Innovation and Growth Research is Business Finland’s research call for proposals to tackle global challenges facing the Finnish economy and society. The aim of the Innovation and Growth Research call is to increase the dialogue between policy makers and policy developers, on the one hand, and researchers, on the other. The themes of the funded projects are related to research on innovation activities and growth.
The funding call has three themes (commercialization, value creation, societal impacts), and the aim is to fund at least one project within each theme. The research groups are expected to work closely with the parties that will take advantage of their results.
Questions asked in the 2026 Innovation and Growth Research Call include:
Commercialization: How can R&D activities lead to successful commercialization of services and products, and improve international innovation collaboration? How can other intangible and tangible capital investments be used to support this path? How to understand value creation of final consumers and end users?
Value creation: What types of new innovation hot-spots are emerging in Finland, how could they fuel growth and productivity across sectors? Which factors catalyze or inhibit scalability, productivity and growth of businesses in Finland? How to improve Finnish value-added exports and chains, and how new geoeconomics and market disruptions have changed the value creation in Finland?
Societal impacts: What kind of logics should be applied in public R&D funding to maximize its positive societal and economic impacts? What are the anticipated and realized societal level-impacts of innovation regarding currently pressing issues (such as equality, climate change)? What is the role of different stakeholders, such as innovation funders, companies, or political decision makers, in ensuring that the benefits of innovation work create welfare at the societal level?
We are looking for idea applications containing research topics for the development of innovation policy and innovation environment.
The project related to the research idea must:
Comply with the themes and objectives of the funding call – see the instructions on the requirements for a call for ideas and evaluation criteria (pdf)
- have a multidisciplinary vision
- engage in genuine and close international cooperation with top researchers (describe the methods of cooperation)
- build various types of interactive forums (and describe how they can be used), which enable the theme to be addressed in cooperation with companies, researchers, and innovation policy developers and implementers. The interaction is described in the "Utilization Roadmap". You should also reserve personnel resources for implementing the interaction.
Research schedule
- The call for ideas will be opened on 15.12.2025.
- Please send your idea application containing a brief description of the research idea, implementation, resources, and utilization (see call slides, slide 8) by January 28, 2026 at 11:59 pm at the latest to the Business Finland record office with the ID: BFRK/7/35/2025
- Business Finland evaluates the applications, gives applicants feedback on the application and informs the applicant about whether or not to submit an actual funding application
- Based on the idea applications, we will request up to 12 of the research groups to submit an actual application. The final funding applications must be submitted by April 16, 2026 via Business Finland’s funding e-service using the Co-Research form.
- Business Finland's Co-Research funding criteria are applied to the funding:
- Attach to the application the forms filled out by the companies participating in the cooperation of the project and possibly other organizations: Notification of participation in project (doc)
- Up to eight (8) projects will be funded in the call.
Research funding volume and who can apply
- Business Finland prepares to fund up to EUR 4 million in 2026
- Business Finland’s level of funding is 95% for research organizations (universities and research institutes)
- The indirect personnel cost and overhead cost multipliers are based on the multipliers previously agreed upon with Business Finland
- Corporate financing not necessary
- The maximum recommended project duration is two (2) years.
Please send your idea application by January 28, 2026 at 11:59 pm at the latest.
Select "Other" in the subject field and enter "Innovation and Growth Research 2026 Call for Ideas BFRK/7/35/2025".