Data-Gouv-ML/pcri-informations-sur-les-projets-laureats huggingface dataset:
Learning Intentions Following Evolution (LIFE)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Excellent Science
Programme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Postdoctoral Fellowships
Action type: Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions
Panel: Information Science and Engineering
Countries involved: Spain,United States
Call: MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships 2021 (HORIZON-MSCA-2021-PF-01, 2021)
Start date: 2023-09-01
End date: 2026-07-31
Duration (months): 35.0
Total project cost (EUR): 181152.96
EU funding (EUR): 181152.96
Participants: 2
Project status: SIGNED

Understanding why a certain utterance was said by a participant in a conversation is fundamental for successful communication to take place. Notwithstanding the central role of understanding intentions in communication, this and other forms of pragmatic reasoning remain beyond the current state-of-the-art in Natural Language Processing (NLP). For this reason, critical applications of these technologies, such as personal assistants, remain limited to few hand-coded use-cases such as adding events to a calendar and fail to serve as general-purpose communicative assistants. This proposal aims at making significant progress towards genuine Natural Language Understanding (NLU). It introduces a system that can reason about the pragmatic meaning of a sentence by searching for useful explanations in a space that represents all possible concepts (often called a "Language of Thought"). Because such a search process is generally intractable, this project proposes to let the system discover the more efficient way to search. To achieve this goal, it will model an open-ended evolutionary process that is here hypothesized to lead to emergent exploration strategies. This project bridges Linguistics and Complex Systems with connections to Cognitive Science and Evolutionary Theory. To maximize its success probability, I will conduct it at the COLT Lab in Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF), a leading group in Computational Linguistics, with a secondment at Santa Fe Institute (SFI), a global leader in Complexity Science.

Keywords: pragmatics,intentions,exploration,rl,emergent evolution,complex systems,artificial chemiestry
The Impacts of Climate Protection on Agricultural Productivity and Food Security (CliAgroSec)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Excellent Science
Programme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Postdoctoral Fellowships
Action type: Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions
Panel: Economic Sciences
Countries involved: Italy,Germany
Call: MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships 2023 (HORIZON-MSCA-2023-PF-01, 2023)
Start date: 2025-09-01
End date: 2027-08-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 172750.08
EU funding (EUR): 172750.08
Participants: 2
Project status: TERMINATED

The European Union's goal of achieving climate neutrality by 2050 is crucial for transitioning to a low-carbon economy. However, ambitious reductions in greenhouse gas emissions may lead to unintended consequences, notably from current EU policies. On one hand, increasing food production for Zero Hunger (SDG 2) can escalate greenhouse gas emissions, responsible for about 34% of total anthropogenic emissions. Predictably, direct carbon emissions from agriculture will rise in the coming decade. Yet, mitigating these emissions, especially in the short term, may reduce production and raise food prices, potentially limiting access, especially in food-insecure regions. This could lead to increased poverty and stunting. Balancing emissions reduction with agricultural productivity and global food security is a critical challenge. To avoid unintended negative consequences and optimize climate protection policy benefits, interactions between different objectives must be considered in policy formulation. The CliAgroSec project aims to create a framework exploring synergies between agricultural productivity, food security, and climate protection objectives, while acknowledging trade-offs in multi-objective policy development. This involves crafting comprehensive "sustainable policies" encompassing environmental, economic, and social dimensions. The project has three specific objectives: Elaborate on potential synergies and trade-offs between climate protection policies, agricultural productivity, and food security. Propose a theoretical framework to identify negative externalities of climate protection policies within global climate agreements. Develop a comprehensive integrated empirical model, combining a global Computable General Equilibrium (CGE) model with an agri-environmental model. Assess the effectiveness of climate protection policies across countries and scales, capturing the intricate dynamics of agricultural systems and their environmental implications.

Keywords: agricultural economics,climate change,climate policy,agro food policy,synergies,trade offs,general equilibrium modelling,agricultural productivity,food security
Phosphoinositide-lipid signaling in neuronal mitochondrial biogenesis (MitoPIP)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Excellent Science
Programme: European Research Council (ERC)
Theme: European research council
Destination: Starting grants
Action type: ERC actions
Panel: Neuroscience and Disorders of the Nervous System
Panel description: Nervous system development, homeostasis and ageing , nervous system  function and dysfunction , systems neuroscience  and modelling , biological basis of cognitive processes and of behaviour, neurological and mental disorders – In humans and all other organisms
Countries involved: Germany
Call: ERC STARTING GRANTS (ERC-2022-STG, 2022)
Start date: 2023-01-01
End date: 2027-12-31
Duration (months): 60.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1497500.0
EU funding (EUR): 1497500.0
Participants: 1
Project status: SIGNED

