Trend Analysis
The innovation Landscape for Software & SaaS Engineering Teams
From features to foundations
What to expect from this Trend Analysis
Software R&D is shifting from features to foundations. The last decade rewarded velocity: ship faster, iterate faster. 2026 rewards work that holds up under regulation, scales economically under AI workloads, and shows up clearly enough on the P&L to be governed.Five themes are pulling public innovation funding right now: quantum-safe software infrastructure, AI governance and auditability tooling, trusted data spaces, energy-aware computing, and digital twins at software scale.
Most of it already qualifies as non-dilutive capital under WBSO, FZulG, ZIM, Eurostars or Horizon Europe, and your team has probably earned it already. The limiting factor is rarely eligibility. It is process.
This trend analysis is for CTOs, VP Engineering and Engineering Directors setting technical direction Europe, with concrete examples from the Netherlands and Germany. It reframes the question from what to build to what to make foundational.
The CFO’s perspective on financing logic and decision-making factors
- Why AI will be infrastructure by 2026, not just a feature you add
- Which of these five trends is your team already seeing in the backlog today?
- Real-world examples from engineering teams with between 5 and 290 developers
Three deadlines that are already shaping your architecture
- What the CRA, NIS2 and AI Act specifically require of your team
- Which decisions can no longer be put off – and which can wait a little longer
- Just a few weeks to go until September 2026
Your roadmap includes capital that you have not yet applied for
- What engineering work qualifies for WBSO, FZulG and Horizon Europe?
- Why finance is rarely the problem – and what the problem actually is
- The quickest way to your first R&D funding assessment
Download the trend analysis now
In 2026, software R&D will undergo a fundamental shift from features to fundamentals. Download our trend analysis now. It shows you which five trends are shaping roadmaps, which regulatory deadlines no team can afford to ignore, and where funding potential already lies within your existing roadmap.