Digital Europe - Strengthening Cybersecurity capacities of European SMEs with cybersecure AI-powered solutions

This topice foresees the development of a SaaS toolkit that automates essential cybersecurity processes, specifically tailored to the needs of small organizations. This toolkit must offer user-friendly features for risk management, threat detection, incident response, and reporting, enabling SMEs to improve their cyber hygiene, mitigate threats, and better protect personal data.

The toolkit must also include functionalities to predict and respond to cyber incidents. Projects must include at least one of the following activities:  

• Deployment of AI cybersecurity solutions at organizations that do not yet use them.  
• Development of a user-friendly AI toolkit for automating key cybersecurity processes in small and medium-sized enterprises. Examples of functionalities of this toolkit are:
  • Assessment and management of cybersecurity risks, including recommendations for mitigating risks.
  • Integration with existing solutions for the analysis and assessment of an SME's cyber risk.
  • Warnings regarding relevant vulnerabilities and threats based on information collected by a risk management function.
  • A connection to cyber hubs to report incidents.
• A user interface for SMEs for incident reporting. Users can report an incident, receive instructions on how to respond, and obtain information on how to get support for their response, using an AI assistant.

Conditions

Project proposals must contribute to at least one of the following ten objectives:  

• Support for the adoption of market-ready, innovative, AI-driven cybersecurity solutions, including solutions developed within the framework of EU-supported research and innovation projects.
• Delivery and implementation of current AI-driven tools and services to organisations (specifically SMEs) to prepare for, protect against, and respond to cyber threats.
• Integration of AI technologies into cybersecurity processes to improve the security of ICT solutions, including offering innovative methods for training employees in the use of AI solutions for cybersecurity.
• Implementation of cyber-secure tools and technologies based on trusted AI, and integration of tools to protect against leaks of AI solutions.

Submission criteria

• Small and Medium Enterprises, start-ups, research and knowledge institutions, public entities, NIS2 entities, and industry and related stakeholders may apply.
• Only entities based in the EU (including Overseas Countries and Territories (OCTs)), Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein are eligible for this grant, provided that they are not (potentially) subject to influence or control by entities outside the EU, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein.

Learn more about the terms and conditions of this grant on the Funding and Tender Portal.