Strengthening Smart Specialisation Strategies (S3) through network analysis: Policy insights from a decade of innovation projects in Aragón

Rod íguez Ochoa, Da id; A anz, Nie es; A oyabe, M. F.
A icle
S eng hening Sma Specialisa ion S a egies (S3)
h ough ne wo k analysis: Policy insigh s om a decade o
inno a ion p ojec s in A agón
Economies
P o ided in Coope a ion wi h:
MDPI – Mul idisciplina y Digi al Publishing Ins i u e, Basel
Sugges ed Ci a ion: Rod íguez Ochoa, Da id; A anz, Nie es; A oyabe, M. F. (2025) : S eng hening
Sma Specialisa ion S a egies (S3) h ough ne wo k analysis: Policy insigh s om a decade o
inno a ion p ojec s in A agón, Economies, ISSN 2227-7099, MDPI, Basel, Vol. 13, Iss. 8, pp. 1-41,
h ps://doi.o g/10.3390/economies13080218
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Published: 26 July 2025
Ci a ion: Rod íguez Ochoa, D.,
A anz, N., & Fe nandez de A oyabe,
M. (2025). S eng hening Sma
Specialisa ion S a egies (S3) Th ough
Ne wo k Analysis: Policy Insigh s
om a Decade o Inno a ion P ojec s
in A agón. Economies,13(8), 218.
h ps://doi.o g/10.3390/economies
13080218
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Licensee MDPI, Basel, Swi ze land.
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A icle
S eng hening Sma Specialisa ion S a egies (S3) Th ough
Ne wo k Analysis: Policy Insigh s om a Decade o Inno a ion
P ojec s in A agón
Da id Rod íguez Ochoa 1,2,* , Nie es A anz 3and Ma a Fe nandez de A oyabe 4
1
CIRCE Founda ion-Resea ch Cen e o Ene gy Resou ces and Consump ion-Za agoza, 50018 Za agoza, Spain
2PhD P og amme in Economics and Business, UNED, 28040 Mad id, Spain
3Depa men o Applied Economics, School o Economics and Business, UNED, 28040 Mad id, Spain;
[email p o ec ed]
4Essex Business School, Uni e si y o Essex, Sou hend-on-Sea SS1 1LW, UK; [email p o ec ed]
*Co espondence: d od iguez@ ci ce.es
Abs ac
This pape applies a mul i-le el social ne wo k analysis o examine A agón’s inno a ion
ecosys em, ocusing on a decade o compe i i e public p ojec s (2014–2023) aligned wi h
he egion’s Sma Specialisa ion S a egy (S3) 2021–2027. By mapping and weigh ing he
pa icipa ion o egional en i ies ac oss egional, na ional, and Eu opean calls, he s udy
unco e s how all ypes o local ac o s o ganise hemsel es a ound key specialisa ion a eas.
Mo eo e , a compa a i e benchma k is in oduced by analysing mo e han 33,000 Ho izon
2020 and Ho izon Eu ope ini ia i es wi hou A agonese pa ne s, e ealing how o ill
s uc u al gaps and en ich he egional ecosys em h ough in e na ional collabo a ion.
Resul s show s ong unding concen a ion in ou ields—Ene gy, Heal h, Ag i-Food, and
Ad anced Technologies—while o he his o ically s a egic a eas like Hyd ogen and Wa e
emain unde ep esen ed. Al hough leading ins i u ions (UNIZAR, CIRCE, ITA, AITIIP)
play cen al oles in connec ing academia and indus y, di ec collabo a ion among hem
is limi ed, poin ing o missed syne gies. Expanding p e ious SNA-based assessmen s,
his s udy in oduces a diagnos ic ool o guide policy, p oposing a ge ed ac ions such
as challenge-d i en calls, dedica ed suppo p og ams, and c oss-bo de conso ia wi h
op EU pa ne s. Applied o wo con as ing specialisa ion a eas, he me hod o e s sec o -
speci ic ecommenda ions, helping policymake s align A agón’s inno a ion capabili ies
wi h EU p io i ies and s eng hen i s posi ion in bo h es ablished and eme ging domains.
Keywo ds: egional inno a ion; sma specialisa ion s a egy; A agon; compe i i e public
p ojec s; social ne wo k analysis; inno a ion ecosys em
1. In oduc ion
In ecen yea s, sma specialisa ion s a egies (S3) ha e become key ools o p o-
mo ing egional compe i i eness, sus ainabili y, and inclusi eness in Eu ope (Eu opean
Commission, Join Resea ch Cen e,2021;Eu opean Commi ee o he Regions e al.,2023).
Ins ead o simply unding isola ed inno a ion p ojec s, S3 encou ages egions o iden i y
and build on hei unique s eng hs h ough collabo a i e go e nance, knowledge sha ing,
and ongoing en ep eneu ial disco e y (Asheim,2019;Gheo ghiu e al.,2016). This holis ic
app oach iews egional inno a ion sys ems as complex, adap i e ne wo ks shaped by
Economies 2025,13, 218 h ps://doi.o g/10.3390/economies13080218
Economies 2025,13, 218 2 o 41
policy s uc u es, social capi al, and place-based s a egies ha in luence how ideas eme ge,
sp ead, and gene a e sus ainable ad an age (Ba be o e al.,2022;Masca enhas e al.,2021).
Despi e his concep ual e olu ion, ques ions emain abou how e ec i ely S3 s a egies
cap u e and s ee hese unde lying collabo a ion dynamics in p ac ice. A g owing body o
li e a u e highligh s he impo ance o mo ing beyond unding and go e nance indica o s
o be e unde s and he ela ional pa e ns wi hin inno a ion ecosys ems (Balland e al.,
2019;Tolias,2019;Wibisono,2022). This pape add esses ha gap by p oposing mul i-
le el social ne wo k analysis (SNA) o diagnose he s uc u e and dynamics o A agón’s
inno a ion ecosys em.
We apply his amewo k o A agón, a egion ha illus a es bo h he s eng hs and
limi a ions o S3 s a egies. Despi e ising R&D in es men and s ong GDP pe capi a,
A agón aces pe sis en challenges in echnology ans e , agmen ed R&D capaci y, and
weak collabo a ion among esea ch cen es. The S3 A agón 2021–2027 s a egy p io i-
ises digi alisa ion, sus ainabili y, and se ice inno a ion linked o indus y, alongside
imp o ed go e nance and moni o ing (A agón Go e nmen ,2024). Howe e , majo gaps
emain: nea ly 60% o local o ganisa ions epo no access o public R&D unding, esea ch
ins i u ions emain poo ly coo dina ed, and la ge i ms end o engage uni e si ies and
echnology cen es h ough limi ed, bila e al collabo a ions a he han b oad pa ne ships.
Mo ing om an A agón pe spec i e o ha o o he Eu opean egions, a c i ical gap
in S3 implemen a ion lies in he lack o de ailed, empi ical insigh in o how egional in-
no a ion sys ems ope a e in p ac ice. While exis ing e alua ions o en ocus on unding
ou pu s, s a egic planning documen s, o s akeholde consul a ion p ocesses, hey end o
explo e collabo a ion pa e ns only indi ec ly o in a agmen ed manne . As highligh ed
by Tolias (2019), he e is a p essing need o deepen ou unde s anding o how inno a ion
ac o s in e ac , pa icula ly in e ms o knowledge lows and s uc u al posi ioning wi hin
ne wo ks. This misma ch be ween S3’s concep ual goals (dynamic, place-based, pa ici-
pa o y inno a ion) and he limi ed ools a ailable o moni o , diagnose and adap hese
s a egies e ec i ely c ea es a undamen al gap in ailo ing in e en ions ha espond o
he eal-wo ld challenges o egional inno a ion ne wo ks.
Building on ea lie wo k (Cal o-Galla do e al.,2021,2022;Rod íguez Ochoa e al.,
2023,2025), which applied one-mode ne wo k analysis o examine R&D p ojec collabo-
a ions wi hin A agón’s RIS3 (2014–2020) con ex , he p esen s udy expands his scope
by adop ing a mul i-domain, compa a i e amewo k based on A agón’s S3 (2021–2027)
key a eas. The p io esea ch e ealed pa e ns o ins i u ional cen ali y and iden i ied
bo lenecks in egional knowledge di usion bu was limi ed o add essing he di e ences
be ween p ojec s unded a di e en geog aphical le els. He e, we b oaden he analysis
by: (i) mapping and weigh ing pa icipa ion in compe i i e public p ojec s om 2014 o
2023 ac oss egional, na ional, and Eu opean le els, using unding as a p oxy o collabo a-
ion in ensi y; (ii) classi ying hese p ojec s acco ding o A agón’s S3 p io i y domains o
assess whe he ac o s a e concen a ed o agmen ed ac oss a eas; and (iii) benchma k-
ing A agón’s ne wo k s uc u es agains Ho izon 2020 and Ho izon Eu ope p ojec s ha
exclude A agonese pa ne s, iden i ying ex e nal models o connec i i y ha could help
ill local gaps. This app oach p o ides policymake s wi h an e idence-based iew o he
egion’s collabo a i e a chi ec u e, enabling mo e a ge ed and adap i e in e en ions
aligned wi h S3 goals.
The emainde o his s udy is o ganized as ollows: Sec ion 2analyses he heo e ical
amewo ks o he pape ’s con ibu ions. Sec ion 3desc ibes he da a collec ion and SNA-
based me hodology, speci ying how p ojec s a e classi ied and weigh ed. Sec ion 4p esen s
he indings om ou pa icipa ion, cohesion, and cen ali y analyses, highligh ing hei
implica ions o inno a ion bo lenecks ac oss key specialisa ion a eas. Sec ion 5discusses
Economies 2025,13, 218 3 o 41
how hese empi ical esul s in o m heo e ical and policy deba es on egional inno a ion
s a egies, wi h special a en ion o b idging ins i u ional gaps. Finally, Sec ion 6concludes
by syn hesising he s udy’s con ibu ions o bo h schola ly li e a u e and p ac ice, ou lining
limi a ions and sugges ing a enues o u u e esea ch.
2. Li e a u e Re iew and Concep ual F amewo k
2.1. Inno a ion Th ough Knowledge Flows and In e ac i e Lea ning: Regional Inno a ion Sys ems
and Sma Specialisa ion S a egies
Inno a ion a sys emic p ocess, no an indi idual one. I eme ges om dynamic
in e ac ions among di e se s akeholde s, a he han isola ed R&D p ojec s (Edquis ,1997;
B. A. Lund all,1992;Nelson & Rosenbe g,1993). Roo ed in he sys ems o inno a ion
adi ion, his iew s esses ha inno a ion—especially in knowledge-in ensi e se ings—
equi es collabo a ion, as no single ac o holds all he necessa y expe ise. Bo h sma
specialisa ion s a egies (S3) and egional inno a ion sys ems (RIS) ollow his logic, ea ing
inno a ion as he ou come o coo dina ed ac i i y ac oss ins i u ions, no jus business-
le el pe o mance.
Knowledge is dis ibu ed and socially embedded. I esides no in isola ed labs, bu in
he ne wo ks, no ms, and ou ines ha shape how in o ma ion is sha ed (Asheim & Ge le ,
2005;F eeman,1995). Access o his knowledge depends on ins i u ional amewo ks and
p oximi y, which enable collabo a ion o b idge gaps in echnical and o ganisa ional ex-
pe ise. RIS heo y highligh s how geog aphic and ins i u ional closeness os e s lea ning,
while S3 builds on his by u ging egions o map and connec hei embedded knowl-
edge asse s.
In e ac i e lea ning lies a he co e o inno a ion. I e ol es h ough o mal and
in o mal, us -based exchanges among businesses, uni e si ies, go e nmen s, and in e me-
dia ies (Jensen e al.,2007;B.-Å. Lund all & Johnson,1994). This lea ning is cumula i e and
con ex dependen . While ace- o- ace in e ac ion accele a es aci knowledge exchange,
cogni i e and ela ional p oximi y can subs i u e o physical dis ance (B eschi & Lissoni,
2001). Regions, in his sense, become a enas o dense knowledge in e ac ion—making
place a key ac o in bo h RIS and S3 amewo ks.
In oduced in 1997 (Cooke e al.,1997), he RIS app oach concep ualizes egions
as ne wo ks o businesses, uni e si ies, in e media ies, and go e nance s uc u es ha
suppo inno a ion. A well- unc ioning RIS os e s collabo a ion, knowledge exchange,
and sha ed access o skilled labou and suppo sys ems (Asheim & Ge le ,2005;Pin o
e al.,2024).Ye many egions ace sys emic challenges, causing hem o s uggle o build
cohesi e sys ems.
