EIT Manufacturing

The manufacturers who will lead the next decade aren't just investing in technology — they're rethinking how they operate, compete and create value.

In 2026, five trends are emerging to make this possible: from agentic AI and quantum computing to circularity, advanced materials and industrial cybersecurity.

Which of these trends is your organisation prioritising? We'd love to hear your perspective 👇

❓ What if cable assembly didn’t have to be manual anymore?

Even though cables and connectors are produced automatically, their integration, especially for complex multi-wire communication cables, often still depends on human labour.

A collaboration between Frisimos Technologies and Klemi Contact is helping change that.

Together they developed a modular AI-enabled cable-to-connector assembly line designed to automate one of the most labour-intensive stages of cable production.

⚙️ What makes the system different?
• End-to-end automation within a single production line
• Miniature robotic units handling individual wires
• AI-powered vision systems supporting precision and quality control
• Modular architecture that adapts as products evolve

The result is a flexible automation platform capable of handling complex cable configurations while maintaining production agility.

The collaboration began through the SME Transform call, supporting the development of the initial proof of concept. Today, the system is moving into the commercialisation phase.

🔗 Read the full story: https://www.eitmanufacturing.eu/?post_type=news&p=43227

👀 Want to see the line in action? More details in the comments.

Imagine... a founder driven by the idea to disrupt manufacturing, a scientist captured in the ‘aha moment’ on the verge of creating something new, an engineer thinking “I can solve this”, a leader the team looks up to.

What comes to your mind? Did you assume it was a man? 🤔

Now imagine this: It’s a womaaan!

𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗪𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻’𝘀 𝗗𝗮𝘆, 𝘄𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝗳𝗮𝘂𝗹𝘁 𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗴𝗲.

𝗪𝗲’𝗿𝗲 𝗯𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼𝗴𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝟭𝟬 𝘄𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘂𝗳𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 — 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗰𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗻 𝘁𝗲𝗰𝗵 𝘁𝗼 𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗰𝘀, 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗳𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗳𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗿𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗲𝗰𝗵𝗻𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝗶𝗲𝘀.

They are redefining what manufacturing looks like.

📈 Europe needs innovation that delivers real impact.

The new Impact Study from the EIT - European Institute of Innovation and Technology confirms what we see everyday across the EIT Community: when education, research and business work together, innovation scales, companies grow and public investment translates into real economic and societal value.

As part of this ecosystem, EIT Manufacturing contributes to a model that connects talent, ideas and industry to accelerate the green and digital transition.

Key achievements from EIT Manufacturing between 2021-2024 included:
✔️ 154 innovations launched to market.
✔️ 1,015 supported ventures attracting over EUR 153 million in investment.
✔️ 1,706 graduates from EIT-labelled programmes and over 55,000 participants in non-degree programmes.
✔️ The share of women-led start-ups in the KIC portfolio rose from a negligible level in 2020 to over 25% by 2023. In 2024, women-led ventures received more than 40% of direct funding.

Europe’s future depends on innovation that reaches the market, supports people and drives sustainable growth.

Discover the full study: https://www.eit.europa.eu/news-events/news/new-study-confirms-eits-impact-strengthening-europes-competitiveness

New Study Confirms EIT’s Impact in Strengthening Europe's Competitiveness | EIT New Study Confirms EIT’s Impact in Strengthening Europe's Competitiveness News 19/02/2026 EIT A new study shows that the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT), through its support of innovation ecosystems, delivers strong and measurable impact for Europe’s competitiveness in area...

🌍 European Manufacturing Conference is back this autumn — and the stakes couldn’t be higher.

Global power is shifting, technology is accelerating and security is increasingly shaping economic and industrial decisions. As Europe prioritises industrial sovereignty, manufacturing becomes the engine linking these goals.

⌚ Time & place: 16 & 17 September I Brussels

𝗜𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲, 𝘄𝗲’𝗹𝗹 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗹𝗼𝗿𝗲:
- How can RD&I position Europe at the forefront of industrial leadership?
- Is a rich and industrial base, crowned by strong sustainability principles, enough to secure Europe’s competitiveness?
- How can we turn these strengths into a lever for attracting new businesses, talents and investments back to Europe?

🎫 Book before 2 March to secure the early-bird rate: https://effra.glueup.com/event/161004/register/

🚀 Women Shaping the Future of XR: Health, Ports, Automotive and Industry

Key sectors such as health, ports and logistics, automotive and industry are evolving rapidly thanks to XR technologies, which are transforming both operational processes and the design and delivery of training and education.

This webinar highlights success stories and leaders from XR2Learn and Women TechEU, taking a positive, solution-focused approach. It will showcase the tangible impact women are having in XR through real-world use cases and discuss future opportunities for women across sectors including health, ports and logistics, automotive, industry, medical simulations and remanufacturing of consumer goods.

The event is co-organised by EIT Manufacturing, a project partner promoting strong European innovation ecosystems, cross-sector collaboration and supporting leaders driving transformation across Europe. supports the initiative in communication, networking and community building, contributing to gender balance and equal opportunities.

📅 6 March 2026
⏰ 13:00–14:30 CET
🌐 👉 Register here: https://lnkd.in/dAQq9rzT
🎙️ Moderated by: Regina van Tongeren

Panelists:
- Rachele Rizzioli – XR2Learn Open Call 2 winner, X-DE-MAN
- Irene Ioannidou – XR2Learn Open Call 2 winner, PORTALXR
- Jana Pezlar Selecká – XR2Learn Open Call 2 winner, MATSUKO
- Hanna Rahimi – XR2Learn Open Call 2 winner, NEONATAL
- Katarzyna Koba – Women TechEU, SensiVR Health

🔬👩‍🔧Can we bring more girls and women into science? For sure!

Through EIT Community initiatives, we celebrate the women innovators, scientists and entrepreneurs transforming Europe's manufacturing and deep tech ecosystem.

At a glance:

👷‍♀️ 𝗟𝗘𝗔𝗗𝗘𝗥𝗦: 𝗪𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻 𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘂𝗳𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗘𝗜𝗧 𝗥𝗜𝗦 𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀
Over the past four years, over 120 women from EIT RIS countries have been actively involved in this initiative.

👩‍💻 𝗪𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻𝗧𝗲𝗰𝗵𝗘𝗨
Nearly 3,800 applicants competed across four calls with 50–60% working in AI, Machine Learning and data-driven tech — yet only 14 of 160 winners came from manufacturing. A powerful reminder of the untapped potential in industrial innovation. Highlight: Touchwaves, recently raised EUR 1.5 million to develop next-gen wearable haptic systems for safety-critical aviation.

👩‍🎓 𝗚𝗶𝗿𝗹𝘀 𝗚𝗼 𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗠
This EU-funded initiative has equipped 45,000+ schoolgirls aged 14–19 across 30+ European countries with digital and entrepreneurial skills for the circular economy, including 1,690+ trained in 2025 alone.

👩‍🔬 𝗦𝘂𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗮𝘀 & 𝘄𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻-𝗹𝗲𝗱 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘂𝗳𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗽𝘀
Between 2022–2025, EIT Manufacturing Supernovas participants raised EUR 12.2 million in 2025 and EUR 21.65 million overall, with several startups reaching major milestones — including EIT Awards finalists and winners and successful graduates of RocketUp.

This International Day of Women and Girls in Science, we celebrate progress from early education to startup growth. We remain committed to supporting talent, scaling women-led innovation and making manufacturing more inclusive.