How can Europe bridge the gap and reach the goal of investing 3% of the GDP in R&D? (R&I Days 2025)

Partnering with the European Investment Bank to launch new EU programmes, making national and regional policies more incentivising to fund R&D, investing in the EU's human capital and harmonising the ecosystem to favourise public and private funding of R&I,... These are the options listed by stakeholders during a session titled 'Time's up: Urgent action needed to achieve the 3% R&D investment target' at the R&I Days, an event organised by the European Commission in Brussels on 16 and 17/09/2025.

Twenty years ago, the EU set a goal of investing 3% of GDP in R&D, when the funding was 1.8% of GDP. It has now reached 2.2%, far from the 3% goal. "This could be considered progress, but it all depends on what the rest of the world does. And they have not waited for us. They have surpassed us left and right", states Marc Lemaître, Directorate General for Research and Innovation at the European Commission, on 17/09/2025.

He reports that China is at 2.6% and growing strongly, Japan and the US are at 3.5% and South Korea is at nearly 5%. He also reminds the audience that the Commission, in its…