Rural innovation needs stronger networks, skills and place-based support, Startup Village Forum highlights
Rural businesses are actively innovating, but stronger cooperation, access to skills and services, and place-based support are needed to unlock their potential. These were key messages from the European Startup Village Forum 2026, held on 15 October in Brussels.
Image by the Joint Research Centre
The fourth edition of the Forum, organised by the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC), brought together policymakers, researchers and practitioners to explore evidence on rural innovation, entrepreneurship and future policy support.
Rural firms innovate differently
Findings from the newly released JRC report ‘The state of rural innovation in the European Union’, based on data from over 12 000 businesses, showed that 64% of rural firms are innovative, compared with 70% of urban firms. The urban-rural gap is much smaller than technological innovation indicators suggest, while rural firms show distinctive innovation patterns, including a stronger reliance on collaboration with local competitors.
OECD representative Dorothée Allain-Dupré emphasised the importance of recognising innovation beyond research and development, including process and social innovation, as well as adoption of new and adaptation of existing technologies. In this context, essential services, broadband, transport and skills are key enabling conditions, alongside stronger networks connecting businesses, municipalities and research institutions.
Discussions on artificial intelligence (AI) highlighted its potential to support rural innovation, while warning that its benefits could become concentrated in urban centres. Appropriate policy support and skills development are therefore essential to enable rural residents and businesses to adopt and use AI.
Building supportive rural innovation ecosystems
Local examples illustrated different approaches to supporting rural start-ups, including: renewable energy development in Ånge, Sweden; an entrepreneurial ecosystem combining knowledge and local assets in Fundão, Portugal; the Thyrea Living Lab in Greece; and start-up support and skills development in Killorglin, Ireland.
Speakers also highlighted the need to combine financing with mentoring, involve local communities in decision-making and adapt support to the specificities of different rural territories.
European Commission representatives stressed the importance of connecting research and innovation with practical uptake, while improving coherence between EU support instruments. The LEADER approach was highlighted as an example of building on local assets, identifying needs and connecting stakeholders.
Informing future EU rural policies
The discussions also addressed how future EU policies could better support rural innovation. European Commission representatives highlighted the importance of supporting entire innovation ecosystems rather than individual projects, building on local assets and needs, and ensuring coherence across policies, funding instruments and governance levels.
In his concluding remarks, DG AGRI’s Hugo Almeida stressed that future support should prioritise investments relevant to rural communities. The European Commission is able to assist public authorities and stakeholders in designing rural support measures, including through Rural Pact networking activities and cooperation with the OECD.
The Commission will build on the Forum's discussions to inform work on the EU rural action plan and the forthcoming ‘right to stay’ strategy.