Data Science Investigator Programme

Data Science Investigator Programme

Supports Danish data science leaders in advanced computational and AI research.

The Novo Nordisk Foundation's Data Science Investigator Programme funds excellent research leaders based at Danish universities or non-profit research institutions who are advancing data science, computational science, and their applications. The 2026 call opened on 6 March 2026 and closes at 2:00 pm Copenhagen time on 15 July 2026, with results announced in December 2026. The programme is reviewed annually and a Spring 2027 cycle is anticipated. Supported research covers two main areas: the development of new algorithms, methods, and technologies within data science, AI including machine learning and deep learning, statistics, bioinformatics, mathematical modelling, simulations, and cybersecurity; and the application of these tools to the Foundation's strategic areas of life science, biomedical and public health, sustainability, green transition, and agriculture. Financial analysis, fraud detection, advertising, mass surveillance, defence, and gaming are explicitly out of scope.

For the 2026 cycle, the total budget available is up to DKK 99 million across all three career tracks combined, with individual grants of up to DKK 14.7 million per award over up to five years. The programme uses three separate career-level calls within NORMA — Emerging Investigator (four to eight years post-PhD), Ascending Investigator (seven to fifteen years post-PhD), and Distinguished Investigator (fifteen or more years post-PhD) — and applicants must select the correct category, as applications cannot be transferred between career tracks after submission. Each applicant must be the principal investigator of their project and, for junior career stages, must be demonstrably independent from senior researchers at the host institution.

Eligibility is restricted to research leaders who are employed and physically based in Denmark, with the project anchored at a Danish university or non-profit research institution. Applicants must also contribute to data science education or training at their host institution or at other Danish institutions. For-profit organisations are not eligible. Applications are submitted via NORMA. Programme contacts are Linsey Zielinski (lzi@novo.dk) and Cecilia Lövkvist (clv@novo.dk); the reviewing body is the Foundation's Committee for Data Science.