Mauro Ferrari, a pioneer of the application of nanotechnology to medicine, has been appointed president of the European Research Council (ERC). The Italian-American dual citizen will replace the current president, French mathematician Jean-Pierre Bourguignon, on 1 January 2020.

Ferrari will lead the ERC as the Horizon 2020 research programme, through which it is funded, is succeeded by Horizon Europe at the start of 2021. The ERC’s budget will increase from €13.1 billion in Horizon 2020 to €16.6 billion in the new programme.