The All-hands Meeting for the EOSC EU Node Contractors was held in Athens on 12–13 May 2026 as a hybrid event, bringing together representatives from the European Commission and contractors involved in the Managed Services for the European Open Science Cloud Platform (EU Node).
Over two days, participants reviewed the status of the EOSC EU Node, reflected the second year of operations, and discussed priorities for the next phase. The first day focused on the EOSC EU Node from the end-user perspective, covering managed services, operational updates, user feedback, usage statistics, documentation, communications, training activities, and the roadmap for upcoming releases.
The operational review highlighted the continued growth of the EOSC EU Node user base during the second year of operations, with more than 5,500 registered users, reflecting greater awareness and adoption across the European research community.
A central part of the meeting was dedicated to preparing for the next phase of the EOSC EU Node, as the current procurement period is expected to end in February 2027. Participants discussed the implications of this transition, including service continuity, handover planning, coordination across lots, and the steps required to ensure the EOSC EU Node continues to support researchers, contributors, and the wider EOSC Federation beyond the current contractual period.
Discussions also addressed the planned development and communication activities, focusing on new and evolving features, training materials, use cases, user uptake, credit policy developments, and support for EC-funded projects. The meeting provided an opportunity to align handover activities, coordination needs, and planning across the different service areas.
Usage indicators presented during the meeting showed a significant increase in the consumption of EOSC EU Node managed services over the past year, reflecting both growing operational maturity and stronger engagement from funded research communities. A snapshot is shown in the visual below:
The growing consumption of managed services highlights the expanding operational role of the EOSC EU Node in supporting researchers, projects, and emerging federation participants across Europe.
The second day focused on the EOSC Federation and contributor support, covering Federation status, Node enrolment, onboarding processes, support tools, Federated AAI, and support mechanisms for Candidate Nodes.
The meeting confirmed the important role of the EOSC EU Node in supporting both researchers and contributors, while also contributing to the broader development of the EOSC Federation. By bringing all contractors together in one forum, the Athens meeting helped ensure shared understanding, coordination, and alignment ahead of the next operational, handover, and federation-support milestones.
After more than two years of hard work and dedication by our contractors, the EOSC EU Node is now demonstrating its growing impact as it entered the third and final year of operations under the current contract. With more than 5,500 registered users, the platform is steadily increasing the consumption of managed services, supported by updated user access policies, new virtual credit allocations, and proactive outreach activities such as Ask Me Anything sessions, dedicated webinars, and engagement with the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) postdoctoral fellowships. While the Commission acknowledges the outstanding efforts of our current contractors, preparations are already underway for the re-procurement of EOSC EU Node services to continue supporting the EOSC community, its researchers, stakeholders, and the emerging EOSC Node candidates.
Peter Szegedi, DG-CNECT
