects that will either validate third-party solutions on the COP-PILOT platform, extend platform capabilities, integrate technologies across sectors, advance edge-to-cloud computing, or support sustainability and ESG goals. Purely vertical use cases that do not integrate with the platform’s core components, such as the Service Orchestrator and the SIF, are explicitly out of scope.

Key facts:Opening date: 03 March 2026. Deadline model: single-stage. Deadline: 04 May 2026 at 22:00 Brussels time. Expected participation duration: 8 months. Total available budget: €1,600,000. Maximum per project: up to €200,000. Expected number of projects funded: 8. Funding model: 100 percent grants with indirect costs capped at 25 percent. Grant Agreement number of the parent project: 101189819. Project acronym: COP-PILOT. Full name: Collaborative Open Platform for PILOTing services across emerging smart IoT and Edge computing environments. Official call page: EU Funding and Tenders Portal competitive call record and COP-PILOT open call page.

Primary links:EU Funding and Tenders Portal competitive call record EU Funding and Tenders Portal record 13303; COP-PILOT Open Calls page COP-PILOT Open Calls; Project website COP-PILOT project.

Scope, Objectives, and Pilot Clusters

Proposals must focus on validating or extending the COP-PILOT platform architecture and demonstrate integration with core COP-PILOT components. The call invites activities in: validating and testing third-party solutions on COP-PILOT; extending platform capabilities with new features, tools, APIs, or components; integrating technologies across sectors to demonstrate interoperability; advancing edge-to-cloud computing through edge intelligence, real-time analytics, and distributed orchestration; and supporting environmental sustainability and social impact aligned with the UN SDGs.

Operational clusters and objectives:Cluster 1: Business Integration in Mining, Sweden. Objective: Real-time mining operations through edge-to-cloud computing. Cluster 2: Smart Sustainable IoT Solutions, Valencia, Spain. Objective: Smart city IoT platform for traffic, environmental, and waste monitoring. Cluster 3E: Edge Intelligence for Grid Reliability, Preveza, Greece. Objective: Real-time energy management for renewable-rich grids. Cluster 3A: AgriTech Transformation, Central Macedonia, Greece. Objective: Precision agriculture and blockchain-based supply chain. Cluster 4: Smart Vineyards and Sustainable Winery Ecosystems. Objective: Multi-domain IoT for agriculture, recycling, and manufacturing.

Eligibility and Applicant Profile

Organizational eligibility:Applicants must be legally established in an EU Member State or a Horizon Europe Associated Country, in line with the official list of participating countries. They must not be bankrupt or under insolvency, must not have committed grave professional misconduct, must comply with tax and social security obligations, and must not have been found guilty of fraud or corruption. Geographic eligibility follows the Horizon Europe rules for EU Member States and Associated Countries as listed in the latest guidance.

Eligible organization types:Single SME or SME-led consortia with a minimum of two applicants. Consortia may include SMEs, startups, large enterprises, universities, research institutions, non-profits, and public entities, provided the SME leads the consortium. Proposals are welcome from multidisciplinary actors including research and scientific organizations and public entities where permitted.

Submission requirements:Applications must be in English and must follow the provided editing and formatting guidelines. Mandatory uploads include the Open Call proposal document, a signed Declaration of Honor, the SME Checklist, the Privacy and Ethics Annex, and a Consortium Agreement. Incomplete or late submissions are not accepted.

Funding, Costs, Duration, and Payments

Application and Evaluation Process

1. 1Submission steps: Access the call portal at cop-pilot.eu, complete the online form, and upload all required documents in PDF. Submission language is English.
2. 2Deadline model: Single-stage application. The EU portal lists 04 May 2026 at 22:00 Brussels time. The COP-PILOT site states 04 May 2026 at 22:00 CET. A separate submission note states 4 May 2026 at 17:00 CET.
3. 3Evaluation steps: Step 1 Eligibility Check within 2 weeks after deadline; Step 2 Feasibility Screening within 1 week after Step 1 by experts and consortium representatives; Step 3 Independent Expert Review within 4 weeks after Step 1; Step 4 Consensus Meeting within 1 week after Step 3; Step 5 Notification within 1 week after Step 4 with Evaluation Summary Report.
4. 4Scoring: Total 100 points with a minimum overall score of 60 and minimum thresholds per criterion. Excellence scored 0 to 5 multiplied by 8, maximum 40, minimum threshold 24. Impact scored 0 to 5 multiplied by 6, maximum 30, minimum threshold 18. Implementation scored 0 to 5 multiplied by 6, maximum 30, minimum threshold 18. Proposals failing either the overall threshold or any individual criterion threshold are rejected.
5. 5Indicative timeline: Evaluation begins May 2026. Consensus completed June 2026. Winners announced July 2026. Project kickoff July 2026.

