AI Challenge 2025

Matching AI challenges with the right solution providers

What is the AI Challenge?

The AI Challenge 2025 is a Europe-wide initiative from the EIT AI Community to accelerate the deployment of cutting-edge AI solutions across industries and public sectors. We're calling on cities, corporates, public institutions and other stakeholders to submit their pressing data- and AI-related challenges and on innovative startups ready to solve them.

A matchmaking engine to put Europe's brightest minds to work on your most complex problems!

Why join?

We are living through an exponential era of technological change. Yet, innovation is often fragmented. To thrive, Europe must bring together value chains, domains, and stakeholders, and turn knowledge into action.

As a challenge owner:

By submitting your challenge, you become part of this transformation:

• Get access to Europe’s most promising AI startups and scaleups
• Discover fresh, deployable solutions tailored to your needs
• Position your organisation as a leader in AI-driven innovation
• Contribute to shaping a strong, connected European AI ecosystem

As a startup/solution provider:

By submitting your solution, you gain first-hand exposure to concrete AI problems faced by SMEs, corporations, and cities, and more:

• Structured matchmaking & guided collaboration
• High visibility across the European AI ecosystem
• Cash prize of €5000 to continue the development of the solution and/or support the PoC with the challenger company
• Access to the exclusive AI Founders Club - a curated portfolio of support services offered by the EIT AI Community.

Challenges 

We’re scouting for challenges that require smart, scalable AI-driven solutions. You can be from the public or private sector, working locally or globally.
Some of the focus areas for 2025 include:

• Data spaces for cities, health, and manufacturing
• AI and 5G technologies
• AI for drones
• Synthetic data & anonymisation
• Generative AI applications
• Process optimisation & logistics

This is not an exhaustive list and other topics also can be applied.

Timeline

For solution providers:

Call open for solution providers: 25 August 2025
Info session: 26 September 2025

Deadline for proposals: 29 October 2025
Communication of selected proposals: 7 November 2025

Pitches to the challenge owners: 10 - 13 November 2025
Winner announcements: 14 November 2025
Review of Proof-of-Concept execution: 26 January 2026

Questions? Suggestions?

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