SYNAPSE OPEN CALL

The SYNAPSE Open Call is a funding opportunity within the Horizon Europe program, aiming to enhance an integrated cybersecurity platform, specifically targeting the validation and demonstration of its capabilities across EU digital infrastructures. The call is established under the identifier HORIZON-CL3-2022-CS-01-01, focusing on improving threat monitoring, intrusion detection, and response capabilities. The total funding available is €700,000, with an opening date for submissions on October 27, 2025, and a deadline of November 28, 2025, at 17:00 Brussels time.

The funding is structured as cascade grants intended for two types of entities: End-Users (referred to as Open Call Beneficiary Type A) and Cybersecurity SMEs (Open Call Beneficiary Type B). One End-User organization will receive up to €300,000 while two Cybersecurity SMEs will receive up to €200,000 each. The End-Users are expected to be organizations operating critical digital infrastructure in sectors such as Electrical Energy, Water, Transportation, Telecommunications, FinTech, Manufacturing, Agrifood, or Logistics. Their role includes providing operational environments for pilot validation of the SYNAPSE platform. The Cybersecurity SMEs will contribute innovative technological solutions and services, enhancing the platform's capabilities.

The SYNAPSE Open Call emphasizes a structured consortium model where an End-User collaborates with two Cybersecurity SMEs. Although the call is not strictly requiring a consortium, the nature of the funding incentivizes collaboration between distinct entities with different expertise. Eligible beneficiaries are expected to demonstrate a comprehensive approach to validation and integration of the SYNAPSE platform, enhancing elements such as AI-driven situational awareness, risk assessment, and protective measures against cyber threats.

Applications follow a single-stage submission process, and proposals must be submitted using a specific Proposal Submission Template. The maximum length for the technical part of the proposal is six pages, adhering to strict formatting requirements. Evaluations will focus on alignment with the call's objectives, overall excellence of the project proposal, its expected impact, and the implementation plan's credibility.

There is no requirement for co-funding, and grants will entirely cover the proposed project costs. Success rates for this funding opportunity are unspecified, indicating a potentially competitive environment given the limited funding pool relative to the expected number of proposals. Overall, the SYNAPSE Open Call represents an opportunity for critical infrastructure operators and cybersecurity SMEs to contribute to enhancing cybersecurity resilience through innovative collaborations.

The SYNAPSE OPEN CALL is a funding opportunity within the Horizon Europe program, specifically under the topic HORIZON-CL3-2022-CS-01-01, which focuses on improved monitoring of threats, intrusion detection, and response in complex and heterogeneous digital systems and infrastructures. The call aims to showcase the integration paths of the SYNAPSE platform across EU digital infrastructures and validate its relevance and transferability.

The opening date for submissions is October 27, 2025, and the deadline for submission is November 28, 2025, at 17:00 (Brussels time). The call follows a single-stage submission model. The expected duration of participation is 9 months. The total funding available is 700,000.00 €. The project acronym is SYNAPSE, and the full name of the EU-funded project is An Integrated Cyber Security Risk & Resilience Management Platform, With Holistic Situational Awareness, Incident Response & Preparedness Capabilities. The grant agreement number is 101120853.

The SYNAPSE Open Call invites interested candidates to present contributions on how the SYNAPSE Platform could be enriched with additional cybersecurity services or evaluated in industries. The call targets two types of entities:

1. End-Users / Use Case Providers (Open Call Beneficiary Type A): These are organizations operating a digital infrastructure that will serve as end-users and provide a new pilot for the SYNAPSE project. Preference is given to organizations in the fields of Electrical Energy, Water, Transportation, Telecommunications, FinTech, Manufacturing, Agrifood, and Logistics. The selected End-User / Use Case Provider will be funded with up to €300,000. Eligible Use Case Providers are asked to:
 - Identify a precise use case, along with validation scenarios, relevant requirements, and KPIs.
 - Provide an operational pilot environment for SYNAPSE integration.
 - Deliver a SYNAPSE-integrated pilot environment for demonstration.
 - Contribute to SYNAPSE’s demonstration and validation.