Mitochondrial dysfunction leads to several neurodegenerative diseases and is implicated in neuropsychiatric disorders, yet our understanding of how mitochondrial biogenesis is tailored to neurons is very limited. My identification of a role for the phosphatidylinositol-(4,5)bisphosphate (PIP2) phosphatase SYNJ2 in local mitochondrial biogenesis connects phospholipid signalling with mitochondrial maintenance and mitophagy in axons. My lab is already utilizing advanced imaging methods to study RNA transport and local mitochondrial biogenesis. Recent advances in local lipid perturbations now make it possible to also identify lipid-mediated regulatory mechanisms of mitochondrial biogenesis. This project spans all the way from mitochondrial biochemistry and signaling mechanisms to neuronal cell biology and local translation, culminating in how the molecular effects alter mouse physiology and behavior. We have preliminary evidence that PIP lipids are involved in the regulation of RNA tethering and local translation. This occurs at mitochondria-endosome contacts, which are enriched in PIP lipids. Likewise, contact sites between mitochondria and late-Golgi or lysosomes provide PIP lipids during mitochondrial fission, yet both organelles are rare in axons. SYNJ2a, which is a neuron-enriched splice variant, could underlie the special morphology of axonal mitochondria and contribute to axonal mitochondrial fission. Finally, PIP altering drugs are used for the treatment of mood disorders, and mitochondria and mitophagy have come recently into the spotlight for their role in neuropsychiatric disorders. Alteration of local mitochondrial biogenesis via altered PIP levels may provide a mechanistic link between mitochondria and mood disorders. MitoPIP will be of significance to patients with neurodegenerative and neuropsychiatric diseases, as it will advance our understanding of whether restoration of mitochondrial function in axons can be achieved through regulation of lipids.

Keywords: mitochondria local translation mitophagy phosphoinositol signaling endocytosis
Realization and imaging of superconducting spin-wave optics (MAGICWAVE)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Excellent Science
Programme: European Research Council (ERC)
Theme: European research council
Destination: Consolidator grants
Action type: ERC actions
Panel: Condensed Matter Physics
Panel description: Structure, electronic properties, fluids, nanosciences, biological physics
Countries involved: Netherlands
Call: ERC CONSOLIDATOR GRANTS (ERC-2024-COG, 2024)
Start date: 2025-05-01
End date: 2030-04-30
Duration (months): 60.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1999698.75
EU funding (EUR): 1999698.0
Participants: 1
Project status: SIGNED

Spin waves are collective excitations of the spins in magnetic materials. They play a central role in the thermodynamics of magnets and are promising signal carriers in classical and quantum information devices. Spin waves offer non-reciprocal transport, low damping, microscale wavelengths at microwave frequencies, and strong interactions that enable signal conversion. As such, spin waves have raised the hopes of enabling information technology with functionalities and efficiencies beyond those provided by non-interacting particles. A key requirement is realizing efficient, low-damping spin-wave control. A potentially ground-breaking but virtually unexplored method is provided by superconductors. Superconductors have no electrical resistance, precluding damping by eddy currents, and a strong diamagnetism that enables stray-field control of the refractive index governing spin-wave transport. Moreover, superconductors are sensitive to electric currents, magnetic fields, temperature, and light, providing tunability. As such, superconductors provide unique opportunities for realizing low-damping, tunable spin-wave optical devices. I propose to realize and locally study superconducting spin-wave optics. I will create spin-wave-optical devices - mirrors, waveguides, beamsplitters, and resonators – by harnessing the dissipationless superconducting diamagnetism. I will then demonstrate the power of superconductor-control by tuning the devices using electric currents, magnetic fields, temperature, and light. In addition, I propose to use superconductors to engineer spin-wave damping and enter new regimes of flat-band and topological transport. To locally study spin waves underneath superconductors, I will use magnetic imaging based on spins in diamond – a technique pioneered by my lab. The project thus aims to engineer and understand magnet-superconductor interaction, realize tunable low-damping spin-wave devices, and launch the field of superconducting spin-wave optics.