Common ba ie s include coo dina ion ailu es (Rossoni e al.,2024), ins i u ional
agmen a ion, especially in la ge me opoli an a eas whe e nume ous o ganiza ions exis
bu hei in e ac ions emain siloed (Töd ling & T ippl,2005), and ‘o ganiza ional hinness’
in pe iphe al egions wi h sca ci y o inno a ion ac o s (Isaksen e al.,2022;Isaksen &
T ippl,2016). These condi ions highligh ha a “one size i s all” inno a ion policy is
inadequa e and, acco dingly, inno a ion policy mus adap o speci ic con ex s.
Sma specialisa ion eme ged as a policy esponse o hese challenges. Building on RIS
p inciples, S3 was in oduced in he 2014–2020 EU p og amming pe iod as a condi ion o
cohesion unding (McCann & O ega-A gilés,2015). I equi ed egions o c ea e esea ch
and inno a ion s a egies o sma specialisa ion (RIS3) aligned wi h hei unique s eng hs
(Fo ay,2014,2016;Join Resea ch Cen e (Eu opean Commission) e al.,2021). Ra he han
sp eading esou ces hin, S3 encou ages egions o ocus in es men s on p io i y domains
wi h high inno a ion po en ial.
Economies 2025,13, 218 4 o 41
The en ep eneu ial disco e y p ocess (EDP) is a de ining ea u e o S3. I b ings
oge he businesses, academia, and go e nmen o join ly iden i y p omising niches (Gheo-
ghiu e al.,2016;Ma inelli & Pe ianez,2017). This i e a i e p ocess echoes RIS p inciples
by g ounding s a egic choices in local knowledge (Sze b e al.,2020). S3 is also place-based:
i ecognises ha op-down policies o en miss local nuances (Demblans e al.,2020). By
analysing economic s uc u e and ins i u ional capaci y, S3 helps egions concen a e e-
sou ces, build c i ical mass, and align in es men s wi h eal s eng hs (Suedekum,2025).
Collabo a i e go e nance, in u n, educes agmen a ion (K oll,2017).
In summa y, S3 does no eplace RIS; i ope a ionalises i . S3 ans o ms RIS concep s
in o policy ac ion, gi ing egions a p ac ical amewo k o mobilise asse s and add ess
sys emic weaknesses (Be ilacqua e al.,2015;Rossoni e al.,2024). I o e s a ocused,
pa icipa o y app oach o s eng hening egional inno a ion sys ems h ough s a egy,
collabo a ion, and place-based in es men .
2.2. F om Theo y o P ac ice: Challenges in S3 Implemen a ion
The sma specialisa ion s a egy was concei ed as a place-based, bo om-up app oach
o inno a ion policy, bu pu ing his in o p ac ice has p o en challenging (Capello & K oll,
2016). Ea ly expe iences showed ha he en ep eneu ial disco e y p ocess (EDP) mus be
con inuous and i e a i e (Ma inelli & Pe ianez,2017), ye many egions s uggle o sus ain
his engagemen . T ansla ing S3’s dynamic, collabo a i e p inciples in o eal go e nance
o en clashes wi h ins i u ional ine ia and p ac ical cons ain s. As ecen li e a u e no es,
his gap be ween heo y and implemen a ion con inues o limi he s a egy’s ull po en ial
(Espa za-Masana,2022;Fo ay,2017;La anja e al.,2022;Molica e al.,2025;Polido e al.,
2019;Reid & Ma oulis,2017).
A key ba ie is weak collabo a ion among he quad uple helix ac o s—indus y,
go e nmen , academia, and ci il socie y. These ies o en emain agmen ed, leading
s akeholde s o ope a e in silos ha unde mine us and limi meaning ul in e ac ion.
Limi ed s akeholde engagemen beyond S3’s ini ial design phase compounds he p oblem.
While sus ained pa icipa ion is essen ial o e ec i e disco e y, many egions ely on
na ow o symbolic consul a ion.
Inadequa e moni o ing mechanisms adds o he challenge. S3, as a policy-lea ning
expe imen , needs obus eedback sys ems o ack s a egic p og ess and assess he impac
o unded p ojec s. Misalignmen be ween S3 p io i ies and a ailable unding ins umen s
u he dis up s implemen a ion. I R&D p og ams o in es men schemes do no suppo
iden i ied p io i ies, s a egies can s all. Ins i u ional ine ia also plays a ole—ne wo ked
go e nance demands new p ac ices om public agencies, bu en enched bu eauc acies
o en esis hese changes.
Tackling hese obs acles is c ucial o making S3 wo k in p ac ice. He e, social ne wo k
analysis (SNA) o e s aluable insigh s. I allows policymake s o map how ac o s in e ac
wi hin a egional inno a ion sys em and o iden i y hidden pa e ns, gaps, and bo lenecks
(Cal o-Galla do e al.,2022;Fe nandez de A oyabe e al.,2021;Rod íguez Ochoa e al.,
2025). Fo ins ance, i can e eal isola ed ins i u ions o o e cen alized “ga ekeepe ” nodes
ha hinde collabo a ion.
SNA is no jus analy ical; i is a diagnos ic and policy-o ien ed ool. By exposing
weak links and s uc u al imbalances, i helps design a ge ed in e en ions, connec ing
disconnec ed ac o s, s eng hening in e -o ganiza ional ies, o di e si ying he go e nance
base. Ra he han eplacing he EDP, SNA complemen s i by acking he ne wo k’s
heal h and inclusi eness o e ime. I u ns he abs ac idea o inno a ion ne wo ks in o
ac ionable da a, suppo ing mo e adap i e, e idence-based S3 implemen a ion

Economies 2025,13, 218 5 o 41
This app oach aligns wi h ecen calls o mo e sus ainable, inclusi e, and adap i e S3
(Eu opean Commi ee o he Regions e al.,2023), and con ibu es o he eme ging “S3 2.0”
agenda, which s esses challenge-o ien ed, sys emic ans o ma ion h ough imp o ed go -
e nance and policy alignmen (Fo ay,2023). Likewise, he OECD (OECD,2023) emphasises
s onge coo dina ion and moni o ing ools o suppo egions in indus ial ansi ion. In
his con ex , SNA o e s a p ac ical me hod o diagnose s uc u al gaps and suppo mo e
esponsi e, e idence-based S3 implemen a ion.
In his con ex , A agón is well sui ed o examine hese challenges. As a “mode a e
inno a o ” in he EU’s 2023 Regional Inno a ion Sco eboa d (Hobza e al.,2023), i sha es
ai s wi h many o he Eu opean egions: a s ong indus ial base, ac i e u al sec o s, and
a di e se ins i u ional landscape (A agón Go e nmen ,2025) These cha ac e is ics make i
a ep esen a i e case o s udying he ba ie s and oppo uni ies in S3 implemen a ion.
2.3. The Case o A agon: Inno a ion Ecosys em and S a egic P io i ies
A agón o e s a imely and illus a i e case o a egional inno a ion ecosys em unde a
mode n sma specialisa ion s a egy. Acco ding o he Spanish Na ional S a is ics Ins i u e,
he egion’s R&D spending ose o 1.16% o GDP in 2023—i s highes le el since 2003—
su passing p e ious peaks in 2008–2010. While his ma ks signi ican p og ess, i emains
below he EU a e age (2.2%) and he 3% a ge . Employmen in R&D also eached a eco d
13.2%, closely aligned wi h he na ional igu e o 13.3%, and up om 12.6% in 2010.
A agón combines a solid economic base wi h a ou able demog aphics. Wi h 1.35 million
esiden s (2.8% o Spain’s popula ion), he egion con ibu es 3.1% o na ional GDP, wi h a
GDP pe capi a o EUR 31,051. I s S3 A agón 2021–2027 s a egy ocuses on digi alisa ion,
sus ainabili y, and indus y-linked se ices, iden i ying key domains such as Ene gy, Ad-
anced Technologies, Ag i-Food, and Heal h and Wellbeing. I adop s a mo e collabo a i e
go e nance model aligned wi h he UN Sus ainable De elopmen Goals and in oduces
imp o ed moni o ing o suppo adap i e policy (A agón Go e nmen ,2024).
Howe e , implemen a ion challenges pe sis . The egion’s indus ial sha e o g oss
alue added d opped om 22.4% in 2000 o 17.8% in 2019, while se ices ose om 58.3% o
66%. Many companies s uggle o ind unding aligned wi h hei echnological needs, and
collabo a ion be ween la ge companies and R&D cen es emains limi ed. The inno a ion
ecosys em includes many scien i ic and echnical ac o s, bu his di e si y has no ansla ed
in o a cohe en , coo dina ed R&D o e ing.
F agmen a ion is e iden in he low numbe o collabo a i e egional p ojec s and he
absence o ools o e ec i ely connec companies, esea che s, and echnology p o ide s.
Nea ly 60% o o ganisa ions epo no ecei ing public R&D suppo , especially in u al
a eas, e ealing weak ou each and gaps in echnology ans e . These issues call o mo e
a ge ed, coo dina ed in e en ions o unlock he egion’s inno a ion po en ial.
A agón’s con ex e lec s he b oade landscape o many mid-sized Eu opean egions.
As a “Mode a e Inno a o ” in he EU Regional Inno a ion Sco eboa d (Hobza e al.,2023),
i blends a s ong indus ial base wi h ex ensi e u al a eas and an eme ging R&D sys em.
A he same ime, i b ings unique asse s. I leads in enewable ene gy, which now accoun s
o o e 80% o elec ici y gene a ion (Red Eléc ica,2024), and i s ising R&D in es men
signals g owing poli ical and ins i u ional commi men . The egion also engages ac i ely
in he S3 Communi y o P ac ice and ela ed EU ne wo ks, using pee lea ning o e ine i s
app oach (Eu opean Commission,2025).
This combina ion o sha ed challenges and dis inc i e momen um makes A agón a
aluable case s udy. I s expe ience o e s ele an lessons o designing and implemen ing
sma specialisa ion s a egies in compa able egions ac oss Eu ope.
Economies 2025,13, 218 6 o 41
2.4. Resea ch Ques ions
Recen li e a u e on RIS3 and S3 has p o ided a ange o quali a i e and quan i a i e
insigh s in o he dynamics o inno a ion a a egional le el (Balland e al.,2019;Cal o-
Galla do e al.,2022). Howe e , se e al c i ical gaps emain. Fi s , ew s udies p o ide
mul i-le el, long- e m benchma ks o compe i i e public p ojec ne wo ks. Mos ocus
on s a ic snapsho s a he han he e olu ion o inno a ion ecosys ems ac oss egional,
na ional, and Eu opean scales. Second, al hough SNA is gaining ac ion, i is a ely
applied in RIS con ex s wi h an eye owa d eedback loops o policy adap a ion. Finally,
ew analyses link empi ical ne wo k me ics o speci ic policy in e en ions, lea ing a
disconnec be ween heo y and ac ionable s a egies.
This s udy add esses hese gaps by applying SNA o public R&D p ojec ne wo ks in
A agón. Focusing on p ojec s unded h ough egional, na ional, and Eu opean calls om
2014 o 2023, and classi ied by S3 2021–2027 specialisa ion a eas, he esea ch gene a es
mul i-le el benchma ks and ac ionable insigh s o in o m egional policy. The ollowing
esea ch ques ions guide he analysis:
•
RQ1: How do he ea u es o compe i i e public p ojec ne wo ks om 2014 o 2023
wi hin he S3 2021–2027 specialisa ion a eas e eal he s uc u e and dynamics o
A agón’s inno a ion ecosys em?
This ques ion maps A agón’s inno a ion ne wo k o e a decade, add essing he i s
esea ch gap. By analysing pa icipa ion, cohesion and cen ali y me ics, he s udy e eals
how s akeholde s in e ac —highligh ing well-connec ed clus e s, isola ed nodes, and s uc-
u al ulne abili ies. These indings o e a sys emic iew o local s eng hs and weaknesses
and assess whe he cu en s a egies e ec i ely mobilise he egion’s capaci ies.
•
RQ2: Wha oles do key en i ies play in knowledge ans e wi hin hese specialisa ion
a eas, and how do hei cen ali y posi ions in luence he dynamism o A agón’s
egional inno a ion ecosys em?
While p io wo k o en neglec s he in luence o indi idual ac o s, his ques ion
examines how cen al en i ies shape inno a ion dynamics. Using deg ee, be weenness,
closeness, and eigen ec o cen ali y measu es, we iden i y which ac o s ac as b idges
and knowledge hubs. These insigh s link s uc u al ne wo k da a o knowledge lows and
suppo mo e a ge ed, e idence-based policy in e en ions.
