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© European Union / Fred Guerdin

Duisburg City

Awarded for an ambitious strategy to strengthen SME competitiveness, innovation and economic resilience, turning the city's structural transformation into a forward-looking agenda for sustainable growth. A key pillar of Duisbug's EER strategy is accelerating SME competitiveness through applied artificial intelligence (AI) and digitalisation, supported by a structured 'SME adoption journey' that helps companies develop, test and scale up data-driven solutions. A flagship example is the 'KI für KMU' (AI for SMEs) programme, which enables SMEs to integrate artificial intelligence into their business processes and value chains.

North-East Romania

Awarded for its strategy to foster innovation-driven entrepreneurship and better connect the region to the European Single Market. The North-East Romania's EER strategy focuses on expanding the entrepreneurial pipeline, supporting start-ups and the digital transition of SMEs, and strengthening links to European and global innovation networks. A flagship example is the Rubik Start programme, which helps students and aspiring entrepreneurs develop business ideas through mentoring, bootcamps and university partnerships. By bringing together existing initiatives under a common framework, North-East Romania is creating new opportunities for innovation, business growth and international cooperation while contributing to Europe’s competitiveness and resilience.

Regione Umbria

Awarded for its ambition to turn structural challenges into drivers of competitiveness. The region is developing a model of SME-led growth centred on industrial innovation, digitalisation and sustainability. Umbria's EER strategy focuses on supporting SME growth and industrial upgrading, accelerating AI adoption, promoting clean-tech innovation and renewable-energy communities, and strengthening innovation from research to scale-up. A flagship example is the development of renewable-energy communities, which help businesses reduce energy costs, strengthen resilience and support the region’s green transition. By combining innovation, green competitiveness and data-driven governance, Umbria is positioning itself as a model for SME-led growth and a stronger contributor to European competitiveness within the Single Market.

Highlights

True economic resilience is built from the ground up by supporting the vitality of our local businesses. This year's EER winners perfectly illustrate how regional ecosystems can successfully connect research, entrepreneurship, and cutting-edge technology to drive forward-looking industrial transformation

Alberto Cirio, Chair of the ECON commission

Umbria received the EER 2027 award because it has turned innovation, youth and simplification into concrete actions: the STEP Platform and SMARTup for SMEs, artificial intelligence for businesses and citizens, Renewable Energy Communities for a clean transition, and new measures for young talents, such as 38 PhD scholarships with a 40% higher amount. A small region that thinks big.

Stefania Proietti, President of Umbria Region

I am delighted by the recognition with the EER, as it demonstrates appreciation for the fact that Duisburg is actively shaping economic transformation. Through our ERDF projects for the application of artificial intelligence in companies, for start-ups in logistics, and for the circular economy, we show how positive momentum can be created during structural change. For us, it is a matter of course that we strengthen these processes through policy improvement and peer reviews in INTERREG projects.

Rasmus C. Beck, Chief Executive Officer of Duisburg Business & Innovation

This award is the culmination of many years of work and confirms that a region does not develop through infrastructure and funding alone, but above all through inventive people who create added value. Our ambition is to think and act in an entrepreneurial and responsible way, building ecosystems such as Rubik Hub and ROStartup that support start-ups, connect resources and turn ideas into real development for communities.

Vasile Assandei, Director General of North-East Regional Development Agency

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