The CLARA Consortium offers a unique opportunity for young talents and visionaries who want to make the world a better place through their ideas.
It is now opening applications for the first edition of the CLARA Young Innovation Award 2026, where individuals and teams can compete for financial support, connect with leading experts, and move their ideas closer to real-world impact. We are looking for those of you who have a meaningful and effective digital innovation idea with the potential to improve the quality of life of the ageing population.
We invite young researchers, developers, and technology pioneers to submit their projects to the CLARA Young Innovation Award 2026. The CLARA Consortium aims to spotlight talented undergraduate and postgraduate students as well as early-career scientists whose technological solutions have the potential to improve the lives of older adults.
Projects do not need to be fully completed; work at various stages of development is welcome. Submitted projects may cover a wide range of topics, such as monitoring the cognitive or physical health of seniors, personal digital diaries for older adults, tools for ageing research, educational or intergenerational platforms, as well as advanced software and machine learning solutions supporting protein discovery and design.
What matters most, however, is that the work has a real impact on people.
Who can apply?
Applications are open to individuals or teams of up to four members, aged 35 or under (inclusive).
Applicants may include:
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Bachelor’s, Master’s, and PhD students
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Postdoctoral researchers
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Early-career academic researchers
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Young professionals from technology companies and startups
A separate category will be announced for applicants up to 22 years of age.
What must the application include?
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Project title and description
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Project output (e.g. scientific result, tool, software, prototype/demo, or video presentation)
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Technical overview (brief description of objectives, approach, implementation plan, and expected outcomes; max. 3 pages PDF)
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Applicant profile (free-form text, max. 1 page), structured CV (max. 2 pages), motivation letter (structured text, max. 1 page)
Evaluation criteria
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Innovation and creativity
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Societal relevance and impact
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Technical quality and feasibility
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Usability and accessibility
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Explainability of the solution
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Alignment with the vision and mission of CLARA
The jury will include leading Czech and international experts in artificial intelligence and machine learning research.
What do successful applicants receive?
In addition to recognition from renowned experts in the field, successful applicants will receive meaningful professional and financial support.
Each awarded project will receive a €2,000 financial prize, complemented by expert mentoring, opportunities for incubation or practical implementation, and support with submissions to leading scientific and technological conferences.
Finalists will be invited to the award ceremony, which will take place on 21–22 May 2026 as part of the Prague International Health Summit.
About the organizer
The award is organized by partners of the CLARA project:
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International Neurodegenerative Disorders Research Center (INDRC)
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International Clinical Research Center (ICRC)
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Czech Institute of Informatics, Robotics and Cybernetics (CIIRC)
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VSB – Technical University of Ostrava – IT4Innovations
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Paris Brain Institute (PBI)
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Leibniz Supercomputing Centre, Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities (LRZ)
CLARA is an interdisciplinary center of excellence, the first of its kind in Central and Eastern Europe. It focuses on developing a new generation of technologies in artificial intelligence, machine learning, and quantum-enhanced supercomputing. Its main mission is to accelerate research into neurodegenerative diseases, especially Alzheimer’s disease, by leveraging large-scale biological and clinical data through advanced computational methods.
Applications can be submitted by 15 March 2026 to clara@indrc.cz.
