ALICE welcomes CEI-Sphere to the ALICE Liaison Programme

Building on the outcomes of Europe’s Large-Scale Pilots (LSPs), particularly O-CEI and COP-PILOT, the project promotes interoperability, market uptake and collaboration across the Cloud-Edge-IoT continuum. Through its innovative “Spheres” approach, CEI-Sphere clusters use cases and stakeholders around common challenges and opportunities, helping transform technological innovation into scalable and deployable solutions. 

The project contributes to Europe’s ambition to strengthen digital sovereignty through open standards, federated architectures and reusable digital building blocks that can support innovation across strategic industrial sectors. 

Key objectives 

CEI-Sphere aims to accelerate the development and deployment of Cloud-Edge-IoT technologies through several key objectives: 

• support Europe’s Large-Scale Pilots by facilitating collaboration, knowledge exchange and market uptake 
• promote interoperability and standardisation through common frameworks, Minimum Interoperability Mechanisms (MiMs) and open architectures 
• establish collaborative Spheres focused on Energy and Infrastructure Resilience, Mobility, Logistics and Software-Defined Vehicles, and Industrial Optimisation and Productivity 
• connect technology providers, industry stakeholders, research organisations and policymakers across the Cloud-Edge-IoT ecosystem 
• develop tools, frameworks and recommendations that support scalable deployment of CEI solutions 
• strengthen Europe’s competitiveness and strategic autonomy through open and interoperable digital infrastructures 

These activities aim to reduce fragmentation, improve collaboration and accelerate the transition from research and innovation to large-scale deployment. 

Relevance to ALICE and expected collaboration 

CEI-Sphere is highly relevant to ALICE priorities related to digitalisation, interoperability, data sharing and the deployment of innovative technologies supporting logistics and supply chain operations. 

Particularly relevant is the project’s Mobility, Logistics and Software-Defined Vehicles Sphere, which brings together stakeholders working on digital solutions for mobility and freight transport. The Sphere explores how Cloud-Edge-IoT technologies can support connected logistics operations, real-time decision-making, intelligent transport systems and more efficient freight flows. More information about the activities and objectives of the Mobility Sphere is available here. (Mobility Sphere)

The project’s focus on interoperability, standards and collaboration also aligns closely with ALICE’s vision for the Physical Internet, where digital and physical networks work together to enable more connected, efficient and resilient logistics systems. 

Through the ALICE Liaison Programme, CEI-Sphere will have opportunities to engage with ALICE members, share project results, participate in thematic activities and contribute to discussions on digital transformation, data spaces, automation and future logistics ecosystems. 

Critical elements and innovation 

A key innovation of CEI-Sphere is its ecosystem-driven approach to scaling Cloud-Edge-IoT solutions. 

Rather than focusing on individual technologies, the project addresses the broader ecosystem required for successful deployment, connecting technology development, interoperability frameworks, market needs and policy priorities. 

The project combines several critical components: 

• collaborative Spheres that cluster use cases and stakeholders around shared challenges 
• Task Forces addressing open-source technologies, architecture, standardisation, market uptake and stakeholder engagement 
• interoperability frameworks and Minimum Interoperability Mechanisms supporting cross-sector adoption 
• ecosystem mapping and use-case catalogues that connect innovation supply with market demand 
• the Hourglass Model, a framework that helps stakeholders understand dependencies, capabilities and opportunities across the European Cloud-Edge-IoT ecosystem 

By connecting technology development with market deployment and policy frameworks, CEI-Sphere aims to create the conditions for large-scale adoption of Cloud-Edge-IoT solutions across Europe. 

For the logistics sector, this creates opportunities to strengthen digital connectivity, improve interoperability between systems, support real-time operations and accelerate the deployment of next-generation digital logistics services. 

Visit the project’s website: https://ceisphere.eu/