Technical Focus and Platform Integration Requirements

All proposals must demonstrate clear integration with COP-PILOT core components and architecture. Projects may develop and demonstrate innovations using the existing COP-PILOT infrastructure and must perform validation in real-world pilot environments aligned with one of the specified clusters. Contributions may include new platform features, tools, APIs, components for IoT, edge computing, data analytics, and AI or ML. Cross-sector interoperability and advancement of the edge-to-cloud computing continuum, including edge intelligence, real-time analytics, and distributed orchestration, are central. Purely vertical use cases without integration to COP-PILOT components, such as the Service Orchestrator and SIF, are not eligible.

Administrative and Legal Requirements

• Open Science: Funded projects must apply Open Science principles.
• GDPR: Proposals and implementations must be GDPR compliant.
• Acknowledgement: Funded projects must acknowledge EU funding in all communications.
• Publication of results: Results will be published on the CORDIS database.
• Language: English is mandatory for submissions.
• Contact point: General inquiries at opencalls@cop-pilot.eu.

Events and Supporting Materials

• Information webinar: 12 February 2026 covering scope and Q and A. Additional informational sessions noted for 26 March 2026, 15:00–16:00 CET.
• Documents: Guide for Applicants, Technical Guidelines, Proposals Guide, Declaration of Honour, SME Checklist, Privacy and Ethics Annex, Consortium Agreement, and FAQ available at cop-pilot.eu.

Categorization and Structured Information

Eligible Applicant Types:SME as a single applicant. SME-led consortia with a minimum of two applicants including any combination of SMEs, startups, large enterprises, universities, research institutions, nonprofits, and public entities. Research or scientific organizations and public entities may participate, provided eligibility conditions are met and, for consortia, an SME leads.

Funding Type:Grant through cascade funding, also termed financial support to third parties under Horizon Europe.

Consortium Requirement:Single or consortium. Single-applicant projects are allowed only for SMEs. Consortia must include at least two applicants and be SME led.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility):EU Member States and Horizon Europe Associated Countries, as defined in the official list of participating countries. Reference: EU Grants List of Participating Countries in Horizon Europe, version 3.8 dated 12 February 2026 EU HE Participating Countries List v3.8.

Target Sector:Cross-sector applications in Cloud-Edge-IoT, with emphasis on mining, smart cities and urban services, energy and smart grids, agriculture and AgriTech, vineyards and winery ecosystems, recycling and circular economy, and manufacturing. Core technology domains include IoT, edge computing, data analytics, AI and ML, real-time and distributed orchestration, platform interoperability, and blockchain-based supply chain for agriculture.

Mentioned Countries:Sweden, Spain, Greece. Regions specified include Valencia in Spain, and Preveza and Central Macedonia in Greece. Geographic eligibility is EU Member States and Horizon Europe Associated Countries.

Project Stage:Development, validation, and demonstration in real-world pilot environments. Projects are expected to be at sufficient maturity to integrate with COP-PILOT and pilot high-TRL solutions over an 8-month period.

Funding Amount:Up to €200,000 per project, with a total call budget of €1,600,000. Funding rate is 100 percent of eligible costs with indirect costs up to 25 percent. Disbursement: 50 percent at contract signature and 50 percent upon final report acceptance.

Application Type:Open call with single-stage submission via the COP-PILOT portal. Applicants must complete the online form and upload all required documents by the deadline.

Nature of Support:Money and non-monetary services. Financial support up to €200,000 per project, plus mentoring and technical platform training for 8 months, and potential integration into a Horizon Europe initiative.

Application Stages:Single-stage application. Evaluation proceeds through five sequential steps: Eligibility Check, Feasibility Screening, Independent Expert Review, Consensus Meeting, and Notification.

