The mission of the EIT Community Strategic Synergies (EIT CSS) is to facilitate and foster collaboration across EIT Community in key thematic areas identified in the EIT SIA 2021-207 and EU policy priorities. By bringing together and promoting cooperation across the different KICs involved, the EIT SCC elevates the EIT Community’s visibility and impact in key areas to drive a systemic change in Europe. By gathering EIT Community’s answers to strategic challenges in one cluster, the EIT CSS creates links between programs that would otherwise never meet, it increases scalability of actions and results, it improves efficiency in terms of management and implementation of processes, and attract new sources of fundings. The EIT CSS builds on the diverse expertise and knowledge of the KICs involved and, inspired by the holocaracy management framework yet aligned with EIT’s recommendations, it positions itself as unique community to address some of today’s most pressing challenges for Europe in four areas: : 1. Artificial Intelligence: by providing solutions for a human-centric implementation of AI that can best address its societal, business, environmental and regulatory challenges but also contributing to the ambitious Deep Tech Talent Initiative (DTTI) initiave; 2. New European Bauhaus (NEB)by supporting community-based capacity building initiatives and start-ups to accelerate the shift towards a more sustainable, inclusive, and beautiful Europe and contributing therefore to the Green Deal; 3. Women Entrepreneurship: by promoting a more inclusive entrepreneurial ecosystem, mainstreaming business opportunities and increased the share of women-led innovation in the market; 4. Circular Economy: facilitating the shift from a linear to a circular economy model by connecting and engaging the different stakeholders of the innovation ecosystem.

DeepTechSeeds addresses the critical need for a highly skilled and adaptable research workforce in Europe's deep tech sectors. As global competition intensifies in fields such as artificial intelligence, quantum computing, robotics, and advanced materials, the project aims to create a dynamic and interconnected talent ecosystem that seamlessly bridges academia, industry, and the public sector. The project's core objective is to reshape the landscape of early research careers in deep tech fields by implementing a comprehensive framework based on the new Charter for Researchers. This framework will guide participating organizations through a process of structural change, creating more attractive and sustainable career pathways for Early Career Researchers (ECRs). DeepTechSeeds will: 1. Develop and implement a tailored DeepTech Framework for applying the Charter for Researchers in deep tech sectors. 2. Enhance ECR competencies through targeted training modules and open innovation programs, training at least 500 researchers. 3. Facilitate balanced talent circulation across sectors and regions, establishing at least 10 new cross-sector collaborations. 4. Create a digital DeepTech Talent Ecosystem Platform to facilitate networking, knowledge exchange, and career opportunities. 5. Organize open innovation challenges to foster collaboration between ECRs and industry partners. 6. Provide evidence-based policy recommendations for scaling the talent ecosystem model across the European Research Area. DeepTechSeeds serves as a comprehensive effort to create a self-sustaining ecosystem that nurtures talent, drives innovation, and strengthens Europe's position in critical deep tech fields. By addressing the challenges faced by ECRs holistically – from working conditions and skills development to cross-sector mobility and open innovation – the project aims to transform the nature of research careers in Europe.

The main goal for the years to come is the transformation of EIT Manufacturing into a well-regarded service organisation offering qualified services to the European Manufacturing domain. This transformation will include all parts of the organisation; the pillars, the CLCs and the Manufacturing SASU. An extensive catalogue of possible service offerings has been established and prioritised. The first results have been achieved already. According to our go-to-market strategy, services will be piloted by the CLCs or the Manufacturing SASU and, if successful, rolled out over the whole organisation. The first portfolio of start-ups with financial sustainability agreements has been established, with an estimated valuation of more than €2 million. EIT Manufacturing will focus its investment in the next three years on the “European Manufacturing System”, taking an integrated European approach of all pillars: Innovation, Education, RIS, Business Creation and Communication. The “European Manufacturing System” will play a key role in the Circular Economy. It will link the steps of value creation processes in a multidimensional way, in order to identify the environmentally, economically and socially sustainable favourable alternatives for each step, going from an idea to a finished product, process or service. With Europe’s sensitivity for sustainability, and its ingenious talents in developing innovative technologies, processes and means of collaboration, Europeans are destined to lead the way to further evolved and improved Manufacturing Systems. EIT Manufacturing, in cooperation with its partners and ecosystem, helps drive this leadership by postulating the “European Manufacturing System” as a strategic objective for the European manufacturing industry, with global implications. The Business Plan implementation will fully comply with the EIT Financial Sustainability principles, KIC fund principles, Innovation Principles, EIT RIS Hub Minimum Standards and Good Governance principles.

The overall objective of "3 InDustrial Ecosystems tAckLing supply chain dISrupTions and driving the adoption of advanced technologies" (IDEALIST) is to support SMEs in industrial ecosystems 1/ Energy-intensive industries, 2/ Aerospace and Defence, 3/ Mobility, Transport & Automotive in their ability to understand and adapt to changes brought about by rapid and unexpected developments in the world such as the COVID-19 crisis or the Russia-led war in Ukraine. These 3 sectors are of capital importance for the European economy and despite their specificity, have common challenges that the project will help to address: transition to more sustainable practices, competitiveness issues in a context of scarcer raw materials and more expensive energy, change in consumption habits. Being more resilient means giving SMEs the opportunity to be a player in these changes and no longer just a spectator or follower. To do this, the project will evolve around three pillars 1/ Strategic Foresight to establish relevant tools and behaviors to anticipate and better prepare for change in an orderly and systematic way, 2/ Technology Uptake to overcome obstacles related to the implementation work of Advanced Technologies and lay the foundations of alliances between tech-savvy and traditional SMEs and 3/ Supply chains to identify critical dependencies and weaknesses in order to limit the impacts of disruptions on value chains. This work will lead to the realization of Pilot Projects promoting the meeting between ecosystems, facilitated by the use of the Hack&Match method. The mobilization of the AGORA platform led by EIT Manufacturing will support this objective of matchmaking and community building. The project is carried by a relevant consortium of 14 partners from 6 European countries and Ukraine representing several thousand manufacturing companies. The project will take place over 3 years (36 months).

The Cross-KIC Strategic Education Cluster (Edu Cluster) is an unprecedented endeavour to integrate, systematise and leverage education activities from different KICs, create joint offerings, and open new opportunities for raising EIT’s profile and market penetration. By ensuring interactions and synergies between KICs’ educational activities, the Edu Cluster creates cross-cutting opportunities, fosters peer-learning, and allows efficiency gains. As a result, EIT partners are equipped to innovate solutions to global challenges tackled by European policies, most notably the Green Deal and the Deep Tech Talent Initiative (DTTI). The different Work Packages (WPs) comprising the Edu Cluster reflect the need for transversality of EIT’s educational offer. WP2 will develop, execute, and scale the DTTI by training one million deep tech talents by 2025, therefore contributing to the new European Innovation Agenda. WP3 will build on its success with the Girls Go Circular project by expanding its educational resources and reach to all EU member states. WP4 will support the long-term sustainability of the EIT Alumni community while ensuring inclusion and diversity. WP5 will scale up the EIT Virtual Campus (VC) through upskilling or reskilling learners with competences in line with market demand. EIT VC will become the go-to educational portal to address knowledge needs in Europe and complement the resources of higher education institutions. WP6 will explore a mode of operation with the platform consortium (hereafter InnoNext)for the EU Next Generation Innovation Internship scheme and coordinate integration into the scheme with the KICs. The Edu Cluster, in synergy with other Cross-KIC Clusters and the HEI Initiative, will keep strengthening the Cross-KIC offering along the entire education value chain.