EU (SRIP) report

Turning scientific excellence into economic growth remains one of Europe’s key challenges.

It has been released the 2026 edition of its Science, Research and Innovation Performance of the EU (SRIP) report, providing a comprehensive assessment of Europe’s research and innovation landscape, its strengths, and the challenges it faces in an increasingly competitive global environment.

Published every two years by the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Research and Innovation, the SRIP report is a flagship publication that combines indicator-based analysis with in-depth explorations of key policy issues. It examines the structure and performance of the European research and innovation system, offering insights into the factors shaping its development and future potential.

Europe’s scientific strengths and economic challenges

The 2026 report comes at a time when the European economy is facing persistent challenges. Following a series of major and unprecedented shocks, Europe is experiencing lower growth and productivity compared with its main global competitors.

Against this backdrop, science, research, technological development and innovation are essential drivers of sustainable economic growth. They can help Europe increase its productive capacity, strengthen its competitiveness and secure long-term prosperity without compromising its social model or environmental objectives.

The report highlights that Europe retains significant scientific strengths. It ranks second globally in scientific output and benefits from strong public research institutions, established industrial capabilities and a distinctive open science model.

However, scientific excellence alone does not guarantee faster productivity growth, technological leadership or strategic autonomy. A central challenge for Europe is to translate its research capabilities into tangible economic and societal value.

Addressing fragmentation and investment gaps

Despite its strong research base, Europe’s innovation system remains fragmented across countries, regions and levels of government. Combined with an overall lack of investment, this fragmentation limits the system’s capacity to scale up successful innovations and generate sustainable growth.

The report emphasises that closing this gap requires more than scientific excellence. Europe must strengthen the connections between research, industry and society, ensuring that new knowledge can circulate more effectively and reach the businesses and users best placed to turn it into practical applications.

Key priorities include mobilising public funding to attract greater private investment, making better use of regional research and innovation capabilities, and improving the transfer of knowledge from research organisations to firms and markets.

Achieving these objectives will be critical to building a more integrated, productive and competitive European innovation ecosystem.

From research excellence to market leadership

The findings of the 2026 SRIP report underline a fundamental challenge for European policy: ensuring that world-class science translates into technological progress, stronger businesses and lasting economic benefits.

This requires sustained investment, greater collaboration across the research and innovation landscape, and policies that support the development and scaling of innovative solutions. By addressing fragmentation and strengthening knowledge circulation, Europe can better leverage its scientific assets to drive productivity, reinforce strategic autonomy and support its long-term prosperity.

The 2026 SRIP report provides an evidence-based overview of Europe’s current performance and the key determinants shaping its future. Its findings offer an important contribution to ongoing discussions on how research and innovation can support Europe’s competitiveness, resilience and sustainable growth.