Discover PAT4CGT
PAT4CGT was one of eight projects, selected out of the 132 submissions, to be awarded funding resulting from the 2021 EIC Pathfinder Challenge call for ‘Emerging Technologies for Cell & Gene Therapies’.
The Project received €3.6M from the European Commission, with an additional €1.1M from the Swiss federal government's agency for education, research and innovation (SERI).
The disruptive potential of the project was recognized, which aims to develop a miniaturised sensor platform that automatically collects critical process parameters data and build an ‘intelligence’ predictive tool, paving the way towards real-time monitoring and improvements of CGT manufacturing processes.
The project got underway in October 2022 and will run for three years.
EIC Pathfinder Challenge has identified and funded proposals focused on:
Novel concept-based technologies that can contribute to the development of more effective cell and gene therapy (CGT) treatments,
Technological solutions going beyond the state-of-the-art and having the potential to overcome critical challenges currently faced by the research community and innovation-based industry working in the CGT field.
With the creation of a portfolio of CGT projects, the EIC aimed at bringing together leading consortia and promising start-ups to create a critical mass in the field. This, in turn, can enhance European technological sovereignty in the CGT area.
Eight projects have been funded through this EIC Pathfinder Challenge. The consortia will create synergies by working together on several common technical and regulatory issues.
The European Innovation Council (EIC) was established by the European Commission in 2021 following a 3 years successful pilot phase. It has a mission to identify, develop and scale up breakthrough technologies and disruptive innovation. It has a budget of over €10 billion for the period 2021-2027.
The funding and support is organised into three main funding schemes covering all technology readiness levels: EIC Pathfinder for advanced research to develop the scientific basis to underpin breakthrough technologies; EIC Transition to validate technologies and develop business plans for specific applications; and the EIC Accelerator to support companies (SMEs, start-ups, spin-outs and in exceptional cases small mid-caps) to bring their innovations to market and scale up. The Accelerator provides a combination of grant support and direct equity investments in companies through a dedicated EIC Fund, which also provides a platform for co-investments with other investors.
For all schemes, the direct financial support is augmented with access to a range of Business Acceleration Services.
The strategy and implementation of the EIC is overseen by the EIC Board of twenty individuals from the innovation ecosystem (academia, business, investment, ecosystem builders). The EIC also employs dedicated Programme Managers with high level expertise in their fields, to set the challenges and proactively manage portfolios of projects towards technological breakthroughs.
