Speeding up the digitalisation and AI uptake of European businesses

On 9 April, the European Commission presented its AI Continent Action Plan, which sets the course for the European Union to become a leading AI continent. The plan aims to fuel economic growth, boost competitiveness, and strengthen European sovereignty with AI. It establishes a timeline for initiatives to support the development of robust computing infrastructure, improve access to data, drive AI adoption in strategic sectors, foster AI skills and talent, and help AI users to comply with regulations. 

The European Digital Innovation Hubs are a key aspect of the AI Continent Action Plan, enabling companies and public sector organisations to respond to digital challenges, adopt AI technologies and become more competitive. They also play an important role in bridging the gap between technology providers and users by supporting European businesses directly. Data from a new Joint Research Centre (JRC) report showcase the successful results of the project.

Linking tech providers and users  

Since 2023, the network of Digital Innovation Hubs has acted as an intermediary between technology providers and users, fostering collaboration and offering services such as training, networking, funding advice, and test-before-invest facilities. The JRC provides scientific and technical support, developing tools, and monitoring European digital uptake. 

By September 2024, the European Digital Innovation Hubs had organised over 5 000 events reaching more than 200 000 participants and had delivered over 18 000 services. The network has a widespread presence and covers 90% of European regions.    

Improving digital maturity 

The Digital Maturity Assessment Tool developed by the JRC has been a key instrument to evaluate and improve the digital maturity of organisations, benefiting almost 9 000 small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and 800 public sector organisations. JRC findings show that European Digital Innovation Hubs helped 90% of users to improve their digital maturity. AI adoption and automation are among the areas that improved the most, accounting for 35% of performance increase.   

 DMAT score development before and after EDIH services

The new JRC report analyses the network’s strengths and weaknesses, geographical coverage, and impact on increasing companies’ digital maturity. It offers recommendations to improve management of the network. It also looks at the characteristics of the Digital Innovation Hubs’ customers, including their sector of activity, size, and skill level. This helps identify areas of high demand for digital transformation services and gaps in the current support provided. 

Looking to the Future: experience centres for AI 

As of December 2025, European Digital Innovation Hubs will evolve into Experience Centres for AI that will focus on sector-specific AI solutions. They will work closely with testing and experimentation facilities and AI Factories to offer businesses large-scale testing environments and computational resources, as part of the AI Continent Action Plan.  

The EU is also committed to upskilling its workforce to boost AI adoption across sectors. The European Digital Innovation Hubs will provide training for small businesses and start-ups, promoting AI literacy and continuous learning for workers.  

Related links: 

Digital innovation

European Digital Innovation Hubs Network