STICHTING EGI

Their core work

EGI Foundation operates Europe's federated cloud and computing infrastructure, connecting over 20 national e-infrastructure providers into a single platform for scientific research. They provide distributed computing, data management, and cloud services that researchers across disciplines use to run large-scale analyses, store datasets, and access shared tools. EGI is a backbone operator of the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC), managing service integration across hundreds of resource centres. Their work enables scientists — from environmental researchers to particle physicists — to access computing power and datasets without building their own infrastructure.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

In 2015–2018, EGI focused on consolidating e-infrastructure foundations: building federated identity systems (AARC), integrating distributed data clouds (INDIGO-DataCloud, XDC), and supporting environmental research networks (ENVRI PLUS). The early keyword signature — open data, FAIR data, certification, procurement — reflects an organization proving its infrastructure model and establishing standards. From 2019 onward, the pivot to EOSC dominance is unmistakable: four of the top recent keywords reference EOSC directly, and projects shifted toward domain-specific data services (photon/neutron science, Copernicus, social mining), big data hubs, and AI platform provisioning — moving from building the infrastructure to operating it at European scale.

EGI is evolving from an infrastructure builder into the primary compute and data services operator for EOSC, increasingly connecting domain-specific research communities (earth observation, life sciences, social sciences) to federated cloud resources.

How they like to work

EGI operates overwhelmingly as a participant (35 of 38 projects) but takes the coordinator role for its own flagship initiatives — EGI-Engage, EOSC-hub, and EGI-ACE — which are the largest-budget projects in its portfolio. With 535 unique consortium partners across 49 countries, EGI is a mega-hub: virtually every major European research infrastructure, university computing centre, and e-infrastructure provider has worked with them at least once. This makes them an ideal partner for any project needing federated access to computing resources across Europe, as they bring an unmatched network of operational relationships.

EGI has worked with 535 unique partners across 49 countries, making it one of the most broadly connected organizations in H2020. Their network spans virtually all EU and associated countries, with deep ties to national research and education networks, ESFRI research infrastructures, and major computing centres.

What sets them apart

EGI is not a research performer — it is the operational backbone that connects Europe's distributed computing resources into a single federated platform. No other organization in H2020 occupies this exact position: sitting between national computing centres and the researchers who need their resources, providing the integration layer (service management, identity federation, resource brokering) that makes pan-European computing work. For consortium builders, EGI brings both technical infrastructure and an unmatched rolodex of 535+ partner organizations across 49 countries.

Highlights from their portfolio

• EOSC-hub
  EGI's largest project (EUR 5.5M as coordinator) — the central integration platform for the European Open Science Cloud, defining how research services are managed across Europe.
• EGI-ACE
  Coordinated EUR 2.5M project delivering the EOSC Compute Platform and Data Commons — EGI's most recent flagship, showing their operational role in EOSC.
• C-SCALE
  Connects Copernicus earth observation data to EOSC analytics — demonstrates EGI's expansion from generic computing into domain-specific environmental data services.