Key Digital Technologies Joint Undertaking

Overview

• Role: The Key Digital Technologies Joint Undertaking (KDT JU) is a public-private partnership managing a research and innovation programme aiming to reinforce the EU’s strategic autonomy in the electronic components and systems sector.
• Executive Director ad interim: Yves Gigase
• Members or partners:
  • the EU, represented by the Commission;
  • the following participating states: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Turkey;
  • the following industrial associations: EPoSS, AENEAS and INSIDE representing the micro- and nanoelectronics, smart integrated systems, and embedded/cyber-physical systems sectors.
• Established in: 2021
• Number of staff: 31
• Location: Brussels (Belgium)
• Website: Key Digital Technologies Joint Undertaking

What it does

The KDT JU funds projects to ensure the EU has the necessary expertise in key enabling technologies to be a competitive leader of the world’s digital economy. This includes developing advanced semiconductors and applications that are critical to European society and contribute to the EU digital strategy and the European Green Deal. KDT JU funded projects provide smart solutions for:

• mobility
• healthcare
• the environment
• energy
• a digital society
• manufacturing

The KDT JU objectives are to:

• reinforce the EU’s strategic autonomy in electronic components and systems
• establish EU scientific excellence and innovation leadership in emerging components and systems technologies
• ensure that components and systems technologies address Europe’s societal and environmental challenges
• support research and development for establishing design and production capabilities in Europe for strategic application areas
• launch a balanced portfolio of large and small projects supporting the fast transfer of technologies from the research to the industrial environment
• foster a dynamic EU-wide electronic components and systems ecosystem based on digital value-chains with simplified access to newcomers
• support research and development for enhancing component technologies that guarantee security, trust and energy-efficiency for critical infrastructures and sectors in Europe
• mobilisation of national resources and ensure coordination of EU and national research and innovation programmes in the field of electronic components and systems
• establish consistency between the KDT JU’s strategic research and innovation agenda and EU policies 

The KDT JU fund projects through open and competitive calls for proposals every year.
 

Who benefits?

Any business or research organisation in the EU or in other countries associated to the Horizon Europe programme can participate in projects.

However, businesses and organisations based in other countries may also be eligible to participate under certain conditions. 
 

Further information

The KDT JU builds on its predecessor, the successful ECSEL JU programme. The following documents provide information on that programme.

Book of Projects (examples of past projects):

• Volume 1
• Volume 2
• Volume 3

Powering the Digital Transformation in Europe (book) 

Innovation in Action (together with other Joint Undertakings)

Council Regulation establishing the Joint Undertaking under Horizon Europe, including KDT JU

Regulation establishing the Horizon Europe programme

ECSEL JU Annual Activity Report for the year 2020

KDT JU Annual Activity Report for year 2021

Apply for funding