IPCEI-CIS — the Important Project of Common European Interest on the Next Generation Cloud Infrastructure and Services — brings together 12 EU Member States and around 120 industry and research partners to build the foundation of a sovereign, sustainable cloud-edge continuum. Two initiatives support this common effort, each with a distinct mandate: 8ra aligns the IPCEI-CIS projects and creates the framework for their continuation and extension beyond the IPCEI-CIS duration, while CISERO facilitates the adoption and exploitation of IPCEI-CIS results, enhances collaboration, and fosters a strong community of practice.
Two Roles, One Continuum
8ra is the technological and governance umbrella of the Multi-Provider Cloud-Edge Continuum: it defines the reference architecture, the open source foundation, and the common governance model that will carry the ecosystem forward after IPCEI-CIS state aid ends. It is structured around four workstreams — cloud-edge infrastructure, cloud-edge capabilities, advanced data processing and tools, and advanced applications — plus two cross-cutting workstreams on security and sustainability.
CISERO complements this by acting as the exploitation office: rather than building the technical architecture itself, it ensures that the 110+ IPCEI-CIS projects reach visibility, adoption, and uptake. Its tools within the Platform — the Interactive Map, the Marketplace, the OSS Discovery Point, PartnerLink and others— exist to connect IPCEI-CIS participants and external stakeholders with 8ra's technological outputs and with each other.
A Shared Mission, Reinforced by Structure
Both initiatives share the same ultimate goal: a resilient, open, and sovereign European cloud-edge infrastructure. This shared mission translates into structural alignment — CISERO's roadmap and community-building work take the 8ra structure and EU policy goals as direct inputs, and CISERO's governance-support activities are designed to complement 8ra's own principle of common governance mandated by the community. Both also converge on cross-cutting priorities such as sustainability and security, and both actively grow their partner ecosystems to welcome new Member States and industrial partners under a shared mission and values.
Working Together, at Every Governance Level
CISERO and 8ra maintain direct exchange across the governance structures that steer IPCEI-CIS, ensuring coordination and strategic alignment:
Facilitation Group: Since February 2025, CISERO (through DLR-PT) has held a monthly meeting with the IPCEI-CIS Facilitation Group and Coordination Office, acting as the primary contact bridging CISERO and the governance bodies that also steer 8ra's direction.
General Assembly: CISERO co-organised the 8ra Annual Summit in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, in March 2026, following the inaugural Assembly in Gdańsk, Poland, in March 2025. The two initiatives are now jointly organising the next General Assembly, to be held in France in 2027.
Communication coordination: CISERO's Communication Office holds a monthly meeting dedicated specifically to coordinating with 8ra Communication Office, ensuring consistent messaging across both initiatives.
- Masterplan exchange: CISERO exchanges regularly with the Project Management Office to maintain an overview of relevant results and milestones across IPCEI-CIS projects — information that feeds directly into 8ra's own roadmap and reference architecture updates.
Join the Movement
Both initiatives welcome all who share their vision for a resilient, open, and sovereign European digital infrastructure — from national authorities, private companies to individual research teams.
Join the 8ra Community: 8ra is opening its ecosystem to new partners across Europe — organisations bringing technologies, infrastructure, use cases, or open-source expertise can express their interest at https://www.8ra.com/expression-of-interest-join-the-8ra-ecosystem/
- Join the CISERO Platform: Register to discover trusted solutions ready to use, learn from what others have already built, and connect with the right partners to shape what comes next for the IPCEI-CIS community at https://cisero-project.eu/user/register
Together, these two entry points ensure that every stakeholder has a place to contribute to Europe's sovereign cloud-edge continuum.