Across the HSD Campus in The Hague, organisations are tackling all kinds of cybersecurity challenges every day. Some are working on securing AI systems. Others focus on protecting critical infrastructure, strengthening software supply chains or helping organisations stay ahead of increasingly sophisticated cyber threats.
Many of these same topics are also receiving attention from the European Union.
Over the next two years, the EU is making around €90 million available across four major cybersecurity-focused Horizon Europe calls. Together, these programmes support the development of new technologies, encourage collaboration across Europe and help innovative solutions move closer to real-world deployment.
We took a look at some of the opportunities that may be particularly relevant for organisations in the HSD ecosystem.
1. Securing AI before attackers do
AI is changing cybersecurity fast. It helps organisations detect threats, automate processes and analyse huge amounts of data more efficiently than ever before. At the same time, AI systems themselves are becoming targets.
The SecureAI call focuses on making AI systems more secure, resilient and trustworthy. Topics include adversarial attacks, data poisoning, privacy-preserving technologies, federated learning and secure deployment of AI systems.
Budget: €21.2 million
Opens: 3 March 2026
Deadline: 15 September 2026
Could be relevant for:
- AI security companies
- Trustworthy AI solutions
- Privacy-enhancing technologies
- Confidential computing
- Federated learning platforms
Read the call:
https://ec.europa.eu/info/funding-tenders/opportunities/portal/screen/opportunities/topic-details/HORIZON-CL3-2026-02-CS-ECCC-02
2. Using AI to help defenders work smarter
Security teams are dealing with more alerts, more data and more complex attacks than ever before. While SecureAI is about protecting AI systems, this programme focuses on using AI to help security teams do their jobs better.
The Artificial Intelligence for Cybersecurity Applications call covers areas such as AI-driven threat detection, adaptive cyber defence, cyber threat intelligence and AI-enhanced Security Operations Centres. For companies building detection and response technologies, this is one of the more interesting opportunities in the upcoming work programme.
Budget: €24.8 million
Opens: 2 March 2027
Deadline: 15 September 2027
Could be relevant for:
- MDR and XDR providers
- Threat intelligence companies
- SOC technologies
- Security automation platforms
- Detection and response solutions
Read the call:
https://ec.europa.eu/info/funding-tenders/opportunities/portal/screen/opportunities/topic-details/HORIZON-CL3-2027-02-CS-ECCC-01
3. Building more secure software and hardware
Recent supply chain attacks have shown just how important secure development has become. Europe is investing in technologies that make software and hardware more secure throughout the development lifecycle, including secure-by-design approaches, software supply chain security, vulnerability detection, formal verification methods and trusted hardware technologies.
For many organisations working in software security, these are challenges they're already helping customers solve today.
Budget: €20 million
Opens: 3 March 2026
Deadline: 15 September 2026
Could be relevant for:
- DevSecOps companies
- Application security vendors
- Software assurance providers
- Hardware security specialists
- Software supply chain security solutions
Read the call:
https://ec.europa.eu/info/funding-tenders/opportunities/portal/screen/opportunities/topic-details/HORIZON-CL3-2026-02-CS-ECCC-01
4. Securing the connected world
The traditional network perimeter disappeared a long time ago. Today's infrastructures stretch across cloud environments, edge devices, IoT networks and all kinds of connected systems. Keeping those environments secure requires a different approach.
The Secure Computing Continuum call focuses on security across IoT, edge computing, cloud infrastructures and data spaces. Key themes include Zero Trust architectures, identity and access management, privacy-enhancing technologies, distributed security and post-quantum cryptography.
Budget: €24 million
Opens: 2 March 2027
Deadline: 15 September 2027
Could be relevant for:
- Cloud security companies
- IoT security providers
- Zero Trust specialists
- Identity and Access Management solutions
- Post-Quantum Cryptography innovators
Read the call:
https://ec.europa.eu/info/funding-tenders/opportunities/portal/screen/opportunities/topic-details/HORIZON-CL3-2027-02-CS-ECCC-02
Why this matters
Several of these topics seem closely connected to the cybersecurity challenges many organisations are working on today. Whether you're working on AI security, software resilience, post-quantum cryptography or securing cloud and edge environments, there may be opportunities worth exploring.
Funding is never the goal in itself. But it can help accelerate innovation, strengthen partnerships and bring new ideas closer to real-world deployment.
Worth exploring?
Some of these calls may still seem a long way off. But anyone with Horizon Europe experience knows that strong consortiums and partnerships don't appear overnight. If one of these topics sounds relevant, it may be worth taking a closer look and starting conversations early. You can stay updated on all the cybersecurity funding opportunities through the cybersecurity funding portal from NCC-NL.
