FFplus project funds European SMEs and start-ups wanting to use supercomputers

FFplus is an initiative highlighting and promoting the adoption of high-performance computing (HPC) by SMEs and start-ups across Europe. The strategic objective of using HPC and supercomputers is to support and empower European SMEs and start-ups towards innovation. The total budget of FFPlus is 30 million euros and it is funded by the Digital Europe Programme. Estonian SMEs and start-ups have a unique opportunity to participate in this process.

HPC and computational methods encompass a large range of possibilities: modelling and simulation, data analytics, machine learning, and AI – all options empowering SMEs through enhanced innovation and competitiveness.

The benefits of using HPC include:

• saving time for product/service development and decreased time to market
• saving costs by optimising data processing tasks
• increased efficiency and higher levels of innovation
• more specialised, tailor-made products and services
• greater competitiveness
• gaining new knowledge and know-how from R&D experts

During the project’s lifetime (2024-2028), SMEs and start-ups will be supported through six open calls to fund business experiments and innovation studies.

Business experiments will address the uptake of HPC by SMEs in order to solve specific business challenges of SMEs that have had no prior use of, or experience with, HPC services. Business experiments should demonstrate to the broader European SME ecosystem that HPC uptake solves business challenges and leads to positive business impact. The total funding budget for all sub-projects funded under this call is € 4M.

Innovation studies, in contrast, will support European SMEs and start-ups already active in the field of generative AI technology, which lack the necessary computational resources to scale up. The total funding budget for all sub-projects funded under this call is € 4M.

Successful applicants will receive funding and support from FFplus to conduct these sub-projects. As computing resources, Estonian SMEs and start-ups can use the Estonian national e-infrastructure or LUMI, the fastest supercomputer in Europe.

The First Open Call will remain open for submissions until September 4th, 2024, at 17:00 Brussels local time.

Please visit the FFPlus homepage to find more information and apply to an open call. For inspiration, we recommend looking at previously funded projects.