2. Cybersecurity Service / Product Providers (Open Call Beneficiary Type B): These are SME partners covering the cybersecurity supply side, which will provide innovative technological solutions and services to the SYNAPSE project. Each of the two selected Cybersecurity Service/Product Providers will be funded with up to €200,000. Eligible Cybersecurity service Providers are asked to:
 - Identify the precise technologies to be delivered, their specifications, and the associated KPIs.
 - Integrate their components into the SYNAPSE architecture.
 - Develop, deliver, and integrate components into the SYNAPSE platform and the Pilot testbed.
 - Contribute to SYNAPSE’s domain demonstration, including:
 - Integration of the technologies into all Pilot storylines.
 - Integration of the chosen components into the Pilot deployments of the SYNAPSE platform.
 - Demonstrate the integration of selected components on at least two of the SYNAPSE pilots, which will be jointly agreed upon between SYNAPSE and the selected candidates.
 - Validate relevant SYNAPSE and OC-specific KPIs.

The scope of the SYNAPSE Open Call is the enhancement of SYNAPSE Intelligent Services through:
- The incorporation of AI Agents in the Situational Awareness lifecycle, such as risk and threat management assisting human operators take prompt and accurate decisions.
- The improvement of risk assessment processes through the incorporation of AI and GenAI.
- The development of protection measures against adversarial attacks. Methods and solutions for the protection of AI enablers, such as threat and vulnerability assessments of AI systems, exploiting information from publicly available sources, such as MITRE Atlas, AI Risk Management Framework, and ENISA AI cybersecurity challenges.
- The enhancement of AI and GenAI systems, such as LLM, ML, and DL models, robustness against data poisoning attacks and model inference attacks.
- Incorporation of innovative penetration testing methodologies.

The supporting documentation, including the “Proposal Submission Template”, is available on the SYNAPSE website (https://www.synapse-project.eu/open-call/). Applicants are required to read and follow the instructions provided within this template carefully. The structure of the Proposal Submission Template must be followed. Proposals will be evaluated as they are submitted, and there will be no possibility for significant changes to content, budget, and team composition during grant preparation.

The page limit for the technical part of the proposal is 6 pages, including all tables, figures, and references. Excess pages will not be considered. Hyperlinks designed to expand the proposal will be ignored, except for references and links that point to the mandatory proof of maturity of the solution.

Formatting conditions:
- Reference font: Calibri (minimum font size 11 points).
- Standard character spacing and single line spacing.
- Page size: A4.
- Margins: at least 15 mm (top, bottom, left, right).
- Microsoft Word or Word Online is recommended for maintaining formatting.
- English is the official language for the Open Call.

The Open Call Evaluation Board will review each proposal based on:
- Alignment: with the call’s objectives and challenges, as well as the HE specific call (HORIZON-CL3-2022-CS-01-01).
- Excellence: demonstration of clear objectives aligned with the goals and general objectives of the project.
- Impact: definition of ambition and clear expectations aligned with the objectives of the Call, demonstrating the project’s impact.
- Implementation: credible evidence that the project team is committed and has the necessary skills, competence, and expertise to deliver the project, and a proposed plan that can successfully address the Call objectives and the proposed innovation of the application.

Additional support for applicants:
- Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) document available on the website.
- SYNAPSE Newsletter (subscription available on the website).
- SYNAPSE Contact: https://www.synapse-project.eu/contact/
- Enquiries: info@synapse-project.eu (subject: SYNAPSE OPEN CALL).

In summary, the SYNAPSE Open Call is seeking to enhance the SYNAPSE cybersecurity platform by integrating new cybersecurity services and evaluating the platform in real-world industry settings. It targets two types of applicants: organizations operating digital infrastructures who can serve as end-users and provide pilot environments, and cybersecurity SMEs who can provide innovative technological solutions. The call aims to improve threat monitoring, intrusion detection, and incident response capabilities, particularly through the use of AI and GenAI technologies. Successful applicants will receive funding to integrate their solutions with the SYNAPSE platform and demonstrate their effectiveness in relevant pilot deployments. The call emphasizes alignment with the Horizon Europe program's cybersecurity objectives and requires a well-defined proposal with a clear implementation plan and demonstrable impact.