•
RQ3: How can he analysis o he las decade inno a ion ne wo ks in ol ing non-
A agonese pa ne s enhance A agón’s inno a ion policies and s eng hen i s posi ion
in a a ge ed specialisa ion a ea?
A no el aspec o his wo k, compa ed o ou ea lie s udy (Rod íguez Ochoa e al.,
2025), is he de ailed analysis o pa icipa ion me ics by bo h specialisa ion a ea and ype
o en i y o p ojec s unded unde H2020 and Ho izon Eu ope (EU F amewo k P og am
calls) du ing 2014–2023, speci ically excluding A agonese pa ne s. These p ojec s accoun
o 78% o he egion’s o al inno a ion unding.
By benchma king A agón’s ne wo ks agains Eu opean examples, we highligh op-
po uni ies o enhance local p ac ices h ough ansna ional collabo a ion. This analysis
explo es how c oss-bo de pa ne ships con ibu e o inno a ion and o e s clea , ans e -
able lessons o imp o e egional policy and s a egic alignmen .
Economies 2025,13, 218 7 o 41
3. Ma e ials and Me hods
3.1. Da a
The p esen s udy examines he inno a ion ne wo ks es ablished in he A agón egion
o e he pas decade, ca ego ising hem acco ding o di e en specialisa ion a eas. To
achie e his, ou analysis builds upon he da ase p esen ed in ou p e ious wo k (Ro-
d íguez Ochoa e al.,2025), which encompasses all compe i i e public p ojec s a egional,
na ional, and Eu opean le els ha in ol ed a leas one pa ne om he A agón egion
du ing he pe iod 2014–2023.
In his s udy, we u he e ined he da ase by labelling each p ojec acco ding o he
specialisa ion a eas de ined in he A agón Sma Specialisa ion S a egy 2021–2027 (A agón
Go e nmen ,2024). The s a egy documen was also examined in de ail o inco po a e i s
iden i ied bo lenecks in o ou analysis.
Addi ionally, o es ablish a benchma k o he A agonese inno a ion ecosys em, ou
cu en esea ch ex ends he p e ious app oach by inco po a ing da a om all p ojec s
unded unde he Ho izon 2020 and Ho izon Eu ope p og ams (F amewo k P og am
p ojec s) du ing he same pe iod (2014–2023), excluding hose p ojec s ha in ol ed
A agonese pa ne s. This compa a i e analysis acili a es a b oade unde s anding o
egional pe o mance ela i e o he Eu opean con ex .
3.1.1. Da a Sou ces, Collec ion and P epa a ion
All unding p og ams examined in his s udy a e based on compe i i e public calls, in
which mul iple independen en i ies submi p oposals o secu e inancing, wi h selec ion
decisions made acco ding o he me i s o hei p ojec s and alignmen wi h p ede ined
objec i es. This compe i i e p ocess is dis inc om nomina i e unding, whe e p ojec s a e
di ec ly inanced wi hou a compe i i e e alua ion—o en ea ma ked o speci ic en i ies o
ini ia i es wi hou he need o p oposal submission and e iew. Based on his amewo k,
he p ima y da a sou ces o his s udy a e shown in Figu e 1.
Figu e 1. P ojec da a sou ces conside ed in he analysis.
All he calls conside ed in he s udy a e speci ied in ou p e ious esea ch s udy
(Rod íguez Ochoa e al.,2025). Mo eo e , Appendix Aincludes addi ional in o ma ion on
he di e en da abases consul ed and he easoning behind choosing hese da ase s.
To ensu e he accu acy and ele ance o he da a o A agón’s inno a ion ecosys em,
se e al igo ous p ocessing s eps we e aken, as shown in Figu e 2:
Economies 2025,13, 218 8 o 41
Figu e 2. Da a ea men p ocess.
These sys ema ic s eps ensu ed ha he da a p epa ed o analysis is bo h p ecise
and ele an , he eby allowing ou e alua ion o A agón’s inno a ion ecosys em and
he p o ision o policy ecommenda ions o add ess he bo lenecks iden i ied in he
S3 2021–2027 and imp o e he posi ioning o he egion a Eu opean le el in a ge ed
specialisa ion a eas.
3.1.2. En i ies and P ojec s A ibu es
In o de o classi y he pa icipa ing en i ies based on hei inhe en cha ac e is ics and
p ima y ac i i ies, we ha e de ined six dis inc ca ego ies:
•
Public Sec o (PUB): This ca ego y comp ises go e nmen al au ho i ies a he na ional,
egional, and local le els, along wi h ene gy agencies.
•
Highe Educa ion Ins i u ions (HES): This ca ego y mainly consis s o uni e si ies ha
a e ac i ely engaged in bo h eaching and esea ch.
•
Resea ch O ganiza ions (REC): This g oup includes wo main ypes: publicly unded
na ional esea ch cen es and p edominan ly p i a e, non-p o i esea ch and echnol-
ogy o ganiza ions.
•P i a e Companies: This ca ego y is u he di ided in o:
#
La ge P i a e Companies (PRC): En e p ises ha exceed he c i e ia o small
and medium-sized companies.
#
Mic o, Small, and Medium-sized En e p ises (PRC-SME): Businesses classi ied
as mic o, small, o medium acco ding o he s anda ds se by EU Recommenda-
ion 2003/361 (Eu opean Commission,2003).
•
O he s (OTH): This g oup encompasses sec o -speci ic associa ions and may also
include ce ain esea ch ins i u es o ganised as associa ions.
Wi h espec o he oles o en i ies wi hin p ojec s, each conso ium is managed by a
coo dina o , while he o he membe s a e conside ed pa icipan s. This classi ica ion does
no dis inguish be ween ull pa ne s, who sign he g an ag eemen , and hi d pa ies
ha ha e a legal o inancial link o a bene icia y, as he numbe o such hi d pa ies is
negligible and will no be analysed sepa a ely in his s udy.
In a no el ex ension o ou p e ious esea ch, each en i y pa icipa ion wi hin he
ne wo k has been assigned o one o he specialisa ion a eas appea ing in Figu e 3(as s a ed
in he A agón S3 2021–2027) o delinea e he hema ic ocus o he en i ies in ol ed:
Economies 2025,13, 218 15 o 41
Table 6. Collabo a ions be ween he non-A agonese en i ies o he ecosys em and he key en i ies.
#En i y Coun y
En i y Type
P ojec s in he
Ecosys em
Collabo a ions wi h he Ecosys em’s Key En i ies
UNIZAR CIRCE ITA AITIIP
1AGENCIA ESTATAL CONSEJO SUPERIOR DE
INVESTIGACIONES CIENTIFICAS ES REC 89 25 5 3 1
2FRAUNHOFER GESELLSCHAFT ZUR FORDERUNG DER
ANGEWANDTEN FORSCHUNG EV DE REC 79 14 4 11 4
3ETHNIKO KENTRO EREVNAS KAI TECHNOLOGIKIS
ANAPTYXIS (CERTH) EL REC 58 4 22 2 0
4 FUNDACION TECNALIA RESEARCH & INNOVATION ES REC 56 6 5 3 0
5CENTRE NATIONAL DE LA RECHERCHE SCIENTIFIQUE
CNRS FR REC 52 19 0 5 2
6 CONSIGLIO NAZIONALE DELLE RICERCHE IT REC 45 15 1 1 1
7 UNIVERSITAT POLITECNICA DE VALENCIA ES HES 43 5 1 2 0
8COMMISSARIAT A L ENERGIE ATOMIQUE ET AUX
ENERGIES ALTERNATIVES FR REC 42 9 6 4 2
9 RINA CONSULTING SPA IT PRC 40 0 38 1 1
10 UNIVERSIDAD POLITECNICA DE MADRID ES HES 38 5 0 2 1
11 TEKNOLOGIAN TUTKIMUSKESKUS VTT OY FI REC 31 7 4 2 1
12 DANMARKS TEKNISKE UNIVERSITET DK HES 30 11 1 2 0
13 TECHNISCHE UNIVERSITEIT DELFT NL HES 30 13 3 3 2
14 ALMA MATER STUDIORUM—UNIVERSITA DI BOLOGNA IT HES 29 9 0 1 0
15 FUNDACION CARTIF ES REC 28 0 9 3 0
16 NEDERLANDSE ORGANISATIE VOOR TOEGEPAST
NATUURWETENSCHAPPELIJK ONDERZOEK TNO NL REC 28 7 2 2 1
17 FUNDACIO EURECAT ES REC 26 2 0 2 0
18 RISE RESEARCH INSTITUTES OF SWEDEN AB SE REC 26 4 1 7 2
19 ASOCIACION DE INVESTIGACION METALURGICA DEL
NOROESTE ES REC 23 0 1 8 4
20 INSTITUT NATIONAL DE LA SANTE ET DE LA
RECHERCHE MEDICALE FR REC 23 6 0 1 0
To als 816 161 103 65 22

Economies 2025,13, 218 16 o 41
As Table 5shows, he key playe s wi hin A agón’s inno a ion ecosys em engage in
limi ed collabo a ion among hemsel es. Howe e , among he ew join ini ia i es ha do
exis , p i a e esea ch cen es ha e he highes numbe o p ojec s in common wi h he ou
key en i ies, wi h CIRCE in ol ed in 11 sha ed p ojec s and AITIIP in eigh . No ably, i e
o hese p ojec s in ol e di ec collabo a ion be ween CIRCE and AITIIP. In ela i e e ms,
nea ly one- ou h o he p ojec s in which AITIIP pa icipa es a e ca ied ou in pa ne ship
wi h he o he h ee key en i ies, highligh ing his o ganisa ion’s g ea e dependence on
hese ies o i s esea ch ac i i ies.
Con e sely, public inno a ion ins i u ions appea less inclined o collabo a e wi h he
o he key playe s. A possible explana ion o his end is he exis ence o speci ic egional
unding p og ams ha p omo e di ec pa ne ships be ween public esea ch o ganiza ions
and p i a e companies. These a ge ed calls may educe he need o public en i ies o
engage in knowledge exchange wi h o he R&D agen s, as hey al eady ha e dedica ed
mechanisms o os e ing inno a ion h ough indus y collabo a ions.
On he o he hand, Table 6highligh s ha he p incipal non-A agonese pa icipan s
in he ecosys em a e p edominan ly Eu opean esea ch cen es and uni e si ies. No ably,
se en o hese en i ies a e based in Spain, wi h he Agencia Es a al Consejo Supe io
de In es igaciones Cien í icas (CSIC) eme ging as he mos in eg a ed ex e nal pa ne ,
pa icipa ing in 89 p ojec s. Following CSIC, Fundación Tecnalia Resea ch & Inno a ion
and Uni e si a Poli ecnica de Valencia ha e signi ican in ol emen , engaging in 56 and
43 p ojec s, espec i ely.
Beyond Spanish ins i u ions, se e al p ominen esea ch cen es s and ou o hei
collabo a ions wi h A agonese en i ies. F aunho e om Ge many has pa icipa ed in 79
p ojec s, p ima ily collabo a ing wi h UNIZAR and ITA. The G eek Resea ch Cen e CERTH
has engaged in 58 p ojec s, mainly in pa ne ship wi h CIRCE. Addi ionally, he F ench
Na ional Cen e o Scien i ic Resea ch (CNRS) and he I alian Na ional Resea ch Council
(CNR) ha e been equen collabo a o s wi h UNIZAR, pa icipa ing in 52 and 45 p ojec s,
espec i ely. The F ench Al e na i e Ene gies and A omic Ene gy Commission (CEA) has also
been no ably ac i e, collabo a ing mainly wi h UNIZAR and CIRCE ac oss 42 p ojec s.
Among he op 20 collabo a o s, RINA Consul ing S.p.A. om I aly is he sole co po-
a e en i y, pa icipa ing in 40 p ojec s, wi h a no able 38 collabo a ions in ol ing CIRCE.
Wi hin he A agonese ins i u ions, UNIZAR dis inguishes i sel by engaging in 161 col-
labo a i e p ojec s wi h majo non-A agonese pa icipan s. CIRCE ollows wi h 103 such
collabo a ions. ITA, while less in ol ed han UNIZAR and CIRCE, has s ill pa icipa ed
in 65 p ojec s wi h all o he op 20 non-A agonese en i ies. In con as , AITIIP ocuses on
mo e specialised pa ne ships wi hin i s a ea o expe ise, accoun ing o 22 collabo a ions
wi h hese leading ex e nal pa icipan s.
4.1.2. Analysis by En i y Type
Tables 7and 8illus a e he dis ibu ion o unding and pa icipa ions among di e en
ypes o en i ies wi hin he A agonese inno a ion ecosys em, while Tables 9and 10 p o ide
a compa a i e benchma k om he Eu opean Union F amewo k P og am p ojec s (Ho i-
zon 2020 and Ho izon Eu ope) spanning he pe iod 2014–2023, excluding hose p ojec s
wi h A agonese en i ies. The compa ison o e s c i ical insigh s in o he alignmen o he
A agonese ecosys em wi h b oade Eu opean ends, highligh ing s uc u al s eng hs and
po en ial gaps in collabo a ion pa e ns.