Success Rates:Not specified in the call information. No acceptance rate or expected number of submissions is provided, only the expected number of funded projects, which is 8.

Co-funding Requirement:No. The call provides 100 percent grants with no co-financing required from beneficiaries.

Mandatory Documents and Templates

• Open Call proposal document: Structured according to the Proposals Guide and evaluated against Excellence, Impact, and Implementation criteria. Expect sections such as Executive Summary, Objectives and alignment with COP-PILOT scope, Technical approach and platform integration plan detailing interoperability with Service Orchestrator, SIF, and other COP-PILOT components, Use case description mapped to a selected cluster, Work plan and methodology with tasks, milestones, deliverables, and Gantt, Consortium description including roles, expertise, and capacity, Ethics and GDPR compliance, Risk assessment and mitigation, Exploitation, dissemination, and communication plan with EU funding acknowledgement and Open Science, Impact including KPIs and ESG contributions, Budget and resources justification including direct and indirect costs.
• Declaration of Honor: Signed statement confirming eligibility and compliance.
• SME Checklist: Documentation proving SME status as per EU definition.
• Privacy and Ethics Annex: Description of data handling, privacy-by-design, security, and ethics compliance.
• Consortium Agreement: Signed or draft agreement outlining governance, roles, IPR, data sharing, and decision-making for multi-partner proposals.

Deadlines, Webinars, and Timeline

How to Apply

1. 1Go to the COP-PILOT open call portal: cop-pilot.eu.
2. 2Register or sign in and complete the online application form in English.
3. 3Upload mandatory PDFs: Proposal document, signed Declaration of Honor, SME Checklist, Privacy and Ethics Annex, Consortium Agreement.
4. 4Review formatting and content guidelines using the Guide for Applicants, Technical Guidelines, and Proposals Guide.
5. 5Submit before the deadline. Late or incomplete submissions will not be accepted.

Evaluation Criteria and Thresholds

• Excellence: Score 0 to 5 multiplied by 8; maximum 40 points; minimum threshold 24. Focus on soundness of the concept, innovation potential, and technical feasibility including integration with COP-PILOT core components.
• Impact: Score 0 to 5 multiplied by 6; maximum 30 points; minimum threshold 18. Assess market relevance, cross-sector interoperability, contribution to Cloud-Edge-IoT ecosystem, and ESG and sustainability outcomes.
• Implementation: Score 0 to 5 multiplied by 6; maximum 30 points; minimum threshold 18. Evaluate work plan, resources, risks, consortium capability, pilot execution plan, and deliverability within 8 months.
• Overall rule: Minimum total score 60 out of 100 and all individual thresholds must be met.

Detailed Answers to Categorization Questions

Eligible Applicant Types:SME, startup, large enterprise, university, research institute, nonprofit, government or public entity, and other relevant multidisciplinary actors. Single-applicant eligibility is restricted to SMEs. For consortia, an SME must lead and may partner with any of the above organization types, with a minimum of two applicants.

Funding Type:Grant, via cascade funding or financial support to third parties under Horizon Europe, covering 100 percent of eligible costs.

Consortium Requirement:Single or consortium. Single-applicant projects are permitted for SMEs. Consortia must include at least two applicants and be led by an SME.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility):Applicants must be registered in an EU Member State or a Horizon Europe Associated Country, as per the official EU list. Entities must comply with all standard Horizon Europe eligibility and exclusion criteria.

Target Sector:Cloud-Edge-IoT, mining, smart cities and urban services, environment and waste, renewable-rich energy grids, agriculture and AgriTech, vineyards and winery ecosystems, recycling and circular manufacturing. Technology areas include IoT, edge computing, AI and ML, real-time analytics, distributed orchestration, data interoperability, APIs, tools, and blockchain-enabled supply chains.

Mentioned Countries:Sweden, Spain, Greece. Regions named: Valencia, Preveza, Central Macedonia. Geographic eligibility region: EU Member States and Horizon Europe Associated Countries.

Project Stage:Development to validation and demonstration. Projects must be ready to integrate with an existing platform, pilot in real environments, and deliver within eight months.

