SLICES-IP, launched in June 2026 under the Horizon Europe programme, turns years of planning into concrete deployment, bringing SLICES-RI closer to becoming a fully operational European Research Infrastructure Consortium (ERIC)
Digital infrastructures are evolving at an unprecedented pace. The emergence of artificial intelligence, the development of the edge-cloud continuum, the rise of the Internet of Things (IoT), the preparation of 6G networks and the increasing need for sustainable digital technologies are profoundly transforming the way communication networks and distributed systems are designed, interconnected, and operated.
These technological evolutions also make experimentation significantly more challenging. Future digital infrastructures will combine heterogeneous technologies, ranging from wired and wireless communication networks to cloud computing, edge computing, programmable infrastructures, artificial intelligence (AI)-native systems and, in the longer term, quantum technologies. Evaluating such complex ecosystems requires more than simulations or isolated testbeds: researchers and innovators need a large-scale, open and controlled environment where experiments can be reproduced, measured, and compared under realistic conditions.
This is precisely the ambition of SLICES-RI (Scientific Large-scale Infrastructure for Computing/Communication Experimental Studies – Research Infrastructure) — the first European research infrastructure dedicated to large-scale digital experimentation. Included in the ESFRI Roadmap since 2021, SLICES-RI aims to become Europe’s reference platform for experimental research on digital infrastructures and services, providing researchers and industry with access to a unique environment to design, deploy, and validate the next generation of Internet technologies.
Beyond technological experimentation, SLICES-RI also embraces the principles of Open Science by promoting reproducible research, FAIR data management and interoperable services, while integrating environmental and societal considerations throughout the entire experimentation lifecycle.
A long-term European ambition becoming reality
SLICES-RI is not the result of a single European project. It is the outcome of more than a decade of collaborative work involving research organisations across Europe. It also builds upon the extensive experience gained through national and regional experimental platforms that have been developed and operated by researchers across Europe, in some cases for more than two decades. These facilities have provided the scientific, technical, and operational foundations on which SLICES-RI is being constructed.
The development of SLICES-RI can be understood through a sequence of European projects that progressively shaped its vision, community, and implementation framework. Its foundations were established through the Horizon 2020 SLICES-DS project, which defined the scientific vision, technical architecture, and governance options for the future infrastructure. This first phase was followed by SLICES-SC, which focused on building a strong European user community and strengthening relationships with industrial stakeholders.
More recently, the Horizon Europe SLICES-PP project has addressed the major technical, legal, and organisational questions required before launching the infrastructure. Significant progress has already been achieved, including the definition of the reference architecture, governance model, legal framework, and financial mechanisms required for the creation of a European Research Infrastructure Consortium (ERIC).
Most of the preparation work has now been completed. The next challenge is no longer to define what SLICES-RI should become, but to implement it and progressively transform it into a fully operational European research infrastructure.
SLICES-IP: Entering the implementation phase
Running from June 2026 to May 2029 under the Horizon Europe programme, SLICES-IP supports this key transition.
Rather than designing new concepts, the project focuses on turning years of preparation into operational reality.
The overall objective of SLICES-IP is to tackle all key critical questions that delay the entry of SLICES into the operational phase as an ERIC, whether they are legal, financial, political or technical, fostering the commitment of Member States with a strong long-term vision, coordination and cooperation between the central hub and the national nodes.
The project brings together 27 partners from 17 countries, combining expertise in networking, distributed systems, data management, cloud and edge computing, IoT devices, 5G/6G wireless, etc. Together, they will work to consolidate the infrastructure while ensuring its long-term sustainability.
More importantly, SLICES-IP is not only about deploying technical components. It also aims to establish the governance, services and user ecosystem that will enable researchers and innovators across Europe to benefit from the infrastructure for many years.
From infrastructure to services
One of the first priorities of SLICES-IP is to finalise the creation of the SLICES-ERIC.
This involves consolidating Member States’ commitments, implementing a sustainable financial model and finalising the governance mechanisms that will support the infrastructure over the long term. Establishing a common legal framework and harmonised access policies across national nodes will also ensure that users enjoy a coherent European infrastructure rather than a collection of independent experimental platforms.
At the same time, the project will coordinate the deployment of operational services across the distributed infrastructure.
SLICES-RI will offer researchers access to a portfolio of services supporting the complete experimentation lifecycle, from experiment design and resource allocation to execution, monitoring, data management, and reproducibility. Common service blueprints and harmonised operational procedures will guarantee that experiments performed across different national nodes remain comparable and reproducible.
Putting users at the centre
Technology alone does not create a successful research infrastructure; its value ultimately depends on its users.
A major objective of SLICES-IP is therefore to strengthen and expand the European community using SLICES-RI. The project will continuously engage with researchers, industry, SMEs and other stakeholders to better understand their evolving needs and adapt the infrastructure accordingly.
Training will also play a central role. New tutorials, demonstrations, schools and educational resources will help researchers and engineers rapidly adopt the infrastructure and fully exploit its capabilities. A comprehensive catalogue of services will progressively guide users through the available experimentation facilities and support tools.
By lowering the barriers to experimentation, SLICES-RI aims to accelerate innovation while reducing the costs associated with validating emerging digital technologies and bringing them more sustainability.
Building trustworthy and sustainable experimentation
As digital infrastructures become increasingly data-intensive, trustworthiness becomes as important as performance.
SLICES-IP will therefore strengthen the infrastructure’s data management framework by implementing FAIR principles, ensuring regulatory compliance and facilitating interoperability with the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC). Standardised metadata, persistent identifiers and shared data services will improve the reproducibility and long-term reuse of experimental results.
Environmental sustainability also constitutes a core pillar of the project. Rather than considering sustainability as an afterthought, SLICES-IP will integrate environmental indicators throughout the infrastructure lifecycle, from procurement and deployment to operation and decommissioning. New performance indicators will help quantify not only scientific excellence, but also resource consumption, energy efficiency, and broader societal impact.
These efforts reflect the growing expectation that future research infrastructures should contribute simultaneously to scientific progress and to Europe’s sustainability objectives.
Strengthening Europe’s scientific leadership
SLICES-IP also seeks to reinforce Europe’s position within the international digital infrastructure landscape.
The project will develop stronger collaborations with other European research infrastructures and initiatives, while reinforcing links with comparable international facilities. Interoperability with European digital ecosystems and cooperation with global research communities will contribute to establishing SLICES-RI as a reference platform for large-scale experimentation.
Such collaborations are expected to benefit both academia and industry by facilitating international experimentation, sharing best practices, and promoting common approaches for evaluating emerging digital technologies.
Looking ahead
The launch of SLICES-IP marks an important milestone in the long journey towards establishing Europe’s first research infrastructure dedicated to large-scale digital experimentation.
After years devoted to defining the scientific vision, building the community and preparing the organisational framework, the focus now shifts to implementation. Over the coming three years, SLICES-IP will consolidate the technical, legal and operational foundations required for SLICES-RI to become a fully operational European Research Infrastructure.
By providing researchers, innovators and industry with an open, trusted and large-scale experimentation environment, SLICES-RI will help Europe accelerate the development of next-generation digital sovereign infrastructures while reinforcing scientific excellence, technological sovereignty and sustainable innovation.
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