The dis ibu ion o unding ac oss en i y ypes in he A agonese ecosys em (Table 7) e-
eals dis inc pa e ns based on specialisa ion a eas. Resea ch o ganiza ions (REC) eme ge
as he mos p ominen unding ecipien s ac oss nea ly all domains, ecei ing on a e age
27.67% o o al unding. This end aligns wi h hei ole as key enable s o inno a ion,
Economies 2025,13, 218 17 o 41
pa icula ly in esea ch-in ensi e a eas such as Basic Science (33.30%), Biodi e si y (27.97%),
and Clima e Change (33.84%). Highe educa ion ins i u ions (HES) also secu e subs an ial
unding (20.17% o e all), wi h hei s onges p esence in Basic Science (43.39%), Biodi e -
si y (48.81%), and A i icial In elligence (29.01%).
Table 7. Funding dis ibu ion by en i y ype in he A agonese ecosys em.
Specialisa ion A ea HES OTH PRC PRC-SME PUB REC
Ad anced Technologies (ICT and
Indus y) 17.77% 5.09% 29.87% 21.59% 0.74% 24.94%
Ae ospace 4.69% 1.58% 55.83% 12.80% 0.13% 24.98%
Ag i-Food and Ci cula Economy 20.22% 7.93% 14.93% 25.89% 2.43% 28.59%
A i icial In elligence 29.01% 3.88% 16.83% 22.42% 1.09% 26.77%
Basic Science 43.39% 3.38% 13.03% 6.81% 0.09% 33.30%
Biodi e si y 48.81% 2.00% 8.20% 12.72% 0.30% 27.97%
Clima e Change 20.36% 7.06% 15.06% 16.13% 7.55% 33.84%
Cul u al and C ea i e Indus ies and
Sec o s 16.76% 17.14% 20.34% 12.17% 18.81% 14.79%
Ene gy and G een Fuels 12.79% 6.09% 30.71% 21.75% 2.79% 25.88%
Go e nance and Business De elopmen 26.45% 13.17% 10.88% 13.48% 6.57% 29.44%
Heal h and Wellbeing 24.28% 6.67% 7.06% 9.35% 19.50% 33.14%
Hyd ogen 5.81% 3.24% 47.39% 21.47% 3.13% 18.96%
Secu i y and De ence 13.24% 4.04% 26.84% 21.26% 11.50% 23.12%
Sus ainable Mobili y 10.69% 8.62% 29.72% 19.32% 10.75% 20.89%
Wa e 14.60% 7.70% 11.32% 12.51% 24.77% 29.10%
To al a e age 20.17% 6.46% 21.42% 17.36% 6.93% 27.67%
Table 8. Pa icipa ion dis ibu ion by en i y ype in he A agonese ecosys em.
Specialisa ion A ea HES OTH PRC PRC-SME PUB REC
Ad anced Technologies (ICT and
Indus y) 15.59% 12.48% 18.26% 32.16% 1.72% 19.80%
Ae ospace 9.92% 9.16% 22.14% 20.61% 2.29% 35.88%
Ag i-Food and Ci cula Economy 16.54% 16.83% 11.89% 31.42% 4.10% 19.20%
A i icial In elligence 22.10% 9.57% 15.03% 32.35% 2.28% 18.68%
Basic Science 39.90% 2.53% 19.61% 13.15% 2.01% 22.81%
Biodi e si y 25.37% 19.40% 8.96% 13.43% 10.45% 22.39%
Clima e Change 16.07% 15.00% 12.50% 18.93% 12.86% 24.64%
Cul u al and C ea i e Indus ies and
Sec o s 14.78% 27.00% 5.58% 11.76% 30.17% 10.71%
Ene gy and G een Fuels 12.88% 10.48% 26.91% 24.79% 4.71% 20.22%
Go e nance and Business De elopmen 22.69% 19.17% 7.87% 15.00% 13.61% 21.67%
Heal h and Wellbeing 28.57% 10.25% 8.93% 15.56% 12.50% 24.19%
Hyd ogen 10.18% 9.30% 27.02% 23.33% 4.74% 25.44%
Secu i y and De ence 14.29% 9.77% 19.17% 26.32% 11.28% 19.17%
Sus ainable Mobili y 10.22% 14.00% 27.44% 20.17% 11.88% 16.30%
Wa e 12.40% 20.12% 9.96% 20.93% 14.23% 22.36%
To al a e age 18.68% 12.87% 17.09% 23.53% 7.28% 20.55%
In con as , p i a e companies (PRC) and SMEs (PRC-SME) exhibi highe pa ici-
pa ion in echnology-d i en sec o s, wi h no able unding sha es in Ae ospace (55.83%
PRC, 12.80% PRC-SME), Hyd ogen (47.39% PRC, 21.47% PRC-SME), and Sus ainable
Mobili y (29.72% PRC, 19.32% PRC-SME). These igu es sugges a concen a ion o indus-
ial inno a ion in high- ech and applied esea ch ields, pa icula ly hose wi h s ong
ma ke applica ions.
Economies 2025,13, 218 18 o 41
Public sec o en i ies (PUB) display a mo e limi ed ole, accoun ing o only 6.93%
o o al unding. Thei in ol emen is sligh ly highe in go e nance- ela ed ields, such
as Wa e (24.77%), Cul u al and C ea i e Indus ies (18.81%), and Heal h and Wellbeing
(19.50%), likely e lec ing public policy p io i ies and egula o y-d i en esea ch agendas.
Examining pa icipa ion pa e ns (Table 8) ein o ces hese obse a ions, demons a -
ing he deg ee o which di e en en i y ypes engage in collabo a i e p ojec ne wo ks. The
esea ch and highe educa ion sec o s again domina e, wi h HES (18.68%) and REC (20.55%)
showing s ong engagemen ac oss all domains. No ably, HES pa icipa ion peaks in Ba-
sic Science (39.90%), A i icial In elligence (22.10%), and Heal h and Wellbeing (28.57%),
sugges ing hese a eas bene i om s ong academic in ol emen .
P i a e sec o engagemen ollows a dis inc pa e n, wi h PRC (17.09%) and PRC-
SME (23.53%) demons a ing a b oade oo p in in Ad anced Technologies (ICT and
Indus y) (18.26% PRC, 32.16% PRC-SME), Hyd ogen (27.02% PRC, 23.33% PRC-SME),
and Secu i y and De ence (19.17% PRC, 26.32% PRC-SME). These igu es highligh he
ele ance o SMEs in he A agonese ecosys em, posi ioning hemsel es as he en i y ype
wi h mos pa icipa ion, e en i , ega ding unding, la ge companies and esea ch cen es
and uni e si ies alloca e g ea e amoun s.
The compa ison wi h he EU F amewo k P og am (Tables 9and 10) p o ides u he
insigh . In he b oade Eu opean landscape, HES and REC exhibi s onge dominance,
bo h in pa icipa ion (50.84% HES and 27.93% REC) and unding alloca ion (51.93% HES
and 31.70% REC). This highligh s a g ea e eliance on academic and esea ch ins i u ions a
he Eu opean le el, whe e p i a e sec o pa icipa ion in high- isk esea ch emains lowe .
Con e sely, PRC en i ies ecei e ela i ely highe unding in he A agonese ecosys em
(21.42% PRC e sus 8.86% PRC in EU p ojec s), indica ing ha indus y-led inno a ion
plays a mo e p ominen ole a he egional le el.
Table 9. Funding dis ibu ion by en i y ype in he EU F amewo k P og am p ojec s.
Specialisa ion A ea HES OTH PRC PRC-SME PUB REC
Ad anced Technologies (ICT and
Indus y) 38.74% 2.20% 15.91% 6.53% 0.18% 36.44%
Ae ospace 37.42% 0.64% 24.28% 1.09% 0.10% 36.47%
Ag i-Food and Ci cula Economy 44.65% 5.15% 4.24% 7.62% 2.33% 36.02%
A i icial In elligence 52.86% 1.67% 9.52% 5.16% 0.31% 30.48%
Basic Science 65.19% 0.58% 2.39% 1.09% 0.13% 30.62%
Biodi e si y 64.23% 0.90% 0.41% 0.44% 3.57% 30.46%
Clima e Change 53.37% 1.78% 3.94% 1.73% 2.36% 36.82%
Cul u al and C ea i e Indus ies and
Sec o s 80.32% 0.64% 1.94% 1.83% 0.73% 14.55%
Ene gy and G een Fuels 32.78% 3.33% 12.76% 7.24% 2.11% 41.78%
Go e nance and Business De elopmen 47.88% 8.77% 11.51% 5.06% 3.11% 23.67%
Heal h and Wellbeing 63.61% 0.99% 3.06% 2.18% 3.12% 27.04%
Hyd ogen 24.99% 1.64% 25.82% 15.59% 0.86% 31.09%
Secu i y and De ence 46.47% 1.09% 13.50% 7.30% 1.17% 30.49%
Sus ainable Mobili y 31.14% 5.67% 24.33% 5.82% 4.34% 28.70%
Wa e 45.59% 3.01% 3.10% 4.12% 3.70% 40.48%
To al a e age 51.93% 2.37% 8.06% 4.07% 1.88% 31.70%
Ano he akeaway om his analysis is he highe unding alloca ion o he A agonese
public sec o and in e media y o ganiza ions (OTH) compa ed o EU benchma ks. Public
ins i u ions a he EU le el secu e an a e age o 2.53% o unding, compa ed o 6.93% in
A agón, sugges ing a s onge egula o y and go e nance ole a he egional le el. Simi-
la ly, in e media y o ganisa ions (OTH) exhibi h ee imes mo e in ol emen egionally
Economies 2025,13, 218 19 o 41
(6.46%) han a he Eu opean scale (2.37%). The signi ican numbe o sec o al clus e s in
he A agón egion, coupled wi h hei ac i e pa icipa ion in speci ic na ional unding calls
essen ial o inancial sus ainabili y, may accoun o hese igu es. Fo ins ance, in 2023, he
Minis y o Indus y and Tou ism alloca ed EUR 10.6 million o suppo 59 p ojec s om
A agonese business associa ions h ough he P og am o Suppo ing Inno a i e Business
Clus e s. This made A agón he second-highes ecipien o such unds among Spanish
egions (El Pe iódico,2023).
Table 10. Pa icipa ion dis ibu ion by en i y ype in he EU F amewo k P og am p ojec s.
Specialisa ion A ea HES OTH PRC PRC-SME PUB REC
Ad anced Technologies (ICT and
Indus y) 40.06% 2.21% 18.64% 10.18% 0.54% 28.37%
Ae ospace 49.70% 1.30% 10.52% 2.78% 0.56% 35.14%
Ag i-Food and Ci cula Economy 42.09% 7.93% 5.85% 9.63% 3.20% 31.30%
A i icial In elligence 49.17% 1.77% 11.81% 7.49% 0.79% 28.97%
Basic Science 63.79% 0.86% 4.14% 2.35% 0.31% 28.55%
Biodi e si y 61.80% 1.67% 0.60% 0.89% 4.23% 30.81%
Clima e Change 53.82% 2.21% 2.49% 2.56% 3.31% 35.61%
Cul u al and C ea i e Indus ies and
Sec o s 75.51% 1.31% 2.58% 2.78% 2.14% 15.67%
Ene gy and G een Fuels 35.94% 5.61% 14.80% 10.77% 2.86% 30.02%
Go e nance and Business De elopmen 50.35% 6.57% 6.64% 6.88% 3.89% 25.66%
Heal h and Wellbeing 62.11% 1.72% 4.65% 3.64% 3.17% 24.70%
Hyd ogen 29.06% 4.44% 19.81% 13.47% 1.68% 31.54%
Secu i y and De ence 43.41% 1.67% 14.75% 9.45% 2.56% 28.16%
Sus ainable Mobili y 32.64% 7.47% 22.40% 7.95% 4.99% 24.55%
Wa e 44.29% 4.93% 4.61% 5.23% 4.41% 36.53%
To al a e age 50.84% 3.51% 8.86% 6.33% 2.53% 27.93%
4.1.3. Ad anced Technologies Analysis
Tables 11–13 show he op 10 en i ies wi h he highes amoun s o unding achie ed,
pa icipa ion in p ojec s and coo dina ed ini ia i es, espec i ely in he A agonese ecosys-
em and he specialisa ion a ea o Ad anced Technologies, while Tables 14–16 show he
same in o ma ion o he benchma k om he Eu opean Union F amewo k P og am.
