Strengthening cybersecurity capacities of European SMEs with cybersecure AI-powered solutions[E8]

From the notice

Call: Strengthening European Cybersecurity Technologies, Capacities and Preparedness. Type of action: DIGITAL JU SME Support Actions. Expected Outcome: Support the adoption of market-ready innovative AI-powered cybersecurity solutions, including solutions developed in the framework of EU-supported research and innovation projects. Provide and deploy up to date AI-powered tools and services to organisations (in particular SMEs) to prepare, protect and respond to cybersecurity threats. Integrate AI technologies into cybersecurity processes to improve the security of ICT solutions, including providing innovative approaches to training employees to use AI solutions for cybersecurity. Deployment of cybersecure tools and technologies relying on trustworthy AI; AI driven cybersecurity tools; Integration of tools to protect and secure AI solutions. Objective: To support the market uptake and dissemination of innovative AI-powered cybersecurity solutions (notably in SMEs, possibly using results stemming from Horizon Europe projects or similar) and improve knowledge and auditing of cybersecurity preparedness. SMEs often lack the resources to assess cyber risks, develop cybersecurity strategies and implement solutions, leaving them vulnerable to cyberattacks. The resilience of organisations that fall into this category is key to the prosperity of the EU single market. Cyber risk assessment and management can be significantly enhanced and simplified with the application of AI-based tools and solutions. However, this requires an understanding of the evolving technology landscape, of the…[E3]

• ConditionEU grant rules apply: check the call conditions for who can apply, consortium rules and co-funding.[E4]
• The notice data states no restriction on who may bid. Exclusion grounds and selection criteria in the tender documents still apply.

• RiskThis is a grant, not a contract. Grants usually need a proposal against the funder's criteria, may need partners and often need co-funding.[E5]
• UnknownWe read the published notice, not the full tender documents.

1. First seen · 28 Oct 2026, 21:22 UTC

   The source published a call for competition with a future deadline.

   Source document DIGITAL-ECCC-2027-DEPLOY-CYBER-11-AI4SME:31094502:2026-09-01T10:18:24.261+0200

Every fact on this page comes from the published notice. Each entry shows the document and the field it was read from.

1. E1

   The buyer is European Commission.

   Document DIGITAL-ECCC-2027-DEPLOY-CYBER-11-AI4SME:31094502:2026-09-01T10:18:24.261+0200, field /metadata/type/0, read 28 Oct 2026, 21:22 UTC · source ↗ (opens in a new tab)

2. E2

   Proposals must be submitted by 14 Jan 2027, 01:00 Central European time (UTC+1).

   “2027-01-14T00:00:00.000+0000”

   Document DIGITAL-ECCC-2027-DEPLOY-CYBER-11-AI4SME:31094502:2026-09-01T10:18:24.261+0200, field /metadata/deadlineDate/0, read 28 Oct 2026, 21:22 UTC · source ↗ (opens in a new tab)

3. E3

   The buyer describes the requirement in the notice.

   “Expected Outcome: Support the adoption of market-ready innovative AI-powered cybersecurity solutions, including solutions developed in the framework of EU-supported research and innovation projects. Provide and deploy up to date AI-powered tools and services to organisations (in…”

   Document DIGITAL-ECCC-2027-DEPLOY-CYBER-11-AI4SME:31094502:2026-09-01T10:18:24.261+0200, field /metadata/descriptionByte/0, read 28 Oct 2026, 21:22 UTC · source ↗ (opens in a new tab)

4. E4

   EU grant rules apply: check the call conditions for who can apply, consortium rules and co-funding.

   “EU call topic”

   Document DIGITAL-ECCC-2027-DEPLOY-CYBER-11-AI4SME:31094502:2026-09-01T10:18:24.261+0200, field /metadata/type/0, read 28 Oct 2026, 21:22 UTC · source ↗ (opens in a new tab)

5. E5

   This call is open for proposals.

   “31094502”

   Document DIGITAL-ECCC-2027-DEPLOY-CYBER-11-AI4SME:31094502:2026-09-01T10:18:24.261+0200, field /metadata/status/0, read 28 Oct 2026, 21:22 UTC · source ↗ (opens in a new tab)

6. E6

   The notice was published on 1 Sept 2026.

   “2026-09-01T00:00:00.000+0000”

   Document DIGITAL-ECCC-2027-DEPLOY-CYBER-11-AI4SME:31094502:2026-09-01T10:18:24.261+0200, field /metadata/startDate/0, read 28 Oct 2026, 21:22 UTC · source ↗ (opens in a new tab)

7. E7

   The Funding & Tenders Portal gives the status as open for submission.

   Document DIGITAL-ECCC-2027-DEPLOY-CYBER-11-AI4SME:31094502:2026-09-01T10:18:24.261+0200, field /metadata/status/0, read 28 Oct 2026, 21:22 UTC · source ↗ (opens in a new tab)

8. E8

   The notice is titled "Strengthening cybersecurity capacities of European SMEs with cybersecure AI-powered solutions".

   Document DIGITAL-ECCC-2027-DEPLOY-CYBER-11-AI4SME:31094502:2026-09-01T10:18:24.261+0200, field /metadata/title/0, read 28 Oct 2026, 21:22 UTC · source ↗ (opens in a new tab)

9. E9

   The EU contribution per grant is up to EUR 5,000,000 (from EUR 1,500,000).

   Document DIGITAL-ECCC-2027-DEPLOY-CYBER-11-AI4SME:31094502:2026-09-01T10:18:24.261+0200, field /metadata/budgetOverview/0, read 28 Oct 2026, 21:22 UTC · source ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Source: EU Funding & Tenders Portal, © European Union, CC BY 4.0. SLETOR shortened and reformatted the text. Data licence: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (European Commission) ↗ (opens in a new tab). Personal contact details in notices are not stored or shown.