# Pioneering Research – Exploring the Unknown Unknown

**Funder:** Volkswagen Foundation
**Consortium:** Optional — international cooperation partners are possible
**Eligible countries:** DE
**Official call:** https://www.volkswagenstiftung.de/en/funding/funding-offer/pioneering-research-exploring-unknown-unknown
**Last verified:** 2 August 2026

## Eligibility & scope

Addresses outstanding post-doctoral researchers and professors at universities and research institutes in Germany; international cooperation partners are possible. Funds visionary basic research projects across all disciplines.

## Summary

Volkswagen Foundation's "Pioneering Research, Exploring the Unknown Unknown" funds exploratory, high-risk research projects that venture beyond established disciplinary boundaries. Open to researchers in Germany, this call supports creative investigations that may yield unexpected insights or entirely new research directions.

## Who should apply

- Researchers based at German institutions
- Projects tackling genuinely novel or cross-disciplinary questions
- Teams willing to explore unconventional methodologies or problem framings
- Researchers comfortable with inherent uncertainty and exploratory timelines

## Key dates

- Call first listed 12 April 2026, verify current deadline on Volkswagen Foundation website

## Tips for applicants

- This programme rewards intellectual courage over preliminary data; frame the research question sharply even if the path forward is unclear.
- Interdisciplinary or methodologically unconventional projects are a natural fit, explain why existing approaches fall short.
- Honesty about risk and unknowns strengthens rather than weakens a proposal for this funder.

## Frequently asked questions

### Who is eligible for Volkswagen Foundation's Pioneering Research call?

Researchers based at German institutions conducting projects that explore novel, high-risk research questions.

### Is this a recurring call?

The call was first listed in April 2026; verify the schedule and next deadline on the Volkswagen Foundation website.

### What kind of research does Pioneering Research fund?

Projects that venture into unexplored territory, cross disciplinary boundaries, or employ unconventional approaches with potential for significant breakthrough insights.

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Source: [The Great Grantsby](https://grantsby.eu/grants/volkswagen-foundation-pioneering-research-exploring-the-unknown-unknown-2026) — EU grant monitoring for academic researchers. Always verify details on the funder's website before applying.

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