EIC-backed innovations recognised by the Innovation Radar Prize 2022

The European Commission has named NVision Imaging Technologies and a research cluster led by the Polytechnic University of Madrid among the winners of the Innovation Radar Prize 2022. The awards highlight innovations emerging from EU-funded research and development projects supported under different strands of the European Innovation Council and Horizon programmes.

What the prizes were and why they matter

The Innovation Radar Prize rewards promising innovations that originate from EU-funded research projects. In 2022 the jury gave awards across three categories: Purpose-Driven and Green, Disruptive Health, and Kickstarter. NVision won the overall prize. The Polytechnic University of Madrid, working across multiple projects, received the Kickstarter category award for applied academic research demonstrating market promise. Both winners received recognition for technical novelty and commercial potential but will still face the usual hurdles of scale up, regulation and market adoption.

Overall winner: NVision and the MetaboliQs project

NVision Imaging Technologies, a German company that received EU funding through the MetaboliQs project, was named the Innovation Radar Prize 2022 overall winner. The MetaboliQs project reports a new magnetic resonance imaging approach that yields chemical information about tissue by amplifying the MRI signal of metabolites roughly one thousand times. The developers say this boosts the visibility of metabolic activity and could enable new diagnostics and personalised treatments for cardiovascular and other metabolic diseases at lower cost than existing approaches.

Why this matters and what remains to be shown. A thousand-fold amplification would be a major step for metabolic MRI if the effect is robust, repeatable and compatible with clinical practice. Key open questions include reproducibility across scanner types, the lifetime of the amplified signal, safety and regulatory pathways, and the cost structure when moving from a research prototype to wide clinical use. The Innovation Radar Prize recognises potential but does not substitute for independent clinical validation and regulatory approval.

Kickstarter winner: Polytechnic University of Madrid and ultra-high temperature energy storage

The Polytechnic University of Madrid won the Kickstarter category for a portfolio of projects with potential commercial impact. The award covers work carried out under the AMADEUS FET-Open project, the NATHALIE follow-on, and plans under the EIC Transition Thermobat project. The combined effort targets latent heat thermal energy storage at temperatures up to 2 000°C and conversion of that heat to electricity using novel solid-state devices.

Potential and practical hurdles. Operating at 2 000°C expands theoretical possibilities for compact, long-duration storage and higher conversion efficiency. At the same time materials science, manufacturing, containment, and repeated thermal cycling at those temperatures are non trivial. Industrial adoption depends on demonstrating cycle life, acceptable costs, safe operation, and system integration with grids or industrial heat users.

Context in the EU innovation ecosystem

The Innovation Radar Prize sits alongside a suite of EIC instruments that fund early stage science, technology maturation and scale up. EIC Pathfinder supports high risk high gain research at low TRL levels. EIC Transition is designed to move validated concepts toward application relevant environments and market readiness. The prize highlights projects that have made progress under these programmes but prize recognition is only one step on the road to commercialisation.

EU support can accelerate technology readiness but does not eliminate the downstream barriers. For medical imaging technologies, regulatory approvals and clinical validation are lengthy and costly. For ultra-high temperature energy storage, industrial pilots, supply chain development and standards for safety and materials will be critical. Public recognition can unlock partner interest and additional funding but it can also raise expectations that may not align with the time needed for technical validation and industrial roll out.

Implications and what to watch next

Both awardees point to promising directions in their fields. NVision’s approach, if verified and manufacturable at scale, could broaden the clinical reach of metabolic imaging. The Polytechnic University of Madrid’s work pushes the temperature frontier for energy storage and conversion, which could matter for grid stability and industrial decarbonisation if the engineering challenges are solved.

Observers should track several indicators. For NVision this includes peer reviewed demonstrations, independent clinical validation, performance across standard MRI scanners, and regulatory milestones. For Thermobat and related projects watch for published cycle life tests, materials qualification at high temperature, pilot installations, cost per stored kWh and demonstration of safe operation. In both cases convergence of technical readiness, manufacturability and a clear market path will determine whether the innovations move from promising research to commercial impact.

Bottom line

The Innovation Radar Prize 2022 recognises two distinct trajectories in European deep tech: a potentially disruptive medical imaging advance and an ambitious materials and systems push to store and reconvert energy at ultra-high temperatures. Both are emblematic of how EU research funding supports early breakthroughs. The next phases will require careful technical validation, pragmatic engineering to address scaling and durability, and realistic market strategies before widespread deployment.