Keywords: nv centers,spin waves,superconductors,quantum sensing,diamond
Ultrafast Control of Interlayer Coupling of Two-Dimensional Layered Materials (UCoCo)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Excellent Science
Programme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Postdoctoral Fellowships
Action type: Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions
Panel: Physics
Countries involved: Germany
Call: MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships 2021 (HORIZON-MSCA-2021-PF-01, 2021)
Start date: 2023-01-01
End date: 2024-12-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 173847.36
EU funding (EUR): 173847.36
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Layered two-dimensional materials are novel quantum materials considered as the basis for future-generation electronics. The electronic and optical properties of such materials critically depend on so-called interlayer coupling – the interaction between the neighboring atomic layers within the material. What is of particular interest is that one can modulate this interlayer coupling, and thereby the material’s properties, by applying an electric field in the out-of-plane direction of the atomic layers. In this project, I focus on a typical semiconductor layered material called transition-metal dichalcogenides (TMDC). In TMDC, bandgap modulation with DC electric fields was recently achieved. However, the limitation of the modulation speed remains yet unclarified. In addition, the expected insulator-metal transition at the strong-field limit has not yet been realized because the required strong field causes a dielectric breakdown of the material. This project aims to (1) Realize ultrafast control of electronic properties of layered materials via direct ultrafast manipulation of interlayer coupling, (2) Identify the speed limitations to this controlling mechanism, and (3) Realize the insulator-metal transition in the layered material via the ultrafast control scheme. To investigate the ultrafast dynamics, I will utilize the terahertz technology, which enables us to apply a very short pulse of an electric field - a terahertz pulse - to the material and observe the change of its optical properties in an ultrafast timescale. A newly proposed micrometer-sized device, which converts an incident terahertz pulse to a strong out-of-plane electric field on TMDC, will enable ultrafast property control. The proposed scheme will be applicable for the ultrafast control of quantum phases in various layered-material systems. It is also expected to be applied as optoelectronic and all-optical ultrafast switches, which are important milestones for future ultrafast technologies.

Keywords: transition metal dichalcogenide,terahertz science,ultrafast science,electronic property control
Geopolitical Struggles of the Emerging Global Tech Order (TECHORDER)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Excellent Science
Programme: European Research Council (ERC)
Theme: European research council
Destination: Advanced grants
Action type: ERC actions
Panel: Institutions, Governance and Legal Systems
Panel description: Political science, international relations, law
Countries involved: Denmark
Call: ERC ADVANCED GRANTS (ERC-2024-ADG, 2024)
Start date: 2026-01-01
End date: 2030-12-31
Duration (months): 60.0
Total project cost (EUR): 2496638.0
EU funding (EUR): 2496638.0
Participants: 1
Project status: SIGNED

The regulation of digital technology is central to the growing geopolitical struggles in global politics, yet we know little about how the major players themselves perceive the key points of contention. The point of departure for TECHORDER is that global tech governance is guided not just by technical expertise, profit motives, or national security concerns, but also by ideas about the transformative potential of digital technologies, which are seen as capable of bringing about both apocalyptic and utopian outcomes. The project breaks new ground by developing a new theory and multi-method investigation into the emerging ‘global tech order’: the order constructed by the imaginaries, global authority configurations, and rule-making efforts that govern and legitimize digital technology and relationships between states and major technology companies. TECHORDER focuses on two of the most geopolitically contentious technologies: artificial intelligence and quantum technology. The project examines the visions of corporate leaders and employees at major technology companies like Microsoft, IBM, Tencent, Mistral and Tata, as well as leaders and officials from key states including the US, China, India, the UK, France, and Germany. TECHORDER investigates how these actors perceive the technologies, their own geopolitical roles, the global power configuration of participants involved in the negotiation of global tech rules. The project introduces a new multi-method approach integrating ethnographic observations, participatory mapping, surveys, interviews, computer vision and network analysis. TECHORDER significantly advances our theoretical understanding of international order, big technology companies, and 21st-century geopolitics beyond existing scholarship in International Relations. The project will generate crucial new insights into the hidden cultures, geopolitical rivalries, and norm-making efforts that shape the very idea of international order in the digital age.

Keywords: international relations theory international order digital technology big technology companies geopolitics geopolitical tech imaginaries sovereignty status hierarchy international political sociology
Omni-Supervised Learning for Dynamic Scene Understanding (DynAI)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Excellent Science
Programme: European Research Council (ERC)
Theme: European research council
Destination: Starting grants
Action type: ERC actions
Panel: Computer Science and Informatics
Panel description: Informatics and information systems, computer science, scientific computing, intelligent systems
Countries involved: Italy
Call: ERC STARTING GRANTS (ERC-2021-STG, 2021)
Start date: 2023-01-01
End date: 2027-12-31
Duration (months): 60.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1500000.0
EU funding (EUR): 1500000.0
Participants: 1
Project status: SIGNED

