The President of the Xunta, Alfonso Rueda, has announced that the regional government has agreed to initiate the procedures to launch Galicia’s first Business Innovation Strategy 2026–2028, which is expected to mobilise more than €400 million. The aim is to enhance the competitiveness of the productive fabric and place innovation at the heart of the region’s economic development.
As the President explained, this initiative forms part of the Xunta’s commitment to fostering innovation among Galician companies. “If we want a modern and competitive productive fabric, innovation must be an inseparable part of companies’ day-to-day activity,” he stressed.
Rueda noted that the objective is to approve the strategy “in the first half of 2026” and that, beforehand, as explained by the Minister for Economy and Industry, María Jesús Lorenzana, meetings will be held with social partners and sector entities to gather their contributions. The goal is to consolidate Galicia as a factory of innovation capable of transforming talent and knowledge into solutions with real impact on the economy and society.
Ultimately, the aim is to turn innovation into a daily practice of the Galician business ecosystem, rather than a trend or an exception. To achieve this, the Xunta will seek the involvement of companies, knowledge centres, clusters and the various public administrations. “We want more innovation, better innovation, and for this to translate into sustainable competitiveness and quality employment,” said the Minister.
Strengthening public-private cooperation by incorporating SMEs into transformation processes in an increasingly competitive and globalised world is one of the key objectives of the initiative. The strategy will be strongly focused on SMEs, as in today’s highly globalised, technological and competitive environment, most companies that do not innovate are doomed to disappear.
Thus, the 2026–2028 roadmap will mobilise “more than €400 million in own funds, representing an increase of nearly 60% compared to the previous scenario,” according to Lorenzana. This investment will make it possible to attract talent and flagship projects, create experimentation spaces, activate innovation and provide companies with high technology based on artificial intelligence.
Rueda explained that the strategy aims to “increase by 25% the number of companies that innovate in Galicia,” currently estimated at more than 1,750 according to the latest data, “and to ensure that private spending in this area grows to €1.5 billion.” It also seeks to attract, retain and mobilise qualified talent, and to promote support networks that accompany companies.
Background: the innovation area
The launch of the Business Innovation Strategy of Galicia follows the creation, in 2024, of the Business Innovation area within the Ministry of Economy and Industry, through Igape, with the aim of promoting innovation as an essential lever of business competitiveness.
The Galician Government believes that innovation in companies only becomes established when it translates into higher productivity, sustainability, export capacity and employment. Therefore, providing greater access to financing for companies that commit to innovation, fostering technological autonomy, making public instruments and support networks available to companies, and attracting and mobilising talent are some of the key lines of action of the strategy, whose draft is expected to be ready in the first quarter of 2026.
Four pillars: challenges, structuring, financing and cross-cutting approach
The Strategy will be developed through four major pillars: Innovative Business Challenges, Structuring, Financing and Cross-cutting Approach, which will include different support instruments. Under the first pillar, two programmes stand out: Industria Innova and IA360. Rueda highlighted that the regional government agreed today to allocate “€40 million” to these two support lines in order to “promote industrial research projects or the implementation of artificial intelligence tools”.
Industria Innova, endowed with €30 million, is aimed at supporting industrial research projects, experimental development and innovation in processes and organisation within Galician companies. IA360 (€10 million) will focus on industry, with priority given to projects linked to Galicia’s strategic sectors, and will include two types of aid: one for the development of AI-based technologies, and another for projects involving the implementation and application of commercial services and solutions based on this technology.
In 2024, business innovation spending in Galicia reached €1,073.6 million, recording an annual growth rate of 30.4%, which is 17 percentage points higher than the national average (13%). As explained by the Minister, Galicia “is the fourth region where investment increased the most”. These figures clearly reflect the effort Galicia is making to incorporate innovation as a growth lever across all productive areas and processes.
Following today’s approval by the regional government of the start of the procedures for the Business Innovation Strategy of Galicia 2026–2028, a schedule of meetings is expected to be rolled out. This will include meetings within the framework of Social Dialogue, the establishment of a Business Innovation Roundtable, and the collection of contributions from entities and stakeholders in the field of innovation.
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