EU launches €108M RAISE initiative to lead global AI science research

The European Commission has unveiled its European Strategy for Artificial Intelligence in Science, establishing a framework to make the EU a global leader in AI-driven research through the RAISE initiative. Hungary has simultaneously updated its own AI Strategy (2025–2030), integrating scientific AI applications across multiple sectors rather than treating it as a separate pillar, demonstrating how European nations are positioning themselves to harness AI’s transformative potential in scientific discovery.

The big picture: The EU strategy represents the second pillar of the AI Continent Action Plan, complementing industrial applications by focusing specifically on transforming scientific research and development methodologies.

Key initiative: RAISE (Resource for AI Science in Europe) will function as a virtual European institute coordinating essential resources for AI-based science including excellence, talent, computing capacity, data, and research funding.

• The pilot phase launches at the end of 2025 with €108 million in EU funding from Horizon Europe and Digital Europe programmes.
• RAISE has dual purposes: promoting AI for science (developing AI technologies for scientific use) and AI in science (widespread AI adoption in research).
• Long-term cooperation between Member States, researchers, and industrial partners could establish RAISE as Europe’s central hub for scientific AI development.

Four strategic focus areas: The European strategy targets comprehensive AI integration across scientific infrastructure and talent development.

• Excellence and talent: €58 million allocated for networks of excellence and doctoral training programmes, including new RAISE Doctoral Networks and thematic Networks of Excellence.
• Computing capacity expansion: €600 million from Horizon Europe will support supercomputing infrastructure and provide researchers access to AI Gigafactories.
• Research funding boost: The Commission aims to double Horizon Europe’s annual AI investment by 2028, exceeding €3 billion per year.
• Data access improvement: Integration of research data repositories and Data Labs concept aligned with the upcoming Data Union Strategy.

Hungary’s parallel approach: The updated Hungarian AI Strategy (2025–2030) integrates scientific AI applications across three pillars—AI4Business, AI4Society, and AI4Technology—rather than creating a separate AI4Science division.

• Strategy emphasizes strengthening AI research activities to reach international standards and supporting transitions between basic research, applied research, and industrial development.
• Focus on data and computing infrastructure development, providing high-performance computing systems and secure research data access.
• Priority on education and research recruitment, including higher education renewal and targeted support for young AI talent.

What they’re saying: Both strategies emphasize ethical AI implementation as fundamental to scientific progress.

• “The common basis of the EU and Hungarian Strategies is that the future of science is not only a technological but also a value-based issue. AI is the new language of science, but it will only serve progress if it remains ethical, transparent, and human-centred,” according to Viktória Lilla Pató, a research fellow at the Europe Strategy Institute of the University of Public Service.
• The Hungarian strategy specifies that “artificial intelligence should not replace the human judgment of the researcher, but should act as a complementary tool to it.”

Trust challenge: Only 38 percent of the European population currently trusts AI-based scientific results, making transparency and reliability crucial for maintaining social acceptance of AI-driven research.

Competency framework update: The European Commission updated the European Competence Framework for Researchers (ResearchComp) on October 13, 2025, incorporating responsible AI use assessment from research question formulation through result publication.