Interim evaluation of the Strategic Technologies for Europe Platform (STEP) : investing in the competitiveness and technological leadership of the EU : report from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council

This report provides an interim evaluation of the implementation of the Strategic Technologies for Europe Platform (STEP) until March 2025. Set up in March 2024 as part of the mid-term review of the current multiannual financial framework (MFF), STEP is a key component of the EU's response to the growing challenges to its technological leadership and industrial resilience. STEP is not a new funding programme adding to the already complex funding landscape. It is an innovative coordination platform, steering EU investments across 11 existing EU funding programmes to support critical strategic technologies in three sectors - digital and deep technologies, clean and resource-efficient technologies, and biotechnologies - targeting also shortages of skilled labour. The implementation of STEP relies on pooling investments under existing funds, awarding a STEP (Sovereignty) Seal to high-quality projects and offering a STEP (Sovereignty) Portal to facilitate access to funding for project promoters. STEP supports a wide range of beneficiaries, including small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), start-ups, research institutions and industrial players, to help them develop and scale up strategic technologies with high innovation potential or with the ability to reduce the strategic dependencies of the EU.