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08.10.2024: Consortium Meeting and Sustainability Workshop for the OpenWebSearch (OWS) Project

On October 7th and 8th, 2024, the consortium meeting and sustainability workshop for the OpenWebSearch (OWS) project, part of the Horizon 2020 EU initiative, took place. The workshop was attended by MSc. Khurram Shehzad and MSc. Sreedhar Kokkarachedu (virtually), researchers from the Business Informatics department of the Universität Oldenburg’s Very Large Business Applications (VLBA) group, under the supervision of Prof. Dr.-Ing. habil. Jorge Marx Gómez. The VLBA group participated as a new third-party partner under the NORDLINK project, which had been previously introduced.

The OWS project aims to create an independent and transparent internet search index comparable to Google, supporting services like large language model (LLM) training in AI applications. The project involves collaboration between European universities and major computing centers, such as LRZ and CERN, to handle web crawling and data storage. NORDLINK, as a third-party partner, will provide local data center infrastructure, facilitating future machine learning activities for students and researchers.

The first day focused on status updates from various work packages, presented by partner organizations such as DLR, LRZ, CERN, and Universität Passau, alongside commercial partners involved in application-based activities. NORDLINK, from Universität Oldenburg, was formally introduced as a new third-party partner. This was followed by a sustainability workshop aimed at ensuring the long-term legacy and continuity of the OWS project to benefit students, researchers, and the broader European community.

On second day MSc. Khurram Shehzad, under the supervision of Prof. Dr.-Ing. habil. Jorge Marx Gómez, presented the scope of the NORDLINK project. The presentation highlighted the capabilities of the VLBA group and the facilities that would support the project’s goals, particularly regarding the integration of the Universität Oldenburg’s local data centre with the OWS infrastructure. Following the presentation, technical discussions were held on the integration process, focusing on technologies such as S3 and iRODS.

The two days meeting and workshop concluded with the successful onboarding of third-party partners, including NORDLINK, and discussions on their contributions to the project and future collaboration towards establishing an independent web search infrastructure for Europe.