The project MINIGRAPH, coordinated by the ICN2 Advanced Electronic Materials and Devices Group, led by ICREA Prof. Jose A. Garrido, has been awarded 4M euros by the European Commission through the European Innovation Council (EIC) Pathfinder Challenges call, plus another 1.2M€ by the Swiss Federal Government (State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation). Selected with other 38 out of more than 400 projects, MINIGRAPH will be carried out by a consortium including besides ICN2, the spin-off company founded by researchers from ICN2, IMB-CNM-CSIC and ICREA INBRAIN Neuroelectronics (Spain) – which in 2021 raised more than 14M euros of investments to develop smart graphene-based neural implants for personalised therapies — imec (Belgium), the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration (Germany), ETH Zürich (Switzerland) and its spin-off Nanoflex Robotics (Switzerland), and the Leiden University Medical Centre (Netherlands). The project’s purpose is to develop novel brain neurotechnology on graphene for the treatment of neurological disorders and a minimally invasive implantation procedure.

The Commission selected 39 new projects under the 2021 EIC Pathfinder call for cutting edge research projects to achieve breakthroughs in five strategic areas: Self-aware AI, Tools to measure and stimulate activity in brain tissue, Emerging technologies in cell and gene therapy, Novel routes to green hydrogen production, and Engineered living materials…