Exploitation means the use of results in developing, creating and marketing a product or process; in creating and providing a service; or in standardisation activities. Exploitation can be commercial, societal, or political, or aimed at improving public knowledge and action. It also includes recommendations for policy making (i.e. feedback to policy).
IMI and IHI project partners have a contractual obligation to ensure exploitation of their results for research use and/or direct exploitation either:
- by themselves, e.g. for further research or for commercial or industrial exploitation in its own activities, or
- by other beneficiaries or third parties, e.g. through licensing or by transferring the ownership of results.
Our projects have delivered powerful, fit-for-purpose solutions, or assets, that have the potential to transform the healthcare industry and improve patient outcomes on a global scale. Deployment of these results in research, regulatory and medical practice beyond the context of EU-funded projects needs to be properly planned and resourced to achieve the desired impact.
This scaling up often falls outside of the project timelines or objectives, but the understanding that both project design and the engagement of stakeholders during the lifetime of the project help determine the success of future deployment drove EFPIA to develop the Field Manual on scaling innovations emerging from public-private partnerships.
Although the Field Manual is based on the experience of several IMI digital health projects, it provides actionable guidance that can be applied to EU projects working in other areas of research. It includes practical advice and solutions on issues such as: how to set a scale-up vision, how to identify drivers, opportunities, challenges, and the capabilities to scale up, and how to determine your project´s optimal scale-up pathway.
The IHI Programme Office has held two online masterclasses on how to use the Field Manual, the most recent being in June 2026 . The events featured real case studies that can help you design and implement strategies to deploy and scale up your results.
The European Commission offers a range of services to help projects get their results to the market, work towards standardisation, and showcase their results to key audiences.
Horizon Booster ‘go-to-market support service’
Whether your project is funded under IMI or IHI, and whether it is ongoing or closed, you can benefit from the Horizon Booster until 2028.
The Horizon Booster offers two core services: dissemination support and go-to-market support, plus four add-on services (networking, portfolio analysis, public intellectual assets management and public speaking coaching) that can be requested in addition to the Horizon Booster's core services.
By applying to the go-to-market support service, you will receive expert, tailor-made support and training, free of charge, to:
- focus on increasing the maturity of your Key Exploitable Results (KERs);
- develop an effective business plan to facilitate market access and achieve impact;
- identify opportunities for further exploitation or reuse of research results.
To take advantage of the Horizon Booster, fill in the application form.
To find out more about the Horizon Booster and its services, you can either catch up on the slides and recording of a past info session, or register for an upcoming session.
Horizon Standardisation Booster
The Horizon Standardisation Booster is a dedicated service for EU-funded research projects to increase and valorise project results through standardisation. The HSbooster offers services ranging from early-stage proposal support and short-term mentoring to more advanced assistance for projects ready to engage directly with standards development activities.
The support is free, and IMI /IHI projects can apply for services through open calls.
These services are available for both single projects and for project clusters. For example, discover how our IDERHA and BIGPICTURE projects teamed up with four other data-driven EU-funded projects focusing on cancer to develop, with HSBooster support, a new standards compliance toolkit - a practical guide for aligning with the European Health Data Space on the secondary use of data.
Horizon Results Platform
The Horizon Results Platform provides you with a free, online space to showcase the result(s) of your projects at no cost and in a user-friendly way. The platform is hosted under the Funding & Tenders Portal to make it easy for you to manage your results in a central and safe environment.
By creating your result profile(s), you will be able to reach out to your desired audiences and key stakeholders, whether they are policymakers, investors, research and technology organisations, industry, or academia. In order to find your result(s), external visitors will be able to use search criteria.
Depending on the nature and needs of your result(s), the platform can trigger different opportunities and services, ranging from pitching events with investors, options for assistance with your dissemination plans, business development plans, innovation management, IP management, further collaborations, and much more.
The result profile is managed by you.
For questions, contact EC-HORIZON-RESULTS-PLATFORM@ec.europa.eu.