Next Generation Search and Discovery

More about: Guide for Applicants | Who is behind this? | Eligibility | FAQ | Ongoing projects

NGI Zero Discovery was a grant programme that ended on October 30th 2022. The programme had seventeen calls between February 2019 and October 2021, resulting in a large amount of interesting projects. Submission is closed, but do have a look at our current open funds — such as NGI Zero Entrust fund), or just make a proposal.

Look at all current programmes Go to NGI0 Entrust Go to NGI0 Core

There is something strangely intimate about seeing what people search for - it somehow feels like peeking right into their brain as they attempt to interface with technology on someone elses terms. Search makes people transparent and vulnerable: there are no euphemisms, no cloaks you can wear when you have to talk to a machine that needs to sieve through a large pile of information for you - yet. But perhaps we can change that? And while we are at it: can we shift the asymmetric balance of power between technology providers and users? Can we improve the efficiency of search? What else can we do better?

The internet and the world wide web have entirely changed our ability to search for what we need and to discover what we don't yet know. A multi-trillion industry has emerged to help us navigate the abundance of information space - which comes as no surprise if you look up the origins of the the term cyberspace. It has become very clear that the societal stakes are immensely high for remaining in control. Few understand the complex interplay and huge economic and human impact of such a seemingly simple technical service. There is a cumulative real-world impact when many millions of people depend on specific intermediaries to find a hotel, to search about political background facts or to fall in love based on the presentation and rating of their counterpart. It matters not only what you type into the search bar of a browser, but very much also who answers that call, by what means and on what grounds - and what they log about you, what data they have already and whom they share what derived knowledge with. The technologies we have for search and discovery shape our societies and economies in a very concrete and systematic sense of the term, and shift our view of the world. How do we make sure that the core human values we hold high as society are strenghtened rather than anything else?

We need your contributions to help reshape the state of play, and to help create an open, trustworthy and reliable internet for all. And of course such contributions do not happen automatically. This is why between now and 2021 we will award 5.6 million euro in small to medium-size R&D grants towards improving search and discovery. We are looking for new ideas and core technologies that help society tackle hard but very very important questions, each of which has significant social and economic consequences.

We are seeking project proposals between 5.000 and 50.000 euro's - with the potential to scale them up if there is proven potential. Search should not be a gatekeeper, a black box or a privacy nightmare. If the internet is the equivalent of a global brain, we need creativity and diversity in the pathways across that brain to unlock its true potential. Search and discovery are basic human needs for humans of all ages, and we would like to put powerful new technology in the hands of future generations as building blocks for a fair and democratic society and an open economy that benefits all. Have a look at the current projects to see what we mean, but don't be afraid to send something completely different if you think you can contribute to the topic.

The seventeenth and final call of NGI Zero Discovery closed on October 1st 2021 12:00 CEST (noon).

Next Generation Internet

We want an open Internet that allows every citizen to interact and, from all walks of life, to take part in the online society. We want an internet that empowers citizens not discriminates them - Roberto Viola

Discovery and identification technologies: to search and access large heterogeneous data sources, services, objects and sensors, devices, multi-media content, etc. and which may include aspects of numbering; providing contextual querying, personalised information retrieval and increased quality of experience.

Read more at NGI.eu

Acknowledgements

NGI0 Discovery is made possible with financial support from the European Commission's Next Generation Internet programme, under the aegis of DG Communications Networks, Content and Technology.

This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 825322.