As Europe races to lead the global AI and quantum revolution, it is not just investing in cutting-edge infrastructure, it is investing in people.
Following on from the ‘Why Europe is becoming a magnet for AI and Quantum talent’ article on investment and policy reform, this second article explores how Europe is cultivating home-grown talent through new Digital Skills Academies, industry partnerships, and lifelong learning initiatives, while also introducing powerful incentives to attract top minds from around the world, to position itself as a world-class destination for researchers, engineers, and digital specialists alike.
Talent development through education & skills initiatives
Europe is not just investing in technology; it is investing in the people who will build it, because it is aware that the race for AI and quantum leadership will not be won by infrastructure alone, but by talent. From universities to lifelong learning programs, Europe is laying the groundwork for a tech-savvy, adaptable, and mobile workforce.
Digital Skills Academies (2025)
Delivering on the objectives set out in the Competitiveness Compass, Union of Skills, and AI Continent Action Plan, the European Commission is setting up three new digital skills academies, targeting critical talent shortages across key digital areas. Complementing the Cybersecurity Skills Academy, the new academies in Quantum Technologies, AI and Virtual Worlds will foster a more coordinated approach to digital skills education and training in the EU.
Quantum Skills Digital Academy
The Quantum Skills Digital Academy will serve as a single, central entity providing specialised, tailored training opportunities at different levels that bridge the gap between traditional disciplines and quantum technologies, and will play an important role in contributing to the objectives of the European Declaration on Quantum Technologies in the domain of quantum skills development and training.
AI Skills Digital Academy
The AI Skills Digital Academy will contribute to the objectives of the AI Innovation package launched in January 2024 and support the upcoming Apply AI Strategy part of the Political Guidelines of the President of the European Commission. It will empower undergraduate, graduate, and post-graduate students, as well as current and future sector and ICT specialists in SMEs, startups, and the public sector with basic and advanced skills for developing, deploying and applying AI models and applications in their field.
Virtual Worlds Digital Academy
Virtual worlds are a fast-evolving technology, gaining ground in more and more areas of our lives. By blending physical and digital worlds in real-time, they bring unprecedented opportunities, but the scarcity of professionals with suitable profiles prevents more rapid advancements in the development and uptake of virtual worlds. Across the EU, education and training programmes dedicated to preparing ICT specialists and workforce to engage with virtual worlds appear to be insufficient to meet the market demand. The overarching objective of the Virtual Worlds Skills Academy is to reinforce the talent pool needed to attain EU’s ambitions of technological sovereignty and competitiveness.
Please see our Calls and Opportunities page for details of open calls to help build these digital academies. Applications close on 2 September 2025.
Industry Partnerships
Europe’s education strategy is directly tied to industry needs. By partnering with national and EU-level education programmes, such as the EIT Deep tech Talent Initiative, leading firms are co-developing curriculum, offering in-house training, and sponsoring student competitions in AI and quantum applications, to ensure that students gain real-world experience with industrial datasets, hardware, and simulations. All of which helps to accelerate the path from education to employment, and reduce the skills gap across sectors.
Microcredentials & lifelong learning for all ages
Digital society and digital technologies bring with them new ways to learn, entertain, work, explore, and fulfil ambitions, they also bring new freedoms and rights, and give EU citizens the opportunity to reach out beyond physical communities, geographical locations, and social positions.
The EU’s Digital Decade aims to empower businesses and people in a human-centred, sustainable and more prosperous digital future.
However, there are still many challenges associated with the digital transformation. The ‘2025 State of the Digital Decade’ report reveals that just over half of Europeans (55.6%) have a basic level of digital skills, which are fundamental for societal resilience to online threats, including those affecting information integrity, mental wellbeing and minors, and the availability of ICT specialists with advanced skills remains low with a stark gender divide, hindering progress in key sectors, such as cybersecurity and AI.
The Digital Education Action Plan (2021-2027) sets out a common vision of high-quality, inclusive and accessible digital education in Europe, and aims to support the adaptation of the education and training systems of Member States to the digital age.
Adopting a Recommendation on a European approach to micro-credentials for lifelong learning and employability in 2022, the EU has also expanded funding to support the development, implementation and recognition of micro-credentials across institutions, businesses, sectors and borders.
As a key initiative within the European Commission’s New European Innovation Agenda, aimed at addressing the talent gap in deep tech fields, the EIT Deep Tech Talent Initiative directly contributes to the goals of the Digital Education Action Plan by preparing individuals with the skills needed for a digitally driven future, particularly in areas like AI and quantum computing.
International talent attraction & research mobility
Recognising the global race for top-tier AI and quantum minds, the EU has stepped up efforts to become the destination of choice for scientists, engineers, and researchers, through aggressive funding, streamlined mobility policies, and a renewed commitment to scientific openness.
Choose Europe for Science
The consolidated ‘Choose Europe for Science’ package, compiled by the European Commission and now available on the EURAXESS platform (which connects researchers with labs, startups, and universities across Europe), highlights billions of euros worth of opportunities for researchers at every stage of their careers. These range from competitive grants and mobility schemes to tenure-track positions, fellowships for researchers at risk, and career development support in all 27 Member States.
The campaign promotes Europe’s values-driven research environment and high living standards, backed by a new €500 million package for 2025-27 to make Europe a magnet for researchers. To further strengthen this ambition, the Commission is proposing a new call for European Research Area (ERA) Chairs worth €230 million under the Horizon Europe Work Programme 2026–27. If endorsed by Member States, the call would more than double the budget of the previous round and could support up to 120 top researchers and research managers working in countries lagging behind in research and innovation performance.
For researchers based outside the EU, further information on opportunities to engage with European funding schemes, can be found in the Calls and Opportunities section of the EIT Deep Tech Talent Initiative’s website.
Opportunities include: Horizon Europe, European Research Council (ERC), Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA), along with various national and regional initiatives.
EU Blue Card Directive
Highly qualified workers from non-EU countries play a crucial role in strengthening the competitiveness of the EU, especially in key sectors of the EU economy that are suffering from specific labour and skill shortages.
To attract more highly skilled workers in a world where international competition for talent is increasing, the Commission introduced a revised Blue Card Directive that offers more efficient rules for attracting highly skilled workers to the EU, including more flexible admission conditions, enhanced rights and the possibility to move and work more easily between EU Member States.
Why Researchers Choose Europe
Europe leads globally in open science adoption. Plan S is an initiative for Open Access publishing that was launched in September 2018. The plan is supported by cOAlition S, an international consortium of research funding and performing organisations. Plan S requires that, from 2021, scientific publications that result from research funded by public grants must be published in compliant Open Access journals or platforms.
Additionally, Europe provides researchers and their families with access to universal healthcare, parental leave, affordable education, and world-class cities that support work-life balance. The 2023 Global Talent Competitiveness Index, revealed that countries including Switzerland, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Germany rank among the world’s most attractive destinations for high-skill workers, not only for wages, but for quality of life, safety, and mobility rights.
Summary
Europe’s AI and quantum ambitions hinge on talent, because without people to drive it forward, cutting-edge technology means very little. So, it is quietly building one of the most ambitious tech talent strategies in the world through long-term investments, education and digital skills programmes that align with industry needs, inclusive policies, and a strong commitment to mobility and lifelong learning.
The result? Europe is not just competing in the global tech race, it is creating the conditions for innovation to thrive, now and for decades to come.
Partners
