OP TAK — Aplikace (Industrial R&D)

OP TAK Applications — Deep Tech Call IV (Aplikace)

Backs OP TAK Aplikace DEEP TECH výzva IV. for practical innovation and measurable results.

OP TAK Aplikace — DEEP TECH výzva IV is the 2026 industrial R&D call under the Czech Operational Programme Technologies and Applications for Competitiveness (OP TAK), the ERDF-funded programme managed by the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MPO) and administered by the Agency for Business and Innovation (API). The call carries a total allocation of CZK 2 billion and targets industrial research and experimental development in deep-technology domains, including artificial intelligence, semiconductors, advanced materials, robotics, and advanced manufacturing. At the time of the most recent publicly available data snapshot, 23 applications had been received totalling approximately CZK 538.8 million, indicating a still-open competition with substantial remaining headroom. Project outputs must take the form of prototypes, demonstrators, software, or intellectual property.

Eligible applicants include Czech-registered enterprises as well as universities and research organisations, particularly where enterprises collaborate with academic partners in joint project consortia. The call is filed under OP TAK Priority 1 (Strengthening R&D and Innovation Performance), consistent with the broader programme's emphasis on companies conducting in-house R&D rather than simply acquiring technology. A deep-tech focus implies expectations of higher technological ambition compared to standard Aplikace rounds, though specific TRL bounds were not available in published HTML sources at ingest time. Awards are funded from EU structural funds with national co-financing; exact minimum and maximum award sizes are contained in call documentation on optak.gov.cz.

Applications are submitted via the ISKP21+ portal (MS2014+ family). The call is live in the 2026 OP TAK harmonogram. Applicants must obtain a project registration number from API before submission and are expected to demonstrate commercial relevance alongside scientific or engineering novelty. Projects scoring sufficiently in the structured API evaluation receive a grant decision (Rozhodnutí o poskytnutí dotace). Czech enterprises conducting genuine pre-competitive industrial R&D — with internal R&D teams, clear IPR strategies, and capacity to manage EU-funded reporting obligations — are the primary target applicants.