Eligible Applicant Types: The eligible applicant types are organizations operating digital infrastructure (end-users/use case providers) and SMEs covering the cybersecurity supply-side. Specifically, the call targets one organization operating a digital infrastructure to serve as an end-user and provide a new pilot for the SYNAPSE project (Open Call Beneficiary Type A), and two SME partners covering the cybersecurity supply-side to provide innovative technological solutions and services to the SYNAPSE project (Open Call Beneficiary Type B). The digital infrastructure end-user is preferably in the fields of Electrical Energy, Water, Transportation, Telecommunications, FinTech, Manufacturing, Agrifood, or Logistics.

Funding Type: The funding type is a grant, specifically cascade funding.

Consortium Requirement: A consortium is not strictly required, but the call is designed to fund two different types of entities: one digital infrastructure operator and two cybersecurity SMEs. Therefore, while a single entity could theoretically apply, the call is structured to support multiple distinct entities contributing different expertise.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The geographic eligibility is implied to be EU, as the call aims to showcase integration paths across EU Digital Infrastructures.

Target Sector: The target sectors are cybersecurity and digital infrastructure. Specific areas of interest include Electrical Energy, Water, Transportation, Telecommunications, FinTech, Manufacturing, Agrifood, and Logistics. The call focuses on enhancing the SYNAPSE Intelligent Services through AI, GenAI, and innovative penetration testing methodologies.

Mentioned Countries: No specific countries are mentioned, but the focus is on EU Digital Infrastructures, implying that beneficiaries should be based in the EU.

Project Stage: The project stage is validation and demonstration. The call seeks to validate the relevance and transferability of the SYNAPSE platform and enrich it with additional cybersecurity services. The selected end-user will provide a pilot environment, and the cybersecurity SMEs will integrate their components into the SYNAPSE platform and pilot testbed.

Funding Amount: The funding amount is up to €300,000 for the selected End-User / Use Case Provider (Type A) and up to €200,000 for each of the two selected Cybersecurity Service/Product Providers (Type B). The total funding available for the Open Call is €700,000.

Application Type: The application type is an open call.

Nature of Support: Beneficiaries will receive money in the form of a grant.

Application Stages: The application process is single-stage.

Success Rates: The success rates are not explicitly mentioned.

Co-funding Requirement: Co-funding is not explicitly mentioned as a requirement.

Summary:

The SYNAPSE Open Call is a funding opportunity aimed at enhancing the SYNAPSE platform, an integrated cybersecurity risk and resilience management platform. The call seeks to integrate the platform across EU digital infrastructures. The call is open to two types of entities: digital infrastructure operators (end-users/use case providers) and cybersecurity SMEs. The digital infrastructure operators will receive up to €300,000 to model and relate their digital applications, services, assets, and operations with the SYNAPSE platform and test its ability to meet their cybersecurity and data protection needs. The cybersecurity SMEs will receive up to €200,000 each to propose and deliver innovative technological solutions and services to enrich the SYNAPSE platform. The total funding available is €700,000.

The call focuses on enhancing SYNAPSE Intelligent Services through the incorporation of AI Agents in the Situational Awareness lifecycle, improvement of risk assessment processes through AI and GenAI, development of protection measures against adversarial attacks, enhancement of AI and GenAI systems robustness, and incorporation of innovative penetration testing methodologies.

The application process is single-stage, with a deadline of November 28, 2025. Applicants must use the provided Proposal Submission Template and adhere to specific formatting guidelines, including a 6-page limit for the technical part, Calibri font, and minimum font size of 11 points. Proposals will be evaluated based on alignment with the call's objectives, excellence, impact, and implementation. The expected duration of participation is 9 months.