Next Generation Internet is an initiative supported by the EU as part of the Digital Decade framework to re-imagine and re-engineer the Internet for the third millennium and beyond. To-date, an ecosystem of projects have been funded by the European Commission to bring this concept to reality.
NGI Transoceanic encapsulates the EU - USA element of this global vision by bringing together the NGI communities of the EU and USA. It builds upon the successful NGIAtlantic.eu project, which ran from Jan 2020 - February 2023, where a strong and consolidated EU and USA ecosystem has been created with 35 funded projects on NGI topics. To achieve this, NGI Transoceanic aims to launch three open calls for funding related to common priority topics of mutual benefit derived from within the EU’s NGI related projects and initiatives and counterpart USA's related programmes. To support prospective applicants in their matchmaking efforts to support their proposal, NGI TRANSOCEANIC will expand and continue to offer the EU-USA NGI Twinning Lab.
The project addresses a wide range of NGI topics including trust and privacy enhancing technologies, data sharing and portability, sustainable and climate friendly internet, electronic identities, internet architecture renovation and decentralised technologies:
- Trust and privacy enhancing technologies: Related to the development of robust and easy to use technologies to help users gain improved trust and greater control when sharing their personal data, attributes and information.
- Data sharing and portability: Address the challenge of personal data portability on the internet as foreseen under the General Data Protection Regulation and the data porting and service provider switching as foreseen in the proposed free flow of non-personal data regulation.
- Sustainable and climate friendly internet: Innovative internet technologies and transparency mechanisms shown to fight against the climate change with significant improvement of energy efficiency, carry out measurements to create awareness of environmental impact of the Internet, and promotion of technologies that help reduce the energy consumption and carbon emission.
- Electronic identities: Aims to advance the broad uptake of next generation, open and trusted digital identity solutions for trustworthy, faster and safer electronic transactions via the Internet, as well as in real life. Within NGI, there has been two topics addressing electronic identities, including Discovery and identification technologies and Strengthening internet trustworthiness with electronic identities.
- Internet architecture (renovation): Focusing on upgrading the open Internet architecture to increase performance of the network, adapt it to new application requirements, improve quality of service, make it more resistant to threats, and more energy efficient.
- Decentralised technologies: Addressing decentralised technologies, such as blockchain and distributed ledger technology, another key component of the NGI initiative as they have the potential to enable more decentralised, trusted, user-centric digital services, and stimulate new business models benefiting society and the economy as stressed by the European Parliament resolution on the topic.
Three types of projects are foreseen to be funded under the topics above such as advanced technology developments, joint demonstrators, and joint contribution to global standards.
Timeline
- Q1 2024: Launch of the improved EU-USA Twinning Lab
- Q2-Q3 2024: Planned launch, evaluation and selection for the 1st Open Call
- Q1-Q2 2025: Planned launch, evaluation and selection for the 2nd Open Call
- Q4 2025-Q1 2026: Planned launch, evaluation and selection for the 3rd Open Call
- Q1 2026: Launch of the Funded Projects Showcase
- Q4 2027: Final Conference
Consortium
- South East Technological University
SETU is the project coordinator and the innovation and quality manager of NGI TRANSOCEANIC. In addition to project coordination leader, SETU will lead tasks as part of the work package on “EU-USA Community Engagement, Outreach and Dissemination”, specifically the tasks towards “Technology, Research and Standards Communities” and “Funding Communities”. SETU will lead the work on “Open Calls Management and Third-party Projects”. They will be responsible for the onboarding and finance management process of the open call projects, and coordinating the technical supervision of open call priorities, projects, monitoring and coaching. Finally, within the work package on “Results Exploitation, Impact Assessment, Standards, and Legacy”, SETU will be involved in the “Exploitation Planning and Strategy” and “Contribution to Standards and Lasting Legacy” tasks.
- Trust-IT Services
TRUST-IT is the work package on “EU-USA Community Engagement, Outreach and Dissemination”, which is dedicated to communication, concertation and community development and identifying and gathering the NGI TRANSOCEANIC stakeholder engagement strategy and market approach and sustainability activities. TRUST-IT’s portfolio includes designing and implementing open calls, online marketing communication plans, social media campaigns, mobile apps for research & industrial communities, SEO and copywriting as well as layout and content solutions for advanced web platforms. TRUST-IT has experience in developing open calls (www.standict.eu, www.hsbooster.eu), and will lead related tasks within the work package on “Open Calls Management and Third-party Projects”.
TRUST-IT contributes to all tasks of the work package on “Results Exploitation, Impact Assessment, Standards, and Legacy” taking lead roles in “Showcasing project outcomes portfolio” and “Contribution to Standards and Lasting Legacy”.
- COMMpla
COMMpla leads the comprehensive development of both the website and of the grants platform, overseeing the entire process from inception to completion in order to ensure that these systems are aligned with the specified objectives and facilitate a smooth management and processing of applications for open calls. In addition, COMMpla will perform the digital and technological activities (maintenance of the website, social media etc) related to the dissemination and communication of NGI TRANSOCEANIC results.
- EURESCOM
EURESCOM brings their expertise to the work package on “Open Calls Management and Third-party Projects” leading the task on “Third-party Projects Technical Supervision and Coaching" and “Third-party Projects Reports / Outcomes”.
- Rutgers University
As an Associated partner of NGI TRANSOCEANIC, RUTGERS will carry out promotional and dissemination activities for the project.
- University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
As an Associated partner of NGI TRANSOCEANIC, UNC-Chapel Hill, RENCI will carry out dissemination and promotional activities for the project.