Overview

• Germany's €500 billion special fund, initially created for infrastructure and climate, will now also target scientific research and innovation.
• SPD chief Lars Klingbeil unveiled plans to modernize universities and launch programs to support foreign scientists relocating to Germany.
• The initiative aims to attract researchers from countries like the US and Turkey, citing growing restrictions on scientific freedom in those regions.
• Priority research areas include quantum computing, artificial intelligence, biotechnology, pharmaceutical research, and space exploration.
• The fund was enabled by fiscal reforms in March 2025, which relaxed debt rules and exempted defense and civil protection spending from the debt brake.