The programme now enters its evaluation and selection phase

VR Health Champions Open Call 2026 attracted 74 applications from across Europe, competing for 14 specialised challenges within XR healthcare sector. Following the final deadline extension to 7 December 2025, the programme now enters its evaluation and selection phase.

Through this call, VR Health Champions invited eligible SMEs to propose solutions for 14 industry-driven XR challenges, spanning areas such as VR-based cognitive assessment, hospital onboarding, spatial computing for assistive wearables, cybersecurity, and SaMD validation.

Some of the highest-interest topics included:

• Market Entry & Product Launch Strategies in EU health markets
• GDPR, Cybersecurity and Software Validation for Medical XR
• Indoor/Outdoor VIO & SLAM for Assistive Wearables
• Onboarding Healthcare Professionals for VR Adoption
• AI-driven Monocular Depth Estimation and Sensor Fusion

The highest number of applications came from Poland, followed by Romania, and a strong cluster of submissions from Greece, Italy and Portugal, with Spain also showing notable interest.

“The most striking observation was how many submissions arrived in the very last hours of the call. Despite strict eligibility rules and a challenging match between SMEs and highly specialised challenges, the interest did not slow down — quite the opposite. We received an exceptional number of questions throughout the process, which shows how seriously applicants treated this opportunity. We are delighted that, despite its complexity, the Open Call exceeded our expectations. The real strength proved to be our consortium partners and the amplification through digital channels.”
— Viola Keresztes, Project Manager, EIT Health InnoStars

Each of the 14 challenges will result in one winner, who will develop a targeted output directly with one of the Flagship SMEs: dotLumen, MedApp, MEEVA, Metaskills or Virtuleap.

Next Milestones for Applicants

“Now begins the most demanding part of the programme: reviewing all submissions in detail and identifying those with the strongest potential. With such a high number of applications, selecting only one winner per challenge will be a serious task. Still, we believe that through rigorous evaluation and close collaboration with our Flagship SMEs, we will choose the teams capable of truly disrupting XR in healthcare and delivering impact where it matters most.” — Cristiana Costa, Instituto Pedro Nunes (IPN), Project Coordinator

The remote evaluation process will begin on 10 January 2026, with applicants expected to receive the results no later than 12 January. From 12 to 24 January, shortlisted SMEs will be invited to hearings and the final selection stage, followed by the official notification of outcomes on 26 January. Applicants will have 15 calendar days to submit any appeals. The overall activity is scheduled to conclude on 31 January 2026, with kick-off meetings for the selected SMEs taking place between 16 and 28 February. Successful SMEs can receive up to €60,000 in equity-free fundingg to implement a high-impact solution with one of the Flagship companies.

Thank You to All Applicants

We extend our sincere thanks to all 74 SMEs that submitted proposals. Your effort, expertise and ambition continue to shape the future of healthcare in Europe.
Stay tuned — the 14 winners will be announced soon!