€10m Shared Island Digital Creative Industries Innovation Programme launched

The Irish government has launched a €10m Shared Island Digital Creative Industries Innovation Programme, aiming to bolster research and innovation in disciplines related to digital creative industries. This initiative, set to run from 2027 to 2030, seeks projects that contribute to digital creative industries on an all-island basis.

The budget is comprised of €6m from the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, and €4m from the Government’s Shared Island Fund. The programme targets higher education institutions across Ireland, encouraging them to enhance their research and innovation capabilities in areas such as video game development, immersion technologies (VR and AR), animation, and other forms of digital media and arts.

The application window will open in the coming weeks, with the deadline for submissions set for 12pm, 15 December 2026. Successful projects are expected to be selected and announced early in the following year. Taoiseach Micheál Martin highlighted that the programme will foster new opportunities for higher education institutions to collaborate and develop joint research and innovation partnerships.

He noted that Irish higher education institutions already possess significant expertise and research infrastructure in digital creative industries, and this initiative will leverage their complementary capabilities to bolster the island’s position in these rapidly evolving sectors.

Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, James Lawless, emphasized the economic benefits and potential for innovation and high-quality employment within Ireland’s digital creative industries. He stressed the importance of strengthening the research expertise, innovation capacity, and industry engagement of higher education institutions to fully realize the sector’s potential.

Lawless also highlighted that the Shared Island Digital Creative Industries Innovation Programme complements other significant investments, including the North-South Research Programme and the €750m Inspire Research Infrastructure and Talent Programme. Together, these initiatives are aimed at building the necessary expertise, partnerships, and infrastructure to support a competitive and internationally recognized research system in Ireland.