ELASTIC Plenary Meeting in Ghent: Advancing Towards M12 Milestones

The ELASTIC consortium gathered in Ghent, Belgium, on February 6-7, 2025, for its M12 Plenary Meeting, hosted by IMEC. Over two days, partners reviewed progress, aligned on upcoming milestones, and discussed technical developments across work packages. The meeting served as a platform for evaluating project advancements, addressing challenges, and refining strategies for the next phases.

Architecture and Pilots

A major focus of the discussions was the ELASTIC architecture, including its tools, services, and intra/inter-component communication. Project partners examined how the infrastructure will be adapted for real-world use cases, ensuring a seamless integration with the two pilot projects.

  • Pilot 1 is dedicated to developing an IoT data fabric as part of 6G infrastructure, with discussions covering task objectives, infrastructure requirements, and refinements in use cases.
  • Pilot 2 focuses on a privacy-preserving confidential computing platform, designed to support the migration of sensitive IT services to the cloud securely.

Technical Advancements

Technical developments were at the core of the meeting, with discussions centered around workload orchestration, serverless execution, and confidential computing. Key advancements included:

  • WebAssembly (WASM), eBPF, and Trusted Execution Environments (TEEs) as fundamental technologies for secure and portable execution.
  • Function-as-a-Service (FaaS) architecture to support serverless execution with low-latency processing.
  • Privacy-preserving computation and remote attestation mechanisms to enhance security and efficiency.

Each work package leader provided updates on achievements, upcoming deliverables, and potential challenges, ensuring that technical progress aligns with project objectives.

Demonstrators and Validation

The meeting included an in-depth session on ELASTIC demonstrators and validation processes. Project partners reviewed infrastructure requirements, datasets, and expected outcomes for pilot implementation. The discussion reinforced the roadmap for testing and validation, ensuring that ELASTIC’s solutions are effectively deployed and evaluated.

Dissemination, Standardization, and Exploitation

The consortium refined its communication, standardization, and exploitation strategy, focusing on:

  • Engagement with industry stakeholders to maximize impact.
  • Upcoming dissemination efforts to share results with the broader research and technology community.
  • Intellectual property management and innovation strategy to ensure long-term sustainability.

Project Coordination and Next Steps

Project management discussions covered financial planning, quality assurance, and risk mitigation, ensuring smooth execution of the next phases. The meeting concluded with a structured plan for the next six months, outlining key priorities and milestones.