The RI-SCALE project was officially launched with a face-to-face technical kickoff meeting held from 11–13 March 2025 at Amsterdam Science Park, hosted by the EGI Foundation. The meeting brought together over 40 representatives from all project partners and associated entities, laying the foundation for collaboration over the next three years.
Updated 09/05/2025
RI-SCALE Project Launches with 3-Day Kick-off in Amsterdam
Key Highlights
The event began with a project overview and roundtable of partner introductions. This was followed by a showcase of scientific and technological validation use cases, demonstrating how RI-SCALE will support cutting-edge research and innovation across domains.
Scientific Use Cases
These use cases are designed to demonstrate how RI-SCALE will accelerate scientific discovery through scalable and interoperable digital infrastructures:
- Climate Risk & Agriculture (ENES/CMCC): High-resolution downscaling of climate scenarios for identifying long-term trends affecting agricultural resilience.
- Anomaly Detection in Climate Data (ENES/CMCC): Intelligent systems for identifying irregularities in the usage of climate datasets.
- Radar Observations & Experiments (EISCAT): Smart scheduling of atmospheric and ionospheric observations to optimise instrument usage.
- Space Debris Monitoring (EISCAT): Detection of space debris and orbital anomalies to support satellite safety and sustainability.
- Colorectal Cancer Prediction (MUG): Use of explainable AI to enhance early detection of cancer based on clinical data.
- Synthetic Data for Pathology (MUG): Generating synthetic biomedical images to train and validate AI models in computational pathology.
- Foundational Models for Bioimaging (EBI): Leveraging foundational AI models to analyse complex, heterogeneous biological imaging data.
- AI Assistant for Data Discovery (KTH): A generative AI-powered assistant to support users in navigating and exploiting large-scale research data.
Technological Use Cases
These use cases focus on the technical enablers needed to deliver RI-SCALE services effectively at scale:
- EuroHPC Scalability (ECMWF): Testing integration with EuroHPC through Destination Earth workflows for climate modelling.
- Image Compression (MUG, COM): Exploring efficient image compression techniques to improve storage and transfer of large scientific datasets.
- Green Computing (TUW, FRA, MUG): Evaluating sustainable computing methods to reduce the environmental footprint of research infrastructures.
- Credit Management System (EGI, GRNET, TUBITAK, TUW): Designing a federated credit and accounting system to enable fair and transparent access across services.
Technical Planning and Roadmap
The second day featured an in-depth Competence Centre workshop, where project partners discussed the architectural and technological building blocks of RI-SCALE’s Data Exploitation Platforms (DEP). Topics included:
- Data lifecycle and storage technologies (CERN, CMCC)
- AI workflows and model integration (Juelich, KTH)
- Access management and interoperability (GRNET, EGI, INFN)
- Technology synergies from EUCAIM, Copernicus, DestinE, and more
Looking Ahead
The final sessions focused on maximising project impact through communication and collaboration, aligning with related initiatives, and outlining the milestones and deliverables for the first six months.
The kickoff meeting successfully set the direction and momentum for the RI-SCALE project, fostering a shared understanding and strong collaboration framework among all partners.