Hu-rizon aims at launching international research projects led by excellent Hungarian scientific workshops, with the participation of top universities and research institutes worldwide, to solve societal and economic challenges of importance for Hungary and the world, in line with the focus areas – digital transformation, healthy living, green transition and circular economy – as defined in the Hungarian innovation strategy package, the John von Neumann Programme.

The Programme contributes to:

• the implementation, through the concentration of funds, of large-scale international research programmes led by Hungarian researchers seeking to address social and economic challenges and to enhance the competitiveness of European industry,
• supporting impact-driven research collaborations, in line with the orientations of the John von Neumann Programme, with a strong emphasis on social and economic impact in addition to intellectual impact, and on strengthening an ecosystem approach to research,
• equipping Hungarian researchers and institutions to meet the requirements of European research and innovation funding schemes and for leading international consortia,
• building trust in research in society and strengthening the communication of research projects to stakeholders through providing science-based solutions to relevant social and technological problems.

The first HU-rizon call for 2024 was immensely popular attracting five times more funding requests from applicants than the available budget would allow. Based on the Funder’s decision, 30 projects received a total of HUF 11,819,331,874 in non-refundable funding from the NRDI Fund.