Three Indian researchers have been selected for the European Research Council’s 2026 Starting Grants, placing Indian scientific talent inside a funding round where fewer than one in eleven proposals succeeded. Three Indian nationals among the 421 awardees announced on September 3. The programme carries €705 million for early-career researchers working across Europe.
The Indian names are Kaustubh Hakim, Akash Koppa and Shreeya Shetye. Their projects span three frontiers: chemistry inside sub-Neptune exoplanets, feedbacks that can turn humid regions into drylands, and magnetism in ageing stars. Each tackles a question that present observations or models cannot fully answer.
Why The 2026 ERC Starting Grants Stand Out
ERC Starting Grants are designed for researchers building independent programmes, not for prescribed topics. The 2026 competition received a record 4,807 proposals, 22% more than the previous call, and funded only 8.8%. A standard Starting Grant can provide up to €1.5 million for five years, with additional support possible for eligible major costs. That level of selectivity gives the three Indian projects added visibility well beyond their European host institutions.
The scale of the round makes the Indian wins especially notable:
- €705 million was allocated across 421 projects.
- Awardees will work at institutions in 25 European countries.
- Germany leads with 89 grants, followed by the UK with 47 and France with 38.
- The ERC estimates the funded teams could create more than 2,700 research jobs.
The European Commission highlighted the results online, while the EU Delegation to India separately celebrated three Indian researchers among the awardees in its . The India-facing announcement is significant because ERC funding is open to researchers of any nationality, provided the project is hosted at an eligible European institution.
The Three Indian Scientists And The Research That Won
Kaustubh Hakim, a researcher with the Royal Observatory of Belgium and KU Leuven, received the grant for ExoGeochem, “Geochemical Atmospheric Signatures of Sub-Neptune Exoplanets.” Sub-Neptunes are larger than about twice Earth’s size but smaller than Neptune, with no direct counterpart in our Solar System. They are also common among known exoplanets.
Hakim’s project will recreate extreme planetary conditions in laboratory experiments, pair those results with quantum-mechanical simulations, and feed the chemistry into atmospheric models. The goal is to learn how hydrogen, rock and iron behave deep inside these planets, then connect that chemistry with spectra gathered by the James Webb Space Telescope. The observations from Ariel and the Extremely Large Telescope could later benefit too.
Akash Koppa’s LAMDA project tackles how humid landscapes become persistent drylands. “Land–atmosphere interactions as a mechanism of dryland formation” will use more than 4,600 climate records covering over a millennium. Koppa, now at the, plans to examine how long-term atmospheric drying changes vegetation, how those shifts can reinforce drying locally and farther away, and how human activity can alter the transition.
Shreeya Shetye’s MERLIN project turns to stars approaching late stages of their lives. MERLIN stands for “Magnetism, Evolution, and Rotation in Late-stage stellar Nucleosynthesis.” Hosted at, it will investigate whether magnetic fields buried inside ageing AGB stars leave chemical fingerprints at their surfaces. From Stellar Chemistry To Galactic Building Blocks
Shetye will combine close studies of individual stars with newer spectroscopic surveys covering thousands of evolved stars. The project will test whether hidden magnetic fields influence internal mixing and heavy-element production. Those elements are later expelled by stellar winds and can become raw material for new stars and planets.
Why These Projects Fit The ERC’s Frontier Research Model
The three projects share a pattern despite their different subjects. Each starts with an unresolved mechanism, then combines methods usually kept in separate research lanes. Hakim links high-pressure geochemistry with exoplanet astronomy. Koppa connects long climate records, vegetation feedbacks and atmospheric transport. Shetye combines stellar chemistry, magnetism and large survey data.
That approach fits the ERC’s bottom-up model. The council does not set a narrow list of preferred scientific themes for Starting Grants. Researchers propose their own questions, and scientific excellence drives evaluation. The 2026 winners span life sciences, physical sciences and engineering, social sciences and humanities.
Europe is also trying to attract researchers from outside the continent through Choose Europe. In this round, 21 winners were based outside Europe when selected, including 20 in the United States. Applicants relocating to Europe can seek up to €2 million in additional support for laboratories or teams, subject to eligibility.
What The Awards Signal For Indian Researchers
For Indian researchers considering Europe, these grants show nationality is not a barrier to ERC funding. Host institution eligibility, a strong research idea and the applicant’s scientific record carry greater weight than passport origin. The three winners also show how careers across Indian and international institutions can lead to independent research programmes in Europe.
The timing is useful for potential applicants. The ERC Starting Grant 2027 call is open, with an October 14, 2026 deadline. The ERC operates under Horizon Europe, and its core schemes cover researchers at several career stages. For early-career Indian scientists, the latest results offer a clear benchmark: competition is severe, but the route is open.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is an ERC Starting Grant?
An ERC Starting Grant funds promising early-career researchers building independent teams for ambitious frontier projects.
How much funding can winners receive?
Typical awards provide up to €1.5 million over five years, with extra relocation support available.
How competitive was the 2026 round?
Only 8.8 percent of 4,807 submitted proposals secured funding in the 2026 Starting Grant round.
Who can apply for an ERC Starting Grant?
Researchers of any nationality may apply, provided their project runs at an eligible European host.
When is the next Starting Grant deadline?
The ERC Starting Grant 2027 call closes on October 14, 2026, according to official guidance.