Table 11. Top 10 en i ies by unding achie emen in Ad anced Technologies wi hin he A agonese
ecosys em.
# En i y Name Type Coun y Funding Achie ed
(EUR)
1 INSTITUTO TECNOLOGICO DE ARAGON REC ES 22,335,621
2 UNIVERSIDAD DE ZARAGOZA HES ES 19,668,424
3 BSH ELECTRODOMESTICOS ESPANA SA PRC ES 18,935,696
4
INTERUNIVERSITAIR MICRO-ELECTRONICA CENTRUM
REC BE 12,591,788
5 FUNDACION AITIIP REC ES 10,533,492
6FRAUNHOFER GESELLSCHAFT ZUR FORDERUNG DER
ANGEWANDTEN FORSCHUNG EV REC DE 9,930,329
7 INFINEON TECHNOLOGIES AG PRC DE 7,520,076
8FUNDACION CIRCE CENTRO DE INVESTIGACION DE
RECURSOS Y CONSUMOS ENERGETICOS REC ES 7,335,004
9 TELTRONIC, S.A. PRC ES 6,743,792
10 SOCIEDAD ANONIMA INDUSTRIAS CELULOSA
ARAGONESA PRC ES 6,691,261
Economies 2025,13, 218 20 o 41
ITA eme ges as he leading en i y in A agón in e ms o unding secu ed, ecei ing
EUR 22.3M, ollowed closely by he UNIZAR (EUR 19.6M) and BSH Elec odomés icos Es-
paña (EUR 18.9M). These igu es highligh he s ong p esence o bo h esea ch ins i u ions
(REC) and highe educa ion es ablishmen s (HES) in a ac ing p ojec inancing, wi h he
p i a e sec o also playing a p ominen ole. O he no able ecipien s include AITIIP (EUR
10.5M) and CIRCE (EUR 7.3M), ein o cing he s a egic posi ion o p i a e esea ch cen es
in secu ing compe i i e p ojec unding.
Table 12. Top 10 en i iesby numbe o p ojec s in Ad anced Technologies wi hin he A agonese ecosys em.
# En i y Name Type Coun y Numbe o P ojec s
1 INSTITUTO TECNOLOGICO DE ARAGON REC ES 154
2 UNIVERSIDAD DE ZARAGOZA HES ES 106
3 FUNDACION AITIIP REC ES 36
4
ASOCIACION CLUSTER DE AUTOMOCION DE ARAGON
OTH ES 25
5ASOCIACION ESPANOLA DE FABRICANTES
EXPORTADORES DE MAQUINARIA PARA
CONSTRUCCION, OBRAS PUBLICAS Y MINERIA OTH ES 25
6 ASOCIACION LOGISTICA INNOVADORA DE ARAGON OTH ES 22
7AGENCIA ESTATAL CONSEJO SUPERIOR DE
INVESTIGACIONES CIENTIFICAS REC ES 21
8FUNDACION CIRCE CENTRO DE INVESTIGACION DE
RECURSOS Y CONSUMOS ENERGETICOS REC ES 18
9 BSH ELECTRODOMESTICOS ESPANA SA PRC ES 17
10 CLUSTER DE EMPRESAS DE TECNOLOGÍAS DE LA
INFORMACIÓN, ELECTRÓNICA Y
TELECOMUNICACIONES DE ARAGÓN
OTH ES 17
In e ms o he numbe o pa icipa ions, ITA again leads wi h 154 p ojec s, ollowed by
UNIZAR (106 p ojec s). AITIIP is he mos ac i e p i a e echnology cen e, wi h 36 p ojec
pa icipa ions, while clus e s and sec o associa ions such as CAAR (au omo i e clus e ,
25 p ojec s) and ALIA (logis ics clus e , 22 p ojec s) demons a e he ole o in e media y
o ganiza ions (OTH) in os e ing indus ial collabo a ion.
Table 13. Top 10 en i ies by numbe o coo dina ion ac ions in Ad anced Technologies wi hin he
A agonese ecosys em.
# En i y Name Type Coun y Coo dina ion
Ac ions
1ASOCIACION ESPANOLA DE FABRICANTES EXPORTADORES
DE MAQUINARIA PARA CONSTRUCCION, OBRAS PUBLICAS Y
MINERIA OTH ES 23
2 ASOCIACION CLUSTER DE AUTOMOCION DE ARAGON OTH ES 22
3 ASOCIACION LOGISTICA INNOVADORA DE ARAGON OTH ES 14
4 BSH ELECTRODOMESTICOS ESPANA SA PRC ES 13
5CLUSTER DE EMPRESAS DE TECNOLOGÍAS DE LA
INFORMACIÓN, ELECTRÓNICA Y TELECOMUNICACIONES DE
ARAGÓN
OTH ES 12
6 Clus e de la Salud de A agón (ARAHEALTH) OTH ES 11
7ASOCIACION CLUSTER PARA EL USO EFICIENTE DEL
AGUA-ZINNAE OTH ES 10
8 SOCIEDAD ANONIMA INDUSTRIAS CELULOSA ARAGONESA PRC ES 10
9
CLUSTER ESPAÑOL DE PRODUCTORES DE GANADO PORCINO
OTH ES 9
10 INSTITUTO TECNOLOGICO DE ARAGON REC ES 8

Economies 2025,13, 218 21 o 41
Coo dina ion ac ions p o ide a measu e o leade ship wi hin collabo a i e p ojec s. As
shown in Table 13, OTH o ganisa ions domina e coo dina ion e o s, wi h sec o clus e s
aking he op h ee posi ions, due o hei ole as p omo e s in Spanish na ional calls o
inno a i e companies’ clus e s. The p esence la ge companies among he op coo dina o s
highligh s how indus y-led ini ia i es play an in eg al ole in p ojec leade ship. In e es -
ingly, ITA (eigh coo dina ion ac ions) anks lowe in coo dina ion han in unding and
pa icipa ion, sugges ing a p e e ence o pa icipa ion o e p ojec leade ship.
Table 14. Top 10 en i ies by unding achie emen in Ad anced Technologies wi hin he EU F amewo k
P og am p ojec s.
# En i y Name Type Coun y Funding Achie ed
(EUR)
1FRAUNHOFER GESELLSCHAFT ZUR FORDERUNG DER
ANGEWANDTEN FORSCHUNG EV REC DE 147,192,091
2
INTERUNIVERSITAIR MICRO-ELECTRONICA CENTRUM
REC BE 116,664,074
3COMMISSARIAT A L ENERGIE ATOMIQUE ET AUX
ENERGIES ALTERNATIVES REC FR 110,988,667
4
CENTRE NATIONAL DE LA RECHERCHE SCIENTIFIQUE
CNRS REC FR 58,115,888
5 TEKNOLOGIAN TUTKIMUSKESKUS VTT OY REC FI 53,547,020
6 CHALMERS TEKNISKA HOGSKOLA AB HES SE 53,044,483
7 TECHNISCHE UNIVERSITEIT EINDHOVEN HES NL 36,136,424
8BARCELONA SUPERCOMPUTING CENTER CENTRO
NACIONAL DE SUPERCOMPUTACION REC ES 35,193,681
9 THE UNIVERSITY OF MANCHESTER HES UK 31,789,091
10 FUNDACION TECNALIA RESEARCH & INNOVATION REC ES 29,740,228
As shown in Table 14, a he Eu opean le el, he dominance o majo esea ch and
echnology ins i u ions is e iden . F aunho e (EUR 147.1M, Ge many), In e uni e si y
Mic oelec onics Cen e (IMEC, EUR 116.6M, Belgium), and CEA (EUR 110.9M, F ance)
lead in o al unding ecei ed. No ably, Spanish ep esen a ion is seen in Ba celona Supe -
compu ing Cen e (EUR 35.1M) and Tecnalia (EUR 29.7M), highligh ing Spain’s compe i i e
posi ion in supe compu ing and applied esea ch.
Table 15. Top 10 en i ies by numbe o p ojec s in Ad anced Technologies wi hin he EU F amewo k
P og am p ojec s.
# En i y Name Type Coun y Numbe o
P ojec s
1FRAUNHOFER GESELLSCHAFT ZUR FORDERUNG DER
ANGEWANDTEN FORSCHUNG EV REC DE 199
2COMMISSARIAT A L ENERGIE ATOMIQUE ET AUX ENERGIES
ALTERNATIVES REC FR 113
3
CENTRE NATIONAL DE LA RECHERCHE SCIENTIFIQUE CNRS
REC FR 113
4 INTERUNIVERSITAIR MICRO-ELECTRONICA CENTRUM REC BE 95
5 TEKNOLOGIAN TUTKIMUSKESKUS VTT OY REC FI 69
6 CHALMERS TEKNISKA HOGSKOLA AB HES SE 63
7 POLITECNICO DI MILANO HES IT 54
8 TECHNISCHE UNIVERSITEIT EINDHOVEN HES NL 53
9 IDRYMA TECHNOLOGIAS KAI EREVNAS REC EL 52
10 CONSIGLIO NAZIONALE DELLE RICERCHE REC IT 52
Economies 2025,13, 218 22 o 41
When compa ed o he op A agonese ecipien s, i is e iden ha egional ac o s
ope a e on a signi ican ly smalle inancial scale. ITA, A agón’s highes - unded en i y (EUR
22.3M), would ank ou side he op 10 a he Eu opean le el, demons a ing he unding
gap be ween egional and EU-wide esea ch ne wo ks.
Table 15 shows ha F aunho e again leads in p ojec pa icipa ion (199 p ojec s), ol-
lowed by CEA (113 p ojec s) and CNRS (113 p ojec s). IMEC (95 p ojec s) and Teknologian
Tu kimuskeskus VTT (69 p ojec s, Finland) u he exempli y he ole o majo Eu opean
esea ch ins i u es in shaping echnological ad ancemen .
By compa ison, he highes - anked A agonese en i y, ITA (154 p ojec s), would be
hi d on he Eu opean lis , demons a ing s ong egional engagemen despi e unding
dispa i ies. UNIZAR (106 p ojec s) also shows signi ican ac i i y, ein o cing i s ole in
A agón’s inno a ion landscape.
Finally, Table 16 shows ha Eu opean coo dina ion e o s a e also led by esea ch
o ganisa ions, wi h F aunho e (23 ac ions), CNRS (22 ac ions), and CEA (21 ac ions)
demons a ing hei leade ship.
Table 16. Top 10 en i ies by numbe o coo dina ion ac ions in Ad anced Technologies wi hin he EU
F amewo k P og am p ojec s.
# En i y Name Type Coun y Coo dina ion
Ac ions
1FRAUNHOFER GESELLSCHAFT ZUR FORDERUNG DER
ANGEWANDTEN FORSCHUNG EV REC DE 23
2
CENTRE NATIONAL DE LA RECHERCHE SCIENTIFIQUE CNRS
REC FR 22
3COMMISSARIAT A L ENERGIE ATOMIQUE ET AUX ENERGIES
ALTERNATIVES REC FR 21
4EREVNITIKO PANEPISTIMIAKO INSTITOUTO SYSTIMATON
EPIKOINONION KAI YPOLOGISTON REC EL 18
5 CHALMERS TEKNISKA HOGSKOLA AB HES SE 18
6 INTERUNIVERSITAIR MICRO-ELECTRONICA CENTRUM REC BE 16
7 TEKNOLOGIAN TUTKIMUSKESKUS VTT OY REC FI 14
8 UNIVERSITEIT GENT HES BE 12
9 TECHNISCHE UNIVERSITEIT EINDHOVEN HES NL 12
10 DANMARKS TEKNISKE UNIVERSITET HES DK 12
To summa ise, a no able con as eme ges when compa ing A agon’s inno a ion
ecosys em o he b oade Eu opean Union amewo k. In A agón, clus e s and indus y
o ganiza ions p edominan ly lead coo dina ion e o s, whe eas a he EU le el, public
esea ch ins i u ions p ima ily assume p ojec leade ship oles.
4.1.4. Secu i y and De ence Analysis
In con as o he well-es ablished Ad anced Technologies sec o , he Secu i y and
De ence domain in A agón is cu en ly in an eme gen phase. Following he same o ma as
he p e ious analysis, Tables 17–19 p esen he op 10 en i ies in A agón in his specialisa ion
a ea, anked by unding achie ed, numbe o p ojec s, and coo dina ion ac ions.
