PARTNERSHIP FOR ADVANCED COMPUTING IN EUROPE AISBL

Their core work

PRACE is the central coordinating body for high-performance computing (HPC) infrastructure across Europe. They manage access to world-class supercomputing resources for researchers and industry, develop HPC training programmes, and shape European HPC strategy and roadmaps. As a pan-European association (AISBL), they connect national computing centres into a unified ecosystem, enabling scientists and engineers to run large-scale simulations, data analytics, and computational research that no single country could support alone.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

In 2015–2017, PRACE focused on foundational HPC strategy — building European roadmaps, defining technology directions, and establishing open science and FAIR data principles (EXDCI, EOSCpilot). From 2018 onward, the emphasis shifted decisively toward EuroHPC governance, exascale readiness, Centres of Excellence coordination, and scaling up training and dissemination (EXDCI-2, HPC-GIG, FocusCoE, CASTIEL). The trajectory shows PRACE moving from strategy-setting to operational governance of Europe's supercomputing future.

PRACE is positioning itself as the governance and coordination backbone for the EuroHPC Joint Undertaking, with growing emphasis on competence centres, industrial outreach, and exascale readiness.

How they like to work

PRACE operates as both a consortium leader and a key infrastructure partner. They coordinated 3 of 11 projects (the strategy-focused EXDCI series and HPC-GIG) while joining 8 others as a participant — typically in large, pan-European infrastructure consortia. With 136 unique partners across 28 countries, they function as a hub organization: nearly every major HPC player in Europe has worked with them, making PRACE an exceptionally well-connected entry point into the European computing ecosystem.

PRACE has collaborated with 136 unique partners across 28 countries, making it one of the most broadly connected HPC organizations in Europe. Their network spans national computing centres, universities, research institutes, and industry across virtually every EU member state.

What sets them apart

PRACE is not a research lab or a technology vendor — it is the institutional backbone of European HPC. No other organization sits at the intersection of supercomputing access, strategy development, and ecosystem governance at this scale. If you need to understand or connect with the European HPC landscape, PRACE is the single most central node in the network.

Highlights from their portfolio

• PRACE-6IP
  Largest single EC contribution (EUR 2.8M) — the sixth implementation phase delivering operational supercomputing services across Europe.
• EXDCI-2
  Coordinated by PRACE (EUR 1.5M), this project shaped the exascale roadmap and HPC ecosystem coordination that fed directly into the EuroHPC Joint Undertaking.
• HPC-GIG
  Coordinated by PRACE to gather governance intelligence for EuroHPC, bridging PRACE, ETP4HPC, and GÉANT — the three pillars of European e-infrastructure.