As part of the France 2030 plan, the French government decided to setup a programme to accelerate high-risk research, with the aim of “strengthening our collective capacity to carry out high-risk, high-impact research and innovation initiatives, with scientific excellence, rapid deployment and flexible systems as key principles”.

The major research organisations were asked to carry out pilot initiatives - in a framework letter issued jointly by the General Secretariat for Investment (SGPI) and the Directorate-General for Research and Innovation (DGRI) - with the threefold objective of:

• proposing a strategy for the development of High-Risk/High-Reward research (HRHR) in their areas of expertise;
• identifying an initial set of promising themes/projects that meet the HRHR characteristics;
• initiating and maintaining an agile and efficient process contributing to the development of a new shared culture of High-Risk research.

The PIQ programme is the response headed by Inria and operated by the Agence de Programmes Numérique - Algorithms, Software and Uses. The programme aims to support scientific risk-taking and address the current and future challenges of research and innovation in and through digital technology by supporting and funding scientists who want to undertake high-risk, high-impact research projects.