The highes - unded en i y in A agon’s Secu i y and De ence sec o is INSTALAZA,
a local p i a e company (PRC) specializing in de ence echnologies, wi h a o al unding
o EUR 6.3 million. This s esses he ole o indus y-led inno a ion in his sec o , a
end u he ein o ced by Equipos Mó iles de Campaña ARPA (ARPA) (PRC-SME, EUR
2.45 million), ano he local specialized company anked ou h a e F aunho e (REC, EUR
4.6 million, Ge many) and he F ench public en i y Dépa emen des Hau es-Py énées
Economies 2025,13, 218 23 o 41
(PUB, EUR 3.02 million, F ance). Among he main A agonese key playe s, only UNIZAR is
p esen , occupying he se en h posi ion wi h EUR 2.14 million.
Table 17. Top 10 en i ies by unding achie emen in Secu i y and De ence wi hin he A agonese ecosys em.
# En i y Name Type Coun y Funding Achie ed
(EUR)
1 INSTALAZA, S.A. PRC ES 6,310,358
2FRAUNHOFER GESELLSCHAFT ZUR FORDERUNG DER
ANGEWANDTEN FORSCHUNG EV REC DE 4,607,408
3 Dépa emen des Hau es-Py énées PUB FR 3,020,339
4EQUIPOS MOVILES DE CAMPAÑA ARPA SA PRC-
SME ES 2,455,290
5 UNIVERZA V LJUBLJANI HES SI 2,215,374
6 STIFTELSEN NORGES GEOTEKNISKE INSTITUTT REC NO 2,173,000
7 UNIVERSIDAD DE ZARAGOZA HES ES 2,141,064
8 TOTALFORSVARETS FORSKNINGSINSTITUT REC SE 2,074,721
9TDW GESELLSCHAFT FUR
VERTEIDIGUNGSTECHNISCHE WIRKSYSTEME MIT
BESCHRANKTE RHAFTUNG PRC DE 2,000,842
10 COMMISSARIAT A L ENERGIE ATOMIQUE ET AUX
ENERGIES ALTERNATIVES REC FR 1,991,516
Table 18. Top 10 en i ies by numbe o p ojec s in Secu i y and De ence wi hin he A agonese ecosys em.
# En i y Name Type Coun y Numbe o
P ojec s
1 INSTALAZA, S.A. PRC ES 8
2 UNIVERSIDAD DE ZARAGOZA HES ES 6
3 INSTITUTO TECNOLOGICO DE ARAGON REC ES 5
4FRAUNHOFER GESELLSCHAFT ZUR FORDERUNG DER
ANGEWANDTEN FORSCHUNG EV REC DE 4
5FUNDACION PARA EL DESARROLLO DE LAS NUEVAS
TECNOLOGIAS DEL HIDROGENO EN ARAGON REC ES 3
6 Ag upación Eu opea de Coope ación Te i o ial Espacio Po ale OTH ES 2
7ASOCIACION AGRARIA DE JOVENES AGRICULTORES ALTO
ARAGON OTH ES 2
8ASOCIACION GENERAL DE PRODUCTORES DE MAIZ EN
ESPAÑA—INSTITUTO AGRICOLA Y GANADERO OTH ES 2
9
ASOCIACION NACIONAL DE MAQUINARIA AGROPECUARIA,
FORESTAL Y DE ESPACIOS VERDES OTH ES 2
10 CENTRO DE INVESTIGACION ECOLOGICA Y APLICACIONES
FORESTALES REC ES 2
INSTALAZA also leads in p ojec pa icipa ion wi h eigh p ojec s, con i ming i s
dominance in he egional ecosys em. UNIZAR (six p ojec s) and ITA ( i e p ojec s) u he
emphasize he ole o academic and applied esea ch cen es.
In e es ingly, mul iple sec o al o ganiza ions (OTH) pa icipa e in wo p ojec s each,
including he Ag upación Eu opea de Coope ación Te i o ial Espacio Po ale , ASAJA
Al o A agón, and Asociación Nacional de Maquina ia Ag opecua ia, Fo es al y de Espacios
Ve des. This sugges s a di e se ange o ac o s con ibu ing o secu i y- ela ed inno a ion,
including hose ocused on ag icul u e, logis ics, and en i onmen al isk managemen .
INSTALAZA also eme ges as he leading coo dina o , heading six p ojec s, ein o cing
i s s a egic ole in leading egional secu i y ini ia i es (Table 17). No ably, a ious SMEs
Economies 2025,13, 218 24 o 41
and specialised echnology i ms also ake on leade ship oles bu wi h only a low numbe
o p ojec s.
Unlike Ad anced Technologies specialisa ion a ea, whe e esea ch ins i u ions played
a s onge coo dina ion ole, in Secu i y and De ence, indus y and public-p i a e collabo-
a ions domina e.
Table 19. Top 10 en i ies by numbe o coo dina ion ac ions in Secu i y and De ence wi hin he
A agonese ecosys em.
# En i y Name Type Coun y Coo dina ion
Ac ions
1 INSTALAZA, S.A. PRC ES 6
2CONSORCIO PARA LA GESTIÓN, CONSERVACIÓN Y
EXPLOTACIÓN DEL TÚNEL DE BIELSA-ARAGNOUET Y
SUS ACCESOS
OTH ES 2
3FUNDACION PARA EL DESARROLLO DE LAS NUEVAS
TECNOLOGIAS DEL HIDROGENO EN ARAGON REC ES 2
4 IMPLASER 99 SLL PRC-SME ES 2
5 NTT DATA SPAIN, SL PRC ES 2
6 RADE TECNOLOGIAS SL PRC ES 2
7 TITAN FIRE SYSTEM SL PRC-SME ES 2
8 ALISYS DIGITAL SL PRC-SME ES 1
9ASOCIACION ESPANOLA DE FABRICANTES
EXPORTADORES DE MAQUINARIA PARA
CONSTRUCCION, OBRAS PUBLICAS Y MINERIA OTH ES 1
10
Cáma a O icial de Come cio, Indus ia, Se icios y Na egación
de O iedo PUB ES 1
Tables 20–22 p esen he op 10 en i ies in he EU F amewo k p og am Secu i y and
De ence p ojec s based on he same h ee indica o s.
Table 20. Top 10 en i ies by unding achie emen in Secu i y and De ence wi hin he EU F amewo k
P og am p ojec s.
# En i y Name Type Coun y Funding
Achie ed (EUR)
1FRAUNHOFER GESELLSCHAFT ZUR FORDERUNG DER
ANGEWANDTEN FORSCHUNG EV REC DE 45,187,957
2COMMISSARIAT A L ENERGIE ATOMIQUE ET AUX
ENERGIES ALTERNATIVES REC FR 36,696,308
3ETHNIKO KENTRO EREVNAS KAI TECHNOLOGIKIS
ANAPTYXIS REC EL 32,897,693
4 KATHOLIEKE UNIVERSITEIT LEUVEN HES BE 28,458,117
5 DEUTSCHES ZENTRUM FUR LUFT—UND RAUMFAHRT EV REC DE 23,393,434
6 ENGINEERING—INGEGNERIA INFORMATICA SPA PRC IT 21,568,866
7 AIT AUSTRIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY GMBH REC AT 20,893,723
8CENTRE NATIONAL DE LA RECHERCHE SCIENTIFIQUE
CNRS REC FR 20,326,342
9
EREVNITIKO PANEPISTIMIAKO INSTITOUTO SYSTIMATON
EPIKOINONION KAI YPOLOGISTON REC EL 19,582,945
10 TECHNISCHE UNIVERSITEIT DELFT HES NL 18,829,692
A he Eu opean le el, F aunho e (EUR 45.1M) leads secu i y esea ch unding, ol-
lowed by CEA (EUR 36.7M) and CERTH (EUR 32.9M). The op 10 en i ies a e domina ed by
esea ch ins i u ions and uni e si ies, which collec i ely secu e he majo i y o EU unding.
Economies 2025,13, 218 31 o 41
A he same ime, ou analysis highligh s he e ol ing na u e o en ep eneu ial disco -
e y in A agón’s ansi ion om he 2014–2020 RIS3 o he 2021–2027 amewo k. We also
obse e ha , while many en i ies pa icipa e in mul iple p ojec s, only a ew ac as consis en
b idges be ween local and Eu opean inno a ion spaces. This aises conce ns abou he
inclusi eness o A agón’s en ep eneu ial disco e y p ocess (EDP), which equi es b oad
engagemen and s ong ex e nal ies o emain dynamic (Gheo ghiu e al.,2016;La anja e al.,
2022;Ma inelli & Pe ianez,2017;Sze b e al.,2020). Mul i-le el SNA e eals sec o -speci ic
gaps ha limi disco e y and sugges s he need o in eg a i e ools—like inclusi e unding
calls and conso ium-building p og ams— o di e si y pa icipa ion and sus ain lea ning
(Ka o e al.,2017;Sze b e al.,2020). B inging in ac o s om ou side A agón helps local
s akeholde s ap on ie expe ise and esh ideas, boos ing en ep eneu ial disco e y and
keeping inno a ion pa hs adap i e and ou wa d-looking.
These indings suppo he b oade shi owa d “S3 2.0,” which emphasizes sus-
ainabili y, inclusi eness, and esilience (Buyukyazici,2023;Eu opean Commi ee o he
Regions e al.,2023;Fo ay,2023). Well-connec ed a eas like Ene gy and G een Fuels al eady
embed en i onmen al goals, while agmen ed sec o s lag behind. Me ics like high closu e
o une en cen ali y can guide a ge ed ac ion o s eng hen unde pe o ming a eas (A anz
e al.,2022;A anz & A oyabe,2023).
Inclusion also ma e s. Eme ging domains like Secu i y and De ence lack he ac o
densi y and b idging en i ies ound in mo e ma u e sec o s, echoing pa e ns in o he
de eloping egions (Yue e al.,2024). B oadening pa icipa ion— om SMEs o ci il socie y
and local adminis a ions—can en ich inno a ion p ocesses and build agili y (To e,2019).
Collabo a i e calls ha p io i ise unde ep esen ed ac o s could help b ing mo e di e se
knowledge in o play.
Finally, esilience is now essen ial. Regions mus an icipa e economic o en i onmen al
shocks. Ou SNA amewo k suppo s his by iden i ying o e -dependence on single ac o s
and enabling policy ebalancing. Fo ins ance, in Secu i y and De ence, leade ship is o e ly
concen a ed among a ew i ms. In con as , in Ad anced Technologies, he challenge
lies in educing cen al ac o dominance and p omo ing c oss-sec o pa ne ships (Ba be o
e al.,2022;Janošec e al.,2024;McCann,2023;Moujaes,2024).
These insigh s align wi h he gaps lagged in A agón’s 2021–2027 S3 s a egy: ag-
men ed R&D e o s, limi ed in e -ins i u ional collabo a ion, and insu icien public sup-
po . Despi e he in luence o majo ins i u ions, weak in e nal ies (as shown in Table 5)
sugges s ha o e lapping compe encies and dispe sed e o s may be dilu ing hei o e all
collec i e impac (McPhillips,2020). This agmen a ion—combined wi h low ou each
capaci y and une en access o unding—especially a ec s SMEs and pe iphe al a eas.
The ac ha nea ly 60% o local o ganisa ions epo ecei ing no public R&D suppo
highligh s he need o s onge in e media y ne wo ks and mo e accessible inno a ion
ins umen s(Rossoni e al.,2024).
The hi d esea ch ques ion expands he ocus o bo h local and c oss-bo de collabo a-
ions, explo ing how ex e nal knowledge lows and ansna ional ies d i e egional g ow h.
By benchma king A agón’s inno a ion ecosys em agains la ge EU F amewo k P og am
p ojec s wi hou A agonese pa ne s, he s udy highligh s how ex e nal ac o s—o en
b oke s o ga ekeepe s—shape high-impac ne wo ks. Unde s anding why A agonese
en i ies a e absen om hese conso ia can help policymake s connec he egion o op- ie
Eu opean R&D e o s. The analysis un olds ac oss h ee on s: (i) compa ing A agón’s
ecosys em wi h majo EU R&I p ojec s lacking local in ol emen ; (ii) gene a ing policy ec-
ommenda ions om he s uc u al insigh s in his s udy; and (iii) add essing S3 bo lenecks
ha hinde alignmen be ween A agón’s inno a ion po en ial and long- e m goals.

Economies 2025,13, 218 32 o 41
Ou compa ison spans 2464 p ojec s in A agón and 33,933 EU- unded p ojec s
(
2014–2023
). Despi e ecei ing 12 imes less unding (EUR 5.03B s. EUR 57.36B), A agón
has mo e unique pa icipan s (8233 s. 5741). This e lec s a agmen ed ecosys em domi-
na ed by small, sho - e m collabo a ions, unlike he EU’s dense, epea ed pa ne ships—a
common issue in egions acing coo dina ion ailu es (Isaksen e al.,2022). Mo eo e ,
A agón channels mo e unding o p i a e i ms (PRC) and in e media ies (OTH), ein-
o cing i s indus ial ocus, while EU p ojec s a ou academic and esea ch ins i u ions.
