What it is
The European Research and Innovation Days, or R&I Days, are the European Commission’s flagship event on research and innovation policy. Policymakers, researchers, business leaders and representatives of civil society meet to debate where European research policy should go next. The event has no fixed month: recent editions ran in September 2020, June 2021, September 2022, March 2024 and September 2025, according to the Commission’s event page. The three editions from 2020 to 2022 were online only.
The seventh edition takes place on 10 and 11 November 2026 in Brussels and online. It will be opened by Ekaterina Zaharieva, European Commissioner for Startups, Research and Innovation, and its stated question is how research and innovation can strengthen Europe’s competitiveness, resilience and technological sovereignty.
How the programme works
Over two days the event mixes high-level policy panels, breakout sessions, networking, award ceremonies and exchanges with EU Science Counsellors from around the world. The 2026 themes include safeguarding the freedom of scientific research, attracting and keeping research talent, raising investment in research and development, helping innovative companies start and scale up, and aligning European and national research policies. The detailed programme and speaker list had not been published when we checked; Türkiye’s Horizon Europe portal, Ufuk Avrupa, says they will be announced soon.
Who goes and how to take part
Participation is free. Registration is only needed to attend in person at The EGG in Brussels; anyone can follow the sessions through the free live stream. We could not find a call for session proposals or speakers for 2026.
What came out of past editions
The 2025 edition, the sixth, was held on 16 and 17 September 2025 at The Square in Brussels, with English as the working language. Across more than 20 sessions it debated the Startup and Scaleup Strategy, the European Life Sciences Strategy, the AI in Science Strategy and the planned European Innovation and European Research Area Acts. The Commission has put the session recordings and key takeaways online.
Why it matters for cities
The R&I Days are about national and European research policy rather than urban policy, and we found no separate strand for cities in the published themes. The event is still where the Commission debates the research priorities and investment that shape EU funding, so city research and innovation officers who follow it will find the sessions on research investment, talent and the alignment of European and national policies the most relevant. The host city is Brussels.
Going, or following from home
Because the stream is free and open, following from home costs nothing but time. If you want to be in the room in Brussels, register through the Commission’s event page and check it again for the programme before you travel.