Computer vision has become a powerful technology, able to bring applications such as autonomous vehicles and social robots closer to reality. In order for autonomous vehicles to safely navigate a scene, they need to understand the dynamic objects around it. In other words, we need computer vision algorithms to perform dynamic scene understanding (DSU), i.e., detection, segmentation, and tracking of multiple moving objects in a scene. This is an essential feature for higher-level tasks such as action recognition or decision making for autonomous vehicles. Much of the success of computer vision models for DSU has been driven by the rise of deep learning, in particular, convolutional neural networks trained on large-scale datasets in a supervised way. But the closed-world created by our datasets is not an accurate representation of the real world. If our methods only work on annotated object classes, what happens if a new object appears in front of an autonomous vehicle? We propose to rethink the deep learning models we use, the way we obtain data annotations, as well as the generalization of our models to previously unseen object classes. To bring all the power of computer vision algorithms for DSU to the open-world, we will focus on three lines of research: 1-Models. We will design novel machine learning models to address the shortcomings of convolutional neural networks. A hierarchical (from pixels to objects) image-dependent representation will allow us to capture spatio-temporal dependencies at all levels of the hierarchy. 2-Data. To train our models, we will create a new large-scale DSU synthetic dataset, and propose novel methods to mitigate the annotation costs for video data. 3-Open-World. To bring DSU to the open-world, we will design methods that learn directly from unlabeled video streams. Our models will be able to detect, segment, retrieve, and track dynamic objects coming from classes never previously observed during the training of our models.

Keywords: dynamic scene understanding,multiple object tracking,video object segmentation,deep learning
NeUronal MEchanisms foR consciOUS perception (NUMEROUS)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Excellent Science
Programme: European Research Council (ERC)
Theme: European research council
Destination: Advanced grants
Action type: ERC actions
Panel: The Human Mind and Its Compl exity
Panel description: Cognitive science, psychology, linguistics
Countries involved: Netherlands
Call: ERC ADVANCED GRANTS (ERC-2021-ADG, 2021)
Start date: 2023-01-01
End date: 2027-12-31
Duration (months): 60.0
Total project cost (EUR): 2500000.0
EU funding (EUR): 2500000.0
Participants: 1
Project status: SIGNED

Understanding the mechanisms for consciousness is arguably one of the most intriguing questions of modern neuroscience. Why are some visual stimuli consciously perceived, whereas others remain subliminal? What is the relation between conscious perception, attention and working memory? Recent work of my lab demonstrated that weak but simple stimuli can be reported once they elicit a minimal level of activity in the frontal cortex, which is related to the storage of the stimulus in working memory. For these simple stimuli, the visual cortex acts as a relay station that needs to pass the information to higher cortical areas. However, we found that the perception of more complex visual stimuli relies on a more sustained interaction between visual cortex and associative brain regions, related to scene segmentation and visual attention. These recent results pave the way for a genuine understanding of mechanisms for consciousness, inspiring new paradigms that assess the awareness of stimuli while varying the demands on attention and working memory. The present proposal will be the first to compare the neuronal fate of simple and complex stimuli that do and do not enter consciousness across most brain regions. We will measure the activity of single neurons in human patients who are implanted with electrodes as part of their treatment of drug-resistant epilepsy. We will also use a new method that permits the recording from numerous single neurons within an entire hemisphere of a monkey and characterize neuronal activity in most regions of the cortex and subcortex. We will use perturbation methods at numerous locations throughout the brain in combination with functional imaging in monkeys to measure a “functional connectome” and to investigate the brain regions in which activity does (or does not) readily lead to a reportable experience. The proposed combination of experiments will provide unprecedented insight into how sensory stimuli give rise to conscious perception.

Keywords: consciousness,attention,working memory,electrophysiology,imaging,fmri
Electrified Reactor Technology (EReTech)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Global Challenges and European Industrial Competitiveness
Programme: Digital, Industry and Space
Theme: Industry
Destination: Increased Autonomy in Key Strategic Value Chains for Resilient Industry
Action type: Innovation actions
Countries involved: Germany,Belgium,Italy,Greece,Sweden,Switzerland,Netherlands,France
Call: Development of more energy efficient electrically heated catalytic reactors (IA) (HORIZON-CL4-2021-RESILIENCE-01, 2021)
Start date: 2022-06-01
End date: 2025-11-30
Duration (months): 42.0
Total project cost (EUR): 8846847.04
EU funding (EUR): 7352357.15
Participants: 19
Project status: SIGNED

EReTech proposes to develop and validate at TRL 6 a transformative electrically heated reactor, together with the tailored catalyst for steam methane reforming, using a 250 kW unit. Based on SYPOX technology the reactor hosts ceramic supported structured catalyst, electrically heated by internal direct contact resistive heating elements. This allows achieving an energy efficiency close to 95%, i.e., nearly twice the value typical for gas-fired heat boxes, and a reactor volume that is two orders-of-magnitude smaller. As designed, the 250 kW reactor integrated with all required peripherals in a reforming skid will be used to produce approximately 400 kg/day of 99.999% pure H2. This is equivalent to the size of a commercially relevant biogas reforming plant for the decentralized production of renewable H2. The targeted design will allow to increase the power via parallelization, while scale-up will be conceptually targeted for larger capacities (>20 MW electrical input). EReTech?s final goal is to offer solutions for the decentralized market and for the decarbonization of existing or new centralized reforming plants.

Keywords: electrified steam methane reforming