Germany hosted its second Enhanced Dialogue with the European Commission in Berlin on 2–3 March, bringing together Secretary of State Marcus Pleyer of the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR) and Marc Lemaître, Director-General for Research and Innovation. The meeting provided an opportunity for an in-depth exchange on Germany’s research and innovation (R&I) policy, priorities under the European Research Area (ERA), and the future direction of European R&I funding in the run-up to the next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF).
The analysis of Germany’s R&I system under the European Semester set the scene for discussions, underlining its many strengths — including strong industrial leadership, world-class research institutions and sustained public investment — while also identifying persisting challenges such as scaling up breakthrough innovation and accelerating technology transfer. The exchange highlighted how Germany’s ambitious High-Tech Agenda is addressing these gaps by aligning research excellence with industrial competitiveness in key enabling technologies.