This imbalance sugges s unde de eloped scien i ic leade ship and limi ed engagemen in
high- isk R&D (Isaksen & T ippl,2016).
F om policy implica ions s andpoin , indings highligh bo h isks and oppo uni ies.
A agón’s b oad bu shallow pa icipa ion s uc u e poin s o un apped po en ial: s onge ,
epea ed collabo a ions wi h EU conso ia could boos bo h isibili y and impac . Howe e ,
o do so, knowledge- ans e mechanisms need o imp o e links be ween uni e si ies and
la ge i ms. Aligning wi h S3 2021–2027 goals, such measu es would help ein o ce s ong
sec o s (e.g., Ad anced Technologies) while ac i a ing eme ging a eas like Hyd ogen o
Wa e h ough s a egic in e na ional engagemen .
Benchma king ne wo k me ics like agmen a ion o densi y agains cen alised EU
ne wo ks can guide a ge ed policy in e en ions. These migh include dedica ed calls,
ma chmaking pla o ms, o incen i es o in eg a e local ac o s in o obus , pan-Eu opean
pa ne ships. In doing so, egional unding ins umen s would be e align wi h EU
p io i ies, add essing a key RIS3 implemen a ion challenge (Espa za-Masana,2022).
Finally, his sec ion applies hose insigh s o wo con as ing S3 a eas: Ad anced Tech-
nologies, a ma u e sec o , and Secu i y and De ence, an eme ging one. By ailo ing policy
ac ions o each domain’s s uc u al ea u es, A agón can posi ion i sel mo e s a egically
in Eu opean inno a ion ecosys ems and deli e on i s S3 2021–2027 ambi ions.
The Ad anced Technologies ne wo k in A agón ea u es a s ong se o ac o s—ITA,
UNIZAR, CIRCE, and AITIIP—closely connec ed wi h local i ms and in e media y o ga-
niza ions. Howe e , while hese local clus e s pe o m well in na ional calls, la ge-scale
Eu opean p ojec s emain led by op esea ch ins i u ions like F aunho e , IMEC, and CEA.
This gap in p ojec scale and unding highligh s he need o inc ease egional ne wo k
densi y and s eng hen A agón’s p esence in majo EU conso ia, add essing pe sis en
weak ies among quad uple helix ac o s (Rossoni e al.,2024).
Ancho ins i u ions such as ITA, UNIZAR, and CIRCE s and ou o hei ex ensi e
egional and in e na ional collabo a ions, including wi h F aunho e , CERTH, and RINA.
Thei high be weenness cen ali y shows s ong po en ial o coo dina ing conso ia and
managing esou ces. Howe e , limi a ions emain: indus ial ac o s o en engage ia
clus e -led s uc u es a he han long- e m pa ne ships, and key A agonese ecipien s
a ac less unding han hei Eu opean coun e pa s. This dynamic echoes ins i u ional
agmen a ion in o he me opoli an RIS (Töd ling & T ippl,2005).
To s eng hen he ecosys em, se e al policy measu es a e ecommended. Fi s , s a egic
calls should a ge high- alue a eas (e.g., Indus y 4.0, obo ics, semiconduc o s) and
p io i ise conso ia ha combine mul iple egional R&D cen es wi h in e na ional pa ne s.
Second, despi e a compa a i ely modes academic base, ep esen ed la gely by UNIZAR,
hese ac o s can achie e mo e by expanding li ing labs and collabo a i e es ing spaces
wi h i ms. Scaling ini ia i es like he A agón Eu opean Digi al Inno a ion Hub (AEDIH,
2017) and connec ing hem wi h EU leade s (EUA,2019) o e s an immedia e oppo uni y.
These measu es di ec ly con on he RIS3 challenge o insu icien moni o ing and eedback
loops by encou aging con inuous, p ac ice-o ien ed expe imen a ion and lea ning.
In e na ionalisa ion is also key. While ITA and CIRCE ha e global links, many SMEs
and ech i ms emain disconnec ed om majo Eu opean p ojec s. This gap could be
Economies 2025,13, 218 33 o 41
add essed h ough a ge ed missions, ma chmaking e en s, o sha ed p oposals wi h
ins i u ions such as Chalme s, TU Eindho en, o VTT (Fe a o & Io anella,2017). C ea ing
an “Ad anced Technologies In e na ional O ice” wi hin he egional go e nmen would
help local o ganiza ions ack and engage wi h eme ging EU oppo uni ies— ackling
o ganiza ional hinness and enhancing abso p i e capaci y (Isaksen e al.,2022).
Finally, boos ing local leade ship in conso ia would align echnical capaci y wi h
s a egic in luence. Al hough ITA is a leading pa icipan , i a ely coo dina es EU p ojec s.
In oducing incen i es o egional ac o s who lead in e na ional p oposals—along wi h
dedica ed aining in conso ium leade ship and EU p ojec managemen —could close his
gap (López-Rubio e al.,2020).
Al oge he , hese ac ions—enhancing local collabo a ion, imp o ing academic–
indus y ies, and deepening in e na ional engagemen —can ele a e A agón’s ole in
his a ea, posi ioning he egion as a compe i i e, high-impac inno a ion hub.
A agón’s Secu i y and De ence ne wo k is mainly d i en by indus y, wi h companies
like INSTALAZA and ARPA leading in bo h coo dina ion and unding. These i ms ha e
capabili ies aligned wi h eme ging EU p io i ies, such as dual-use echnologies and bo de
secu i y solu ions (Eu opean Commission,2024). Howe e , unlike in Ad anced Technolo-
gies, public esea ch and academic in ol emen emains limi ed. A he Eu opean le el,
majo ins i u ions like CEA, F aunho e , and KU Leu en domina e conso ia, making i ha d
o new o smalle playe s o en e . While UNIZAR and ITA ac as occasional b idges, only
h ee en i ies exhibi enough be weenness cen ali y o suppo wide ne wo k in eg a ion.
This con igu a ion p esen s bo h oppo uni ies and cons ain s. On he one hand,
i ms like INSTALAZA and ARPA al eady show s ong echnical capaci y and could align
wi h Eu opean ini ia i es i be e connec ed. S able, high-closu e clus e s indica e in e nal
cohesion and eadiness o collabo a i e inno a ion. On he o he hand, ew b idging
nodes and s ingen secu i y egula ions es ic access—especially o SMEs lacking he
c eden ials o ne wo ks o en e he de ence domain. These ba ie s e lec a key S3
implemen a ion gap: limi ed engagemen beyond ini ial planning phases hampe s he
g ow h o eme ging sec o s (La anja e al.,2022).
To s eng hen his ecosys em, policymake s should conside a a ge ed “De ence and
Dual-Use Inno a ion” p og am (Cse na oni,2021), o a ac new en an s h ough dedi-
ca ed g an s and lowe en y h esholds. C oss-sec o demons a ion p ojec s—combining
de ence needs wi h AI, hyd ogen, o obo ics—could os e new collabo a ions and b oaden
he sec o ’s base. Hos ing in e na ional esea ch chai s o o e ing secondmen s o Eu o-
pean expe s would also aise he p o ile o local ac o s. A join P ojec O ice ocused on
EU de ence calls could ease pa icipa ion, educe adminis a i e hu dles, and suppo local
leade ship in mul ina ional p oposals.
Toge he , hese measu es—engaging i s - ime pa icipan s, p omo ing in e disci-
plina y pilo s, s eng hening global ies, and o e ing p ac ical suppo —would ans o m
A agón’s Secu i y and De ence ne wo k in o a mo e connec ed, compe i i e, and ou wa d-
looking ecosys em. They also di ec ly add ess he RIS3 bo lenecks o agmen a ion,
limi ed ou each, and ins i u ional ine ia, o e ing a pa h owa d a mo e esponsi e and
s a egically aligned egional inno a ion sys em.
6. Conclusions
This s udy builds on ou p e ious analysis (Rod íguez Ochoa e al.,2025) o A agón’s
inno a ion ecosys em unde he 2014–2020 RIS3 s a egy, expanding i in ou key a eas:
(i) a deepe analysis o cohesion and cen ali y ac oss egional, na ional, and EU le els
by specialisa ion a ea; (ii) examina ion o collabo a ion pa e ns among A agón’s key
ins i u ions (UNIZAR, ITA, CIRCE, and AITIIP); (iii) iden i ica ion o leading ac o s in EU
Economies 2025,13, 218 34 o 41
F amewo k P og am p ojec s; and (i ) assessmen o how S3 policies can add ess pe sis en
challenges, including agmen ed R&D capaci y, limi ed coope a ion, and echnology
ans e bo lenecks.
Ou esul s show a highly concen a ed unding landscape: jus ou a eas—Ene gy
and G een Fuels, Heal h and Wellbeing, Ag i-Food, and Ad anced Technologies—cap u e
abou wo- hi ds o all compe i i e unding. Meanwhile, eme ging ields like Hyd ogen,
AI, Secu i y and De ence, and Wa e emain ma ginal, ep esen ing only 10% o o al
p ojec ac i i y. These imbalances s em om bo h s ong legacy ne wo ks and pe sis en
ba ie s in newe domains, such as limi ed ou each, weak unding alignmen , and low
echnology eadiness.
Cohesion me ics e eal a spli s uc u e: la ge a eas hos many pa icipan s bu
emain poo ly connec ed, while smalle ones a e dense bu oo limi ed in scale. Cen-
ali y analysis con i ms ha ma u e a eas bene i om mul iple in luen ial hubs, while
eme ging ones depend on jus a ew ac o s, which es ic s knowledge di usion and
en ep eneu ial disco e y.
Focusing on Ad anced Technologies and Secu i y and De ence, he analysis iden i ies
ITA and UNIZAR as key in e media ies in he o me , suppo ed by CIRCE, AITIIP, and
i ms like BSH. Howe e , mos o hese ac o s end o collabo a e a he han lead la ge
conso ia. In con as , Secu i y and De ence is led by i ms like INSTALAZA and ARPA,
o ming a igh ly closed, indus y-cen ic ne wo k wi h minimal academic in ol emen and
limi ed each. Ac oss bo h domains, SMEs show weak in eg a ion—unde sco ing he need
o a ge ed public–p i a e pa ne ships and suppo mechanisms. Meanwhile, al hough
ins i u ions like UNIZAR, CIRCE, ITA, and AITIIP ac as key “knowledge ancho s” locally
and in e na ionally, hey a ely collabo a e di ec ly. This siloing—d i en in pa by unding
schemes a ou ing business–public pai ings—dilu es hei collec i e impac .
Conside ing he heo e ical con ibu ions, his s udy ad ances RIS3 heo y by showing
why place-based, di e en ia ed s a egies ma e . Ou ne wo k analysis e eals he pi alls
o “one-size- i s-all” app oaches, highligh ing he s uc u al con as s be ween ma u e
sec o s (e.g., Ene gy) and newe ones (e.g., De ence). Me ics like closu e, densi y, and
cen ali y can guide policy design o be e ha ness local asse s and ix domain-speci ic
weaknesses. The indings also ques ion he inclusi eness o he en ep eneu ial disco e y
p ocess, showing ha only a ew ins i u ions uly b idge local and EU ne wo ks, lea ing
many ac o s a he pe iphe y. B oade pa icipa ion— ia conso ium-building and mo e
inclusi e unding calls—is essen ial. Finally, by applying a sus ainabili y–inclusi eness–
esilience lens, his wo k shows how social ne wo k analysis can se e as a con inuous
diagnos ic ool o adap i e, da a-d i en go e nance. In doing so, i p o ides a oadmap
o ans o ming s a ic RIS3 plans in o dynamic, e idence-based s a egies.
Wi h ega d o he policy implica ions, benchma king A agón’s 2464 locally led
p ojec s agains 33,933 EU ini ia i es e eals se e al s a egic di ec ions o s eng hen
i s inno a ion sys em. To inc ease ne wo k densi y and educe agmen a ion, u u e
challenge-d i en calls should equi e conso ia ha connec mul iple A agonese R&D
cen es, SMEs, and a leas one op- ie Eu opean pa ne . This s uc u e would no only di-
e si y pa ne ships bu also s imula e deepe collabo a ion ac oss he egional ecosys em.
To suppo eme ging ields like Secu i y and De ence and Hyd ogen, he egion would
bene i om launching an Ad anced Technologies In e na ional O ice and a dedica ed
De ence and Dual Use Inno a ion p og am. These ini ia i es could help smalle i ms join
EU conso ia by o e ing p epa a o y g an s, a ge ed ma chmaking wi h in e na ional
ac o s, and legal assis ance h oughou he applica ion p ocess.
