TASK Quarterly

Introduction

Beata Krawczyk-Bryłka — Mon, 12 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0100

The introduction for the collection of articles.

EuroHPC Joint Undertaking resources for Polish researchers

Marta Maj; Miłosz Ciżnicki — Mon, 12 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0100

This article explores the opportunities available to Polish researchers thanks to access to the EuroHPC Joint Undertaking supercomputers. The EuroHPC JU initiative aims to create a unified high-performance computing (HPC) infrastructure across Europe, offering researchers access to powerful computational resources for scientific and industrial advancements. Polish researchers benefit from this initiative, gaining access to supercomputing resources to support all fields of science, industry, and the public sector.

The article details the various types of EuroHPC JU access calls, including Extreme Scale Access calls for high-impact and high-gain innovative research, Regular Access calls for scientific innovation in respective domains, Development Access calls for code and algorithm development and optimization, Benchmark Access calls for code scalability or AI applications testing, and, leveraging the AI Factories network, the AI and Data-Intensive Applications Access call for ethical artificial intelligence, machine learning, and data-intensive applications.

In particular, the article describes additional ways to get access to LUMI, one of the fastest supercomputers in Europe, provided via the PLGrid portal thanks to Poland’s participation in the LUMI consortium.

The National Competence Centre in HPC – Supporting Science and Business

Sylwia Mech, Agata Grzelińska — Mon, 12 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0100

High-performance computing (HPC) has become a foundation for cutting-edge discovery and industrial innovation in Europe. The European High-Performance Computing Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC JU) funds and coordinates a continent-wide ecosystem of world-class systems, HPC software, skills, and services. Within this ecosystem, the National Competence Centre in HPC (NCC) in Poland consolidates the potential of six leading computing centers to serve researchers, enterprises - including SMEs - and public administration. This article introduces the strategic rationale of EuroHPC and the EuroCC program, explains how the Polish NCC is organized and funded, details its service portfolio, and documents representative scientific and industrial use cases. We conclude with forward-looking remarks on data-intensive research, and the role of competence centers in ensuring that compute power translates into measurable impact.

Coopetition as a model of cooperation in the Polish National Competence Center

Beata Krawczyk-Bryłka — Mon, 12 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0100

Coopetition is a strategy of cooperation between competing entities, with the primary goal of jointly creating value. The positive effects of coopetition may relate to costs, risks, economies of scale, research and development activities, as well as access to external knowledge and resources. Coopetition supports increased competitive advantage because it enables the creation of products and services that partners could not develop independently.

The Polish National Competence Center (NCC) operates based on five independent supercomputing centers. This article presents the results of research confirming that the established collaboration is characterized by coopetition. The centers cooperate within the EuroCC project to form the Polish NCC, supporting one another in achieving the project's goals. The cooperation meets three primary conditions of coopetition: mutual dependence, mutual interests, and mutual benefits. It brings specific advantages such as increased innovation, shared competencies and resources, and enhanced competitiveness in the Polish market through joint marketing and training activities.

High Performance Computing - a gentle introduction for non-specialists

Arkadiusz Ćwiek, Tomasz Fruboes, Piotr Prusiński; Piotr Wasiuk — Mon, 12 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0100

High-performance computing (HPC) is a field of computer science focused on the use of highly efficient computer systems to perform complex calculations in a short time. In the article, we present the basic principles of HPC and explain how systems based on parallel computational architectures allow for the performance of multiple concurrent calculations. HPC technologies are crucial in various areas such as scientific research, industry, engineering, and data analysis.
Applications include (but are not limited to) physics simulations, genome analyses, climate change forecasting or artificial intelligence research. The article also discusses the main building blocks of the HPC environment, such as supercomputers or software allowing parallel calculations and analyses of large data volumes. The main HPC challenges, including cost, scalability, and the need for specialist technical knowledge, are also considered. This article aims to present the reader with an overview of what HPC is, how it works, and what its current role is.

How Supercomputing Technology Can Be a Game-Changer for SMEs

Beata Krawczyk-Bryłka, Patrycja Dąbrowska-Wierzbicka — Mon, 12 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0100

For many entrepreneurs, the terms "supercomputers" or "High-Performance Computing" are primarily associated with academic institutions, theoretical research, or complex graphs understood only by a small group of experts. Some may also link them with services offered by Google or Amazon to businesses, but "available only to those with large budgets."

This publication aims to demonstrate that supercomputers are increasingly becoming a part of the business landscape, and not necessarily just for the big companies. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), as well as startups, can successfully benefit from them.

By combining a clear explanation of supercomputer capabilities with real-life case studies, the article aims to convince entrepreneurs that HPC is no longer a niche technology, but a real game-changer for SMEs across diverse sectors of the economy. We will discuss:

how the use of supercomputers can create a unique value proposition and expand the customer base,
how machine learning and generative AI can scale up business,
the path to financing access to supercomputers in Europe.

In this paper, we will present two paths for applying for grants: one for entrepreneurs with no prior experience in HPC, and another for those looking to use supercomputers at a more advanced level. We will also provide essential information on the application process, key participation requirements, and the grant application schedule.

Building HPC Expertise: Training Initiatives of the Polish National Competence Centre

Joanna Jędraszczyk, Michał Hermanowicz — Mon, 12 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0100

The EuroCC is a flagship project of the EuroHPC initiative intended to establish a network of National Competence Centers (NCCs) across participating member states. The Polish NCC has been dedicated to advancing skill sets and technical expertise in high-performance computing (HPC) among a broad user community. This work highlights NCC's main competence building efforts, their
impact, and significance within the national HPC landscape.