Funding Amount:Up to €200,000 per project. Total envelope €1,600,000. Indirect costs up to 25 percent. Disbursement split 50 percent at signature and 50 percent after final report approval.

Application Type:Open call, single-stage submission, electronic only via the COP-PILOT portal.

Nature of Support:Money and non-monetary services. Financial grant plus mentoring and technical platform training during the 8-month action.

Application Stages:1 application stage. Evaluation proceeds through 5 steps: Eligibility Check, Feasibility Screening, Independent Expert Review, Consensus Meeting, Notification.

Success Rates:Not disclosed. The call indicates an expectation to fund 8 projects; no data on total proposals or success percentages is provided.

Co-funding Requirement:No co-funding required. The grant covers 100 percent of eligible costs.

What the Templates Likely Contain and How to Structure the Proposal

1. 1Executive Summary: 1 to 2 pages summarizing objectives, selected cluster, innovation, integration with COP-PILOT, expected outcomes, and requested budget.
2. 2Excellence: Background and state of the art; objectives and innovation; technical approach and methodology; alignment with COP-PILOT architecture; planned integration with Service Orchestrator, SIF, and other components; data models and interoperability; standardization alignment.
3. 3Impact: Problem statement and market relevance; user needs and stakeholder mapping including pilot site context; expected outcomes and KPIs; cross-sector interoperability benefits; ESG and sustainability contributions aligned with UN SDGs; exploitation, dissemination, and communication plan; IP and data management; open science commitments.
4. 4Implementation: Work plan with tasks, milestones, deliverables, and Gantt; resource allocation and roles; risk analysis and mitigation; quality assurance; timeline fitting 8 months; ethics and GDPR compliance; security and privacy-by-design; pilot execution plan tied to the selected cluster environment.
5. 5Consortium: Participants’ profiles, expertise, and capacity; role of SME lead; governance and decision-making; prior experience in Cloud-Edge-IoT, AI, data analytics, and platform integration.
6. 6Budget: Detailed cost breakdown by partner and cost category; justification of direct costs; calculation of indirect costs up to 25 percent; alignment with work plan.
7. 7Annexes: Declaration of Honor; SME Checklist; Privacy and Ethics Annex; Consortium Agreement; any letters of support or pilot site access confirmations if applicable.

Summary Explanation of the Opportunity

COP-PILOT Open Call 1 is a Horizon Europe cascade funding scheme providing up to €200,000 per project to SMEs and SME-led consortia to integrate, validate, and extend a cross-sector Cloud-Edge-IoT platform in real operational environments. The call is tightly focused on platform integration and interoperability and will not fund standalone vertical use cases. Five pilot clusters cover mining in Sweden, smart city services in Valencia, energy grid management in Preveza, AgriTech in Central Macedonia, and smart vineyards and winery ecosystems. Projects run for eight months and are expected to deliver high-TRL demonstrations, edge-to-cloud orchestration, AI and ML-enabled analytics, and ESG-aligned outcomes. The process is a single-stage online submission followed by a multi-step evaluation with explicit thresholds for Excellence, Impact, and Implementation. Funding is 100 percent of eligible costs with no co-financing required, indirect costs capped at 25 percent, and a 50-50 payment split at signature and upon final report approval. Eligibility follows Horizon Europe rules for EU Member States and Associated Countries. Successful applicants receive not only financial support but also mentoring and technical training on the COP-PILOT platform, with results published on CORDIS and subject to Open Science and GDPR requirements. For detailed guidance, templates, and to apply, applicants should consult the COP-PILOT open call portal and the EU Funding and Tenders record.

The COP-PILOT Open Call 1 is a cascade funding opportunity under the Horizon Europe project (Grant Agreement 101189819) titled Collaborative Open Platform for PILOTing services across emerging smart IoT and Edge computing environments. It provides up to €1,600,000 to fund 8 projects (maximum €200,000 per project) for developing, validating, and testing Cloud-Edge-IoT solutions integrated with the COP-PILOT platform across specific clusters. Projects must align with the platforms core components such as Service Orchestrator and SIF, focusing on high-TRL innovations (starting at TRL 5-6, reaching TRL 7-8).

The call opens on 3 March 2026 and closes on 4 May 2026 at 22:00 Brussels time. Project duration is 8 months plus 2 months for reporting, with expected start in June/July 2026 and completion by March 2027.

