Horizon Europe: experts wanted to evaluate projects on artificial intelligence and photonics

October 29, 2026 -

The European Health and Digital Executive Agency (HaDEA) is seeking expert profiles to evaluate project proposals submitted under Cluster 4 'Digital, Industry and Space' of the Horizon Europe programme, which supports research and innovation in advanced digital technologies, industrial leadership, and strategic autonomy, contributing to Europe's long-term competitiveness and resilience.

The new call for experts aims to select evaluators with solid scientific, technical, and industrial backgrounds, capable of contributing to the evaluation sessions associated with the 2027 Digital calls.

The Agency is targeting four specific fields: electric and autonomous mobility services based on artificial intelligence (AI), digital platforms for energy systems, the scalability of high-performance AI models, and advanced photonic integrated devices.

Horizon Europe: Fields of Expertise Covered by the Call for Experts

Looking into the required profiles in detail, the first area covers Autonomous Drive Ambition Cities. HaDEA is seeking experts with a proven background in connected, cooperative, and automated mobility, specifically in Level 4 autonomous driving within urban contexts, AI-enabled mobility services, electric vehicle systems, and large-scale pilot projects. Key topics of interest include vehicle technologies, safety and validation, traffic management and human factors, cybersecurity, data and AI, urban mobility planning, and cross-border interoperable services, through to multi-actor, multi-city demonstration projects. Prior experience with Horizon Europe, knowledge of innovation uptake and exploitation processes, and the capacity to evaluate user, societal, regulatory, and environmental impacts represent significant added value.

The second domain addresses large-scale piloting of next-generation AI-based digital platforms designed for a more accessible, secure, and sustainable European energy system. In this field, the Agency is seeking experts operating at the intersection of AI and energy systems who understand how advanced digital technologies can support the transformation of power grids and energy markets. Ideal candidates possess strong expertise in AI and machine learning or power systems engineering, backed by adequate knowledge of the complementary field, and are capable of evaluating how AI-driven solutions can enhance grid management. Experience in developing or deploying large-scale digital platforms, cloud and edge computing architectures, and interoperable energy data infrastructures is also highly valued.

The third area centers on the EU Frontier AI Initiative, dedicated to advanced frameworks for scaling high-performance AI models. In this context, the Agency is looking for specialists in scaling laws and predictive frameworks that estimate model performance prior to massive compute investments, training dataset composition optimization, theoretical foundations of deep learning, hyperparameter configuration and tuning, automated methods for refining model architectures, and AI hardware infrastructures. Experience applying frontier AI in strategic sectors such as public administration, manufacturing, energy, healthcare, cultural and creative industries, or physical AI is considered a strong asset.

Rounding out the scope are advanced photonic integrated devices aimed at delivering extended functionality with significantly reduced power consumption. Here, experts with deep knowledge in device and photonic circuit integration are sought, including photonic integrated circuits, microresonator physics, heterogeneous integration of 2D materials, wide-bandgap semiconductors, 3D multilayer structures, chiplet architectures, scalable interconnects, and monolithic, heterogeneous, or co-packaged electronic-photonic integration. The invitation also extends to professionals applying integrated photonics across digital, automotive, industrial, healthcare, and security sectors.

Horizon Europe: How to Become an Expert Evaluator

The call is open to professionals from academia, research organizations, industry, small and medium-sized enterprises, and public entities, with a focus on interdisciplinary profiles and individuals with cross-sectoral experience.

To be considered, candidates must register or update their profile in the European Commission's expert database, accessible via the Funding and Tenders Portal under the section dedicated to working as an expert evaluator. Registration does not automatically guarantee an assignment, but enables the Agency to identify suitable candidates ahead of evaluation sessions for the 2027 Digital calls. Applicants are advised to promptly update their profile with relevant keywords corresponding to the four selected technology areas.
Specifically regarding the EU Frontier AI Initiative, in addition to portal registration, candidates are required to complete a thematic expert questionnaire, to be submitted preferably by November 8, 2026.

Finally, to explore the digital calls in greater detail, HaDEA refers to the recordings of the Horizon Europe Cluster 4 Info Days and the Horizon Europe thematic work programme for 2026-2027.

For more information, consult the Horizon Europe Cluster 4 Call for experts