- The investment represents an increase of nearly 60% compared with the previous scenario in order to equip high-tech companies, attract talent and strategic projects, and create experimentation spaces
- “If we want a modern and competitive productive fabric, innovation must be an inseparable part of its daily life,” he states
- He highlights that the goal is “to increase by 25% the number of companies that innovate in the region” and that private investment in this field “should reach €1.5 billion.”
- The Regional Minister for Economy and Industry emphasises that innovation will make it possible to move towards “sustainable competitiveness and the creation of quality employment.”
- As part of the strategy, in January the Xunta will allocate €40 million in aid through the Industria Innova and IA360 programmes
- Business innovation expenditure in Galicia exceeded the national average by 17 percentage points in 2024, reaching a total of €1.073 billion, a 30% increase in one year
Santiago de Compostela, 29 December 2025
The President of the Xunta, Alfonso Rueda, announced that the Council today agreed to begin the procedures for launching Galicia’s first Business Innovation Strategy 2026–2028, which is expected to mobilise more than €400 million. The goal is to boost the competitiveness of the productive fabric and place innovation at the heart of the region’s economic development.
As the President explained, this initiative is part of the Xunta’s commitment to promoting innovation among Galician companies. “If we want a modern and competitive productive fabric, innovation must be an inseparable part of its daily life,” he stressed.
Rueda stated that the aim is to approve the strategy “in the first half of 2026” and, prior to this, according to the Regional Minister for Economy and Industry, María Jesús Lorenzana, meetings will be held with social agents and sectoral entities to gather their contributions. The goal is to consolidate Galicia as a factory of innovation capable of transforming talent and knowledge into real-impact solutions for the economy and society.
In short, the idea is to make innovation a daily practice within Galician business rather than a trend or an exception. To achieve this, the Xunta will seek the involvement of companies, knowledge centres, clusters and various public administrations. “We want more and better innovation, which will translate into sustainable competitiveness and quality jobs,” said the Regional Minister.
Strengthening public–private cooperation by integrating SMEs into transformation processes in an increasingly competitive and globalised world is one of the initiative’s objectives. It will focus heavily on small and medium-sized enterprises, since, in today’s 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 almost 60% compared with the previous scenario,” according to Lorenzana. This investment will make it possible to attract talent and anchor projects, create experimentation spaces, foster innovation, and equip high-tech companies based on artificial intelligence.
Rueda explained that the strategy aims “to increase by 25% the number of companies that innovate in Galicia,” currently more than 1,750 according to the latest figures, “and ensure that private expenditure in this field 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 Galicia’s Business Innovation Strategy follows the creation in 2024 of the Business Innovation Area within the Department 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 within companies is only consolidated when it translates into greater productivity, sustainability, export capacity and employment. For this reason, facilitating access to financing for companies investing in innovation, promoting technological autonomy, providing public instruments and support networks to accompany companies, and attracting and mobilising talent are among the pillars of the strategy, the draft of which should be ready in the first quarter of 2026.
Four pillars: challenges, structuring, financing and cross-sectorality
The Strategy will be developed through four main pillars: Innovative Enterprise Challenges, Structuring, Financing and Cross-Sectorality, which will include different types of support. The first will feature the activation of two programmes: Industria Innova and IA360. Rueda highlighted that the Council agreed today to allocate “€40 million” to these two lines of aid to “boost industrial research projects or implement artificial intelligence tools.”
Industria Innova, endowed with €30 million, is aimed at supporting industrial research, experimental development, and process and organisational innovation projects within Galician companies. IA360 (€10 million) will focus on industry, giving priority to projects linked to Galicia’s strategic sectors and offering two types of aid: the first for developing AI-based technologies and the second for implementing and applying commercial services and solutions based on this technology.
In 2024, business innovation expenditure in Galicia reached €1.0736 billion, recording an annual growth rate of 30.4%, 17 percentage points above the national rate (13%). As the Regional Minister explained, Galicia “is the fourth region with the highest increase in investment.” These figures demonstrate the region’s strong commitment to incorporating innovation as a lever for growth across all areas and production processes.
Following the Council’s approval today to initiate the procedures for Galicia’s Business Innovation Strategy 2026–2028, a schedule of meetings will be developed, including sessions with the Social Dialogue and the establishment of a Business–Innovation Round Table, as well as the collection of contributions from innovation-related entities and agents.