Key Objectives and Activities

Proposals must select one cluster and focus on activities including validating third-party solutions on the COP-PILOT platform, extending platform capabilities (e.g., new features, APIs for IoT, edge computing, AI/ML), integrating technologies across sectors, advancing edge-to-cloud continuum (e.g., real-time analytics, distributed orchestration), and supporting sustainability/ESG goals aligned with UN SDGs.

Clusters

• CLUSTER 1: Business Integration in Mining (Sweden) - Real-time mining operations through edge-to-cloud computing.
• CLUSTER 2: Smart Sustainable IoT Solutions (Valencia, Spain) - Smart city IoT platform for traffic, environmental, waste monitoring.
• CLUSTER 3E: Edge Intelligence for Grid Reliability (Preveza, Greece) - Real-time energy management for renewable-rich grids.
• CLUSTER 3A: AgriTech Transformation (Central Macedonia, Greece) - Precision agriculture and blockchain-based supply chain.
• CLUSTER 4: Smart Vineyards & Sustainable Winery Ecosystems - Multi-domain IoT for agriculture, recycling, manufacturing.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligible applicants are single SMEs or SME-led consortia (minimum 2 partners, no maximum, partners need not be from different countries). Partners can include large enterprises, research institutions, universities, non-profits, public entities (where permitted). Organizations must be registered in EU Member States or Horizon Europe Associated Countries¹, not bankrupt, free of grave professional misconduct, fraud, corruption, and compliant with tax/social security obligations.

Geographic Eligibility

Horizon Europe Associated Countries include Albania, Armenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Canada (Pillar II), Egypt (from 2025), Faroe Islands, Georgia, Iceland, Israel, Kosovo, Moldova, Montenegro, New Zealand (Pillar II), North Macedonia, Norway, Republic of Korea (Pillar II from 2025), Serbia, Switzerland (from 2025), Tunisia, Turkiye, Ukraine, United Kingdom (except EIC Fund).¹

Funding Details

Total Budget:€1,600,000 for 8 projects (up to 2 per cluster).

Per Project:Maximum €200,000, 100% funding of eligible costs (lump sum, no co-financing required).²

Eligible Costs:Personnel, travel, equipment, software, subcontracting (max 20%), other direct costs; indirect costs max 25% of direct costs.

Payments:50% upon contract signature, 50% upon final report acceptance.

Application Process

Submit via COP-PILOT Portal using the online form. Required documents (PDF): Open Call proposal (max 12 pages), signed Declaration of Honour, SME Checklist, Privacy and Ethics Annex, Consortium Agreement. English only; late/incomplete submissions rejected.

Evaluation Process

1. 1Step 1: Eligibility Check (2 weeks post-deadline).
2. 2Step 2: Feasibility Screening (1 week after Step 1).
3. 3Step 3: Independent Expert Review (4 weeks after Step 1) - Excellence (max 40 pts, min 24), Impact (max 30 pts, min 18), Implementation (max 30 pts, min 18); total min 60/100.
4. 4Step 4: Consensus Meeting (1 week after Step 3).
5. 5Step 5: Notification (1 week after Step 4).

Timeline:Evaluation May 2026, consensus June 2026, winners July 2026. Detailed criteria in Guidelines for Applicants.

Key Resources and Support

• Documents at cop-pilot.eu/open-calls/: Guide for Applicants, Technical Guidelines, Proposals Guide, Declaration of Honour, SME Checklist, Privacy and Ethics Annex, FAQ.
• Webinars: 26 March 2026 (15:00-16:00 CET); earlier webinar 12 February 2026.
• Contact: opencalls@cop-pilot.eu.
• Official Portal: EU Funding & Tenders.

Funded projects must acknowledge EU funding, follow Open Science principles, ensure GDPR compliance, and publish results on CORDIS.

Additional Considerations

This is the first of two open calls; second planned for H2 2026 with €2.4M. Proposals must integrate with COP-PILOT platform; purely vertical use cases without platform integration are out of scope. Subcontracting limited to 20%.

Footnotes

1. 1Full list per EU Grants guidance: List of Participating Countries.
2. 2Confirmed across official sources including EU portal and cop-pilot.eu.