Placing societal readiness and social welfare at the centre of air mobility

IAM-CC partners gathered in Athens to officially launch the project. Creative photo composition by Future Needs.

PRESS RELEASE, 22 June 2026

How can we improve social welfare by adding Innovative Air Mobility (IAM) to the mix of existing transport modes?

This is the starting point of IAM Competence Centre (IAM-CC), a €5 million EU-funded project addressing one of the most critical and often overlooked aspects of IAM: societal readiness for its adoption. Rather than focusing only on technological feasibility, the project looks at the problems IAM can solve, society’s readiness to adopt it, and how it can be deployed fairly. 

Running from June 2026 to December 2029, IAM-CC brings together a consortium of 20 organisations from across Europe to shape how IAM is introduced in practice.

“IAM-CC is about making sure innovation works for society, not the other way around,” says Anna Palaiologk, Founder of Future Needs, who led the development of the project proposal.

IAM-CC moves beyond passive “public acceptance” toward active co-creation, engaging citizens, city authorities, and industry actors to explore IAM and its potential use. Guided by the Responsible Research and Innovation approach, the project embeds co-creation as a core part of how societal readiness is assessed and advanced.

At the core of the project is the development of a societal readiness methodology, integrating technological, organisational, and citizen readiness, alongside legal and ethical considerations.

This will be supported by tools, training, and practical guidance made available through the IAM Competence Centre, alongside a European community of practice.

In parallel, multilingual public awareness and educational campaigns will raise understanding of IAM and support broader participation.

The approach will be tested through Living Labs in Madrid, Milan, and Coimbra, where stakeholders will take part in demonstrations, immersive experiences, and workshops to explore real-world applications and societal impacts.

“We are proud to continue the work of many IAM flagship projects, bringing together leading expertise and building on proven knowledge within one strong consortium,” says Sotiris Xydis, IAM-CC Project Coordinator at Institute of Communication and Computer Systems (ICCS). 

As air mobility technologies continue to evolve, IAM-CC addresses a key gap: societal readiness remains underdeveloped. By providing structured methodologies, practical tools, and inclusive processes, the project supports more informed, inclusive, and context-sensitive integration of IAM across urban and rural areas.

---

The IAM-CC consortium officially kicked off the project on 18 June 2026 in Athens, Greece, bringing together representatives from the Institute of Communication and Computer Systems (ICCS), Future Needs Management Consulting Ltd, Associacao Iscte Conhecimento e Inovacao - Centro de Valorizacao e Transferencia de Tecnologias, The University of Salford, Technische Universiteit Delft, AgentFly Technologies s.r.o., MaasLab, RHE DK ApS, Ethnicon Metsovion Polytechnion, Universitat Politecnica de Valencia, Centro de Innovacion Tecnologica para la Logistica y el Transporte de Mercancias por Carretera (CITET), Openvia Air S.L. (Bluenest), Ayuntamiento de Madrid, Comunidad de Madrid, Ospedale San Raffaele SRL, ABzero SRL, EuroUSC Italia SRL, Citta Metropolitana di Milano, Comunidade Intermunicipal da Regiao de Coimbra, and CRSA - Connect Robotics Sistemas Autonomos LDA.

For further information, interview requests, or media enquiries, please contact

Eglė Joneliūnaitė, Communication and Dissemination Leader of the IAM-CC project, at egle@futureneeds.eu

Visit the project website: www.iamcc.eu