Embedding social ne wo k analysis in o S3 go e nance would c ea e a much-needed
eedback mechanism o adjus unding ins umen s dynamically, p e en ins i u ional
Economies 2025,13, 218 35 o 41
ine ia, and align public suppo wi h eal ne wo k s uc u es and policy goals. A he
same ime, building local capaci y emains c i ical. T aining p og ams in EU conso ium
leade ship—pa icula ly o key playe s such as ITA—and he expansion o collabo a i e
“li ing lab” models would encou age b oade pa icipa ion in unde ep esen ed specialisa-
ion a eas, especially Hyd ogen and Wa e .
By aking hese coo dina ed s eps, A agón can ansi ion om a agmen ed and
une en inno a ion landscape o a mo e in eg a ed, esilien , and ou wa d- acing ecosys em,
which is be e aligned wi h i s sma specialisa ion s a egy and mo e capable o seizing
he oppo uni ies o he Eu opean R&D landscape.
While his s udy o e s aluable insigh s, i also has some limi a ions ha poin o
u u e esea ch oppo uni ies. By ocusing exclusi ely on compe i i e public calls, i
o e looks p i a e R&D in es men s and in o mal inno a ion ac i i ies—bo h o which play
a key ole in shaping collabo a ion, especially in indus y-led sec o s. Ou social ne wo k
analysis, based on p ojec -le el da a, may also miss he in luence o ac o s who con ibu e
h ough spinou s, ad iso y oles, o con ac esea ch ou side o mal pa ne ships.
Aligning p ojec s wi h he S3 A agón 2021–2027 specialisa ion a eas o e s consis ency
bu may exclude eme ging ields—like AI-enabled echnologies, bio echnology, o quan um
compu ing— ha ha e ye o gain ull policy ecogni ion. Expanding he analysis o include
pa en da a, scien i ic publica ions, o o esigh s udies could be e cap u e hese nascen
ajec o ies. Simila ly, while he compa ison wi h Ho izon 2020 and Ho izon Eu ope
s eng hens ex e nal alidi y, inco po a ing o he EU unding p og ams—such as he
Eu opean De ence Fund o LIFE P og amme—could e ine he pic u e and help iden i y
he s uc u al ba ie s limi ing A agonese pa icipa ion in pan-Eu opean conso ia.
Building on his wo k, u u e esea ch should ack how A agón’s ne wo k me ics
e ol e o e ime in esponse o S3 2021–2027 in e en ions, helping o cla i y causal ela-
ionships be ween speci ic policy ac ions and changes in cohesion o cen ali y. Combining
his longi udinal analysis wi h quali a i e in e iews— om policymake s o SMEs and
ci il socie y—would add dep h, e ealing he mo i a ions and obs acles behind eal-wo ld
pa ne ships. Addi ionally, explo ing un unded o unsuccess ul conso ia could unco e
un apped collabo a ion po en ial and p ocedu al hu dles ha block p omising ini ia i es.
Toge he , hese mixed me hods could o e mo e p ac ical, e idence-based insigh s o
e ining and adap ing sma specialisa ion policies.
Au ho Con ibu ions: Concep ualiza ion, D.R.O. and N.A. and M.F.d.A.; me hodology, N.A. and
M.F.d.A.; so wa e, D.R.O.; alida ion, N.A. and M.F.d.A.; o mal analysis, D.R.O.; in es iga ion,
D.R.O.; esou ces, D.R.O.; da a cu a ion, D.R.O.; w i ing—o iginal d a p epa a ion, D.R.O.; w i ing—
e iew and edi ing, N.A. and M.F.d.A.; supe ision, N.A. and M.F.d.A.; p ojec adminis a ion,
D.R.O.; unding acquisi ion, D.R.O. All au ho s ha e ead and ag eed o he published e sion o
he manusc ip .
Funding: This esea ch was unded by he Di ec o a e Gene al o Indus ial P omo ion and Inno a-
ion o he A agon Go e nmen .
In o med Consen S a emen : No applicable.
Da a A ailabili y S a emen : Eu opean p ojec s da a is a ailable in a publicly accessible eposi o y
o he Eu opean Commission a EU Funding & Tende s Po al in he ollowing link: h ps://ec
.eu opa.eu/in o/ unding- ende s/oppo uni ies/po al/sc een/oppo uni ies/p ojec s- esul s
?o de =DESC&pageNumbe =1&pageSize=50&so By= i le&isExac Ma ch= alse (accessed on 8 May
2025). A he Spanish le el, he da a can be ound in he open da a eposi o y om he cen e o
indus ial echnology de elopmen (CDTI o i s ini ials in Spanish), h ough he ollowing link:
h ps://www.cd i.es/da os-abie os-c edi os-sub enciones-y-lineas (accessed on 8 May 2025) and
in he calls eposi o y o he Spanish Minis y o Science, Inno a ion and Uni e si ies h ough he
Economies 2025,13, 218 36 o 41
ollowing link: h ps://www.ciencia.gob.es/home/Con oca o ias (accessed on 8 May 2025). A
he egional le el, he in o ma ion abou p ojec s can be ound in he A agón go e nmen ’s o icial
da abase (h ps://www.a agon.es/-/nex -gene a ion-eu-con oca o ias#ancho 1, accessed on 8 May
2025) and om he da abase o he A agón De elopmen Ins i u e (IAF o i s ini ials in Spanish)
h ps://www.ia .es/ayudas (accessed on 8 May 2025).
Con lic s o In e es : The au ho s decla e no con lic s o in e es .
Abb e ia ions
The ollowing abb e ia ions a e used in his manusc ip :
AITIIP AITIIP Founda ion
ALIA A agonese Logis ic Clus e
ARPA Mobile Field Uni s ARPA
CAAR Au omo i e and Mobili y Clus e o A agón
CDTI Cen e o Indus ial Technology De elopmen
CEA F ench Al e na i e Ene gies and A omic Ene gy Commission
CERTH Cen e o Resea ch & Technology, Hellas
CIRCE CIRCE Founda ion
CNR I alian Na ional Resea ch Council
CNRS F ench Na ional Cen e o Scien i ic Resea ch
CORDIS Communi y Resea ch and De elopmen In o ma ion Se ice
CSIC Spanish Na ional Resea ch Council
EC Eu opean Commission
EDP En ep eneu ial Disco e y P ocess
EU Eu opean Union
FP F amewo k P og amme
GDP G oss Domes ic P oduc
GVA G oss Value Added
H2020 Ho izon 2020 F amewo k Resea ch P og amme
HE Ho izon Eu ope
HES Highe educa ion es ablishmen s en i y ype
IAF A agón De elopmen Ins i u e
IMEC In e uni e si y Mic oelec onics Cen e
ITA A agón Technology Ins i u e
KU Leu en Ka holieke Uni e si ei Leu en
NIF Tax iden i ica ion numbe
OTH Sec o -le el o ganisa ions en i y ype
PIC Pa icipan Iden i ica ion Codes
PRC P i a e companies en i y ype
PRC-SME Small and medium en e p ises en i y ype
PUB Public sec o en i y ype
REC Resea ch o ganisa ions en i y ype
RIS Regional Inno a ion Sys ems
RIS3 Resea ch and Inno a ion S a egies o Sma Specialisa ion
RQ Resea ch ques ion
R&D Resea ch and De elopmen
R&I Resea ch and Inno a ion
S3 Sma Specialisa ion S a egy
SME Small and Medium En e p ises
SNA Social Ne wo k Analysis
UN Uni ed Na ions
UNIZAR Uni e si y o Za agoza
URF
Unique Regis a ion Facili y

Economies 2025,13, 218 37 o 41
Appendix A
Fo cla i y and ease o eading, supplemen a y de ails o he Ma e ials and Me hods
sec ion ha e been eloca ed o his appendix.
The de ail o he p ima y da a sou ces o his s udy a e shown below.
•
Regional P ojec Da abases: Da a on compe i i e public p ojec s a he egional le el
we e collec ed om o icial A agón go e nmen eposi o ies and da abases, including
hose main ained by he A agón De elopmen Ins i u e (IAF).
•
Na ional P ojec Da abases: In o ma ion ega ding na ional-le el p ojec s in ol ing
A agonese en i ies was ob ained om Spain’s Minis y o Science and Inno a ion and
o he ela ed na ional unding agencies, such as he Cen e o Indus ial Technology
De elopmen (CDTI).
•
Eu opean P ojec Da abases: P ojec da a a he Eu opean le el we e sou ced om
da abases managed by he Eu opean Commission, including hose o Ho izon Eu ope,
INTERREG, and LIFE p og ams, among o he s. The CORDIS da abase (Communi y
Resea ch and De elopmen In o ma ion Se ice) has been pa icula ly ins umen al,
p o iding de ailed in o ma ion on p ojec s, pa icipan s, unding, and ou comes.
Fo he A agonese inno a ion ecosys em, we exclusi ely included p ojec s ea u ing
a leas one pa icipan om he A agón egion. Al hough he majo i y o hese p ojec s a e
collabo a i e public ini ia i es—cha ac e ized by mul iple independen en i ies wo king
oge he on sha ed esea ch and inno a ion objec i es—a small p opo ion o compe i i e
p ojec s unde aken by a single en i y was also inco po a ed. Fo example, p ojec s unded
unde he H2020 SME Ins umen we e included o e lec he pe o mance o hese en i ies
in speci ic domains.
Fo he selec ion o en i ies, hose om he A agón egion we e iden i ied using hei
ax iden i ica ion numbe s (NIF in Spanish) and associa ed add esses. Acco dingly, any
ex e nal en i ies in ol ed in he selec ed p ojec s we e also included, as hey con ibu e
di ec ly o he A agonese esea ch and inno a ion ecosys em h ough collabo a i e e o s.
Rega ding he Eu opean benchma k, only p ojec s unde Ho izon 2020 and Ho izon
Eu ope we e conside ed, as hese wo unding schemes ep esen 78% o he o al unding
alloca ed wi hin he A agonese ecosys em. This ocused selec ion enables a comp ehensi e
compa ison o egional pe o mance in he con ex o b oade Eu opean ini ia i es.
To ensu e he accu acy and ele ance o he da a o A agón’s inno a ion ecosys em,
se e al igo ous p ocessing s eps we e unde aken:
•
Da a Cleaning: Following he ex ac ion o da a om egional, na ional, and Eu o-
pean p ojec da abases, a ho ough cleaning p ocess was implemen ed o emo e
duplica es, esol e inconsis encies, and co ec inaccu acies. En i y iden i ie s we e
e i ied, and o ma ing was s anda dized ac oss da ase s. Fo A agón-based en i ies,
con i ma ion was achie ed h ough hei ax iden i ica ion numbe s (NIF) and egis-
e ed add esses. Addi ionally, he da ase was c oss- e e enced wi h o icial egional
di ec o ies and na ional da abases—such as eco ds om he Spanish Minis y o
Science and Inno a ion—and, o Eu opean p ojec s, wi h he Eu opean Commission’s
Pa icipan Iden i ica ion Codes (PICs) and he Unique Regis a ion Facili y (URF)
da abase. This ex ensi e alida ion ensu ed ha bo h local en i ies and hei ex e nal
collabo a o s we e accu a ely ep esen ed.
•
Ne wo k Cons uc ion: Using he e ined da ase , collabo a i e ne wo ks we e con-
s uc ed whe ein en i ies a e depic ed as nodes and hei join pa icipa ion in p ojec s
as edges. These ne wo ks, co e ing p ojec s om he egional, na ional, and Eu opean
le els (2014–2023), se e as he ounda ion o subsequen social ne wo k analysis
aimed a e ealing he s uc u al and dynamic cha ac e is ics o he ecosys em.
Economies 2025,13, 218 38 o 41
•
A ibu e Assignmen : Each node in he ne wo k was en iched wi h ele an a ibu es
o acili a e a nuanced analysis o i s ole and signi icance. A ibu es included he ype
o en i y (e.g., highe educa ion ins i u ions, la ge p i a e companies), hei p ojec ole
(coo dina o o pa icipan ), he pa icipa ion le el ( egional, na ional, o Eu opean),
he specialisa ion a ea and he unding ecei ed.
•
Da a Valida ion: To main ain he in eg i y o he cons uc ed ne wo ks, andom
samples we e c oss-checked agains he o iginal da abases, and any iden i ied dis-
c epancies we e p omp ly add essed. This alida ion s ep was c i ical o ensu e ha
he ne wo ks accu a ely e lec he collabo a i e ac i i ies and ela ionships wi hin
A agón’s inno a ion ecosys em o e he speci ied pe iod.
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