An exceptionally active first half of 2026 at ACC Cyfronet AGH

The Cherenkov Telescope Array Observatory (CTAO) aims to build the largest ground-based gamma-ray observatory for very high energies. Cyfronet participates in the "Polish contribution to CTAO-ERIC: production of mirrors and development of IT infrastructure" project and our tasks include designing and coordinating work on the Science Portal within the SUSS group and supporting the creation of dedicated services.

During the HIPEAC26 event, Cyfronet representatives presented the activities of the coordinated National Competence Center in High Performance Computing (EuroCC Poland). Klemens Noga delivered a presentation titled "Polish supercomputer infrastructure for science and industry," inaugurating the industrial session.

The implementation of quantum key distribution (QKD) technology between Cyfronet and the Krakow City Office was completed. The City Office became the first institution connected in this way to a computing center, significantly raising data transmission security standards.

Cyfronet has become a key element of the Polish National Node of the EOSC Federation (European Open Science Cloud), strengthening Poland's role in the European open science system. The initiative brings together research institutions and infrastructure providers, creating a shared environment for collecting, sharing, and processing scientific data.

Katarzyna Z. Starosławska actively shaped the European AI landscape by giving talks during two prestigious events:

• "From Silos to Alliance – AI Factories: How Sovereign AI Builds Europe's Interoperable Future", at the Mobile Trends 2026.
• "AI Sandboxes and AI Factories: Complementary Tools or Parallel Universes?", at the Warsaw AI Seminar.

Cyfronet participated in the launch of the initiative implemented by the Małopolska Region and Innovative Małopolska in collaboration with Startup Academy Poland, supporting the development of the local startup ecosystem.

We concluded the ninth competition for computing grants for scientists from Poland, carried out on the LUMI supercomputer. Based on the results, another 9 Polish projects gained access to the computing power of the supercomputer ranked 11th in the June TOP500 list, strengthening the position of Polish researchers on the international stage.

Director Marek Magryś represented AGH University during the 18th European Economic Congress, speaking on the "Infrastructure for Digitization – AI Factories" panel. Meanwhile, during the SoDA 2026 conference, Katarzyna Z. Starosławska participated in a panel regarding the development of proprietary AI models and data infrastructure in Poland.

We organized the 18th edition of the HPC Users' Conference in Zakopane, which attracted a record number of 220 participants from across the country. The conference became a platform connecting representatives of science, business, and public administration.

During the 7th Polish Artificial Intelligence Conference at the AGH University Faculty of Computer Science, the Director of Cyfronet delivered a presentation titled "Co‑Creating the Future: Poland’s Role in the European Network of AI Factories."

Two novelties were made available in the PLGrid infrastructure:

• LokAI – an AI virtual assistant fully integrated with the computing environment.
• VeloxQ – a Polish solver using algorithms inspired by quantum computing to solve optimization problems, available without the need for a physical quantum computer.

The ceremonial inauguration of Gaia AI Factory took place in the historic Cloth Hall (Sukiennice) – one of the largest investments in AI development in Poland. The project, implemented under the EuroHPC JU initiative, is of strategic importance for Europe's digital sovereignty.

Cyfronet representatives participated in the inauguration of the LUMI AI Factory Hub Ostrava (IT4Innovations, Czech Republic). Patrycja Dąbrowska-Wierzbicka took part in a panel dedicated to the development of the European AI ecosystem.

During the InfoShare conference in Gdańsk, activities related to AI Factories (Gaia AIF and LUMI AIF) were presented. Director Marek Magryś delivered a lecture titled "Poland in the Race for Sovereign AI," emphasizing the importance of supercomputers and language models for business and startups.

The June edition of the prestigious TOP500 ranking included three systems from Cyfronet's infrastructure:

• Helios GPU – 116th place,
• Athena – 305th place,
• Helios CPU – 351st place.

Additionally, Helios was noted at the 8th position on the Green500 list of the most energy-efficient supercomputers in the world.

Cyfronet obtained official accreditation from the Ministry of Development and Technology, joining the group of 27 Innovation Hubs in Poland. This status confirms the highest quality standards in supporting innovation development.

The Centre joined the beneficiaries of the 8th competition of the INFOSTRATEG program, implemented by NCBR in collaboration with the Ministry of Sport and Tourism. The MAPTur project (Intelligent Platform for Monitoring, Analysis, and Prediction of Tourist Traffic in Poland), in which Cyfronet participates as a key partner, received funding of nearly PLN 30 million.

Director Marek Magryś was a special guest at the 25th Małopolska Entrepreneurs Forum, where he presented Cyfronet's role in driving economic innovation using HPC and AI.

Roksana Wilk participated in a Deep-Tech Talks meeting titled "Does Bielik like data? – How to feed LLMs." She delivered a presentation "A system tailored to our data, data tailored to the honor and glory of our system," concerning the design of useful functionalities based on high-quality datasets.

We met with consortium partners at Cyfronet's headquarters and began the implementation of the Gaia AI Factory project.

During the Carpathian Startup Fest in Rzeszów, Cyfronet experts were present at the information booth. Director Marek Magryś delivered a presentation "From Supercomputers to Artificial Intelligence Factories – The Path to Digital Sovereignty," emphasizing the strategic importance of HPC infrastructure for technology development in the region.

Krzysztof Niziołek and Bartosz Fiejdasz participated in the "Startup Secure" meeting, addressing topics of cybersecurity, compliance, and digital resilience.

Cyfronet received a positive TISAX (Trusted Information Security Assessment Exchange) assessment result. This is a global information security standard in the automotive industry, confirming our advanced data protection procedures.

During the ISC High Performance trade fair in Hamburg, the role of Cyfronet and Gaia AI Factory in the European EuroHPC ecosystem was emphasized. The Centre's booth was among the leading technology providers and initiatives related to the development of supercomputers, AI, and Quantum Computing.