European Open Science Cloud Advances

The European Open Science Cloud (EOSC) aims to build a 'Web of FAIR Data and Services' to serve Europe's 1.7 million researchers and 70 million science and technology professionals. This initiative creates a unified virtual environment for researchers to publish, find, and reuse data, tools, and services across disciplines and national borders. EOSC operates as a "system of systems" rather than a single centralized platform, connecting existing national and thematic infrastructures known as EOSC Nodes. This federated architecture allows independent organizations to provide EOSC-compliant services while adhering to a common framework for interoperability and governance. The first operational reference node, the EOSC EU Node, was launched in October 2024. This initiative is driven by mandatory EU policy. Open Science practices are a legal obligation under Horizon Europe, the EU's €95.5 billion (2021-2027) research and innovation program, which mandates that research data be "as open as possible, as closed as necessary." Grant recipients must create Data Management Plans to ensure their data is Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable (FAIR). The Science Mesh project (initially CS3MESH4EOSC) provides the federated infrastructure for sync-and-share services within EOSC. It enables key collaborative workflows, such as working on documents across different institutions, remote data analysis, and transferring large datasets between sites. To ensure seamless integration, all nodes must align with the EOSC Interoperability Framework. This framework standardizes core functions like a federated Authentication and Authorization Infrastructure (AAI) for secure login and shared resource catalogues for discovering research products. Governance is managed through a co-programmed partnership between the European Commission and the EOSC Association, which represents the broader stakeholder community. The partnership's direction is outlined in the Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda (SRIA), which informs the Horizon Europe work programmes. The federated model mirrors broader trends in European GovTech, such as Finland's "zero-touch" public services built on the X-Road decentralized data exchange layer. These large-scale digital infrastructures provide patterns for designing interoperable systems that serve complex, multi-stakeholder public sector environments. Future development, guided by the Multi-Annual Roadmap for 2025-2027, is expected to focus on expanding the federation of nodes and upgrading the ecosystem's AI-readiness and machine actionability. However, establishing a sustainable, long-term public funding model beyond project-based grants remains a significant challenge for the initiative's future.