The implementation phase of the Gaia-X Federation Services (GXFS) has fully started. The contracts have now been awarded as part of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK) project, and in coordination with Gaia-X AISBL (Association internationale sans but lucratif), Implementation partners T-Systems International, DAASI International, BigchainDB, Fraunhofer AISEC, ecsec and XLAB have now started to implement the technical specifications defined last year. The open source code to be developed is available for all to see via the GitLab platform. Specifically, these partners have begun work on the following lots:
- Authentication and authorisation: T-Systems International with Fraunhofer AISEC and Verimi
- Credential management and trust services: consortium with DAASI International and Vereign
- Core catalogue functions, data contract service, data exchange logging: BigchainDB with deltaDAO and Smart Control (pending confirmation)
- Continuous Automated Monitoring: Fraunhofer AISEC
- Notarisation: ecsec with Spherity and msg systems
- Portal: T-Systems International GmbH with Ultra Tendency
- Orchestration: XLAB
The implementation phase is expected to be completed around the middle of the year. Gaia-X Federation Services will be instrumental in linking data and infrastructure ecosystems, bringing to life the federated ecosystem envisioned by Gaia-X. “The Gaia-X Federation Services (GXFS) are an essential part of a functioning Gaia-X ecosystem. Through the development of open-source code for core service functions, GXFS will equip Gaia-X Federations with the toolbox to start to be operational”, Ernst Stöckl-Pukall, Head of Division for Digitalisation and Industry 4.0, German Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Action said. “This is a necessary step to fulfill Gaia-X’s value proposition to bring actors together, to develop the next generation of data infrastructure and shape an open, transparent and secure digital ecosystem. This ultimately fosters digital sovereignty for European industries. The Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action supports the important project and the work being done in the GXFS context.”
GXFS enable innovations for artificial intelligence, smart city and smart mobility
“The Gaia-X project’s open source software modules, which will be available in 2022, will enable innovation based on shared data spaces,” says Andreas Weiss, GXFS project manager and Head of Digital Business Models at eco – Association of the Internet Industry. “In this ecosystem, participants share data and services confidently across sector-specific data spaces. All data and service offerings are transparent and dependencies on individual providers, so-called lock-in effects, are reduced.” Based on open source, GXFS will be available for specialised services of different industries. Use cases include decentralised processing mechanisms for data products and data services at the edge, such as for Smart City or Smart Mobility use cases.”
Foundation for a federated and sovereign data infrastructure
All activities will be continuously coordinated with the Gaia-X AISBL. This also includes continuous communication measures to inform the Gaia-X community and the public about the project progress at any time. For example, informational and other events such as hackathons and workshops are planned. White papers, studies and brochures provide background knowledge. A series of explainer videos are being released to provide a low-threshold information resource for the general public. Furthermore, a blog series about Gaia-X as well as a monthly newsletter keeps interested parties up to date.
Gaia-X blog series launched at https://www.gxfs.eu/category/gaia-x-blog-series/
You can find explanatory videos and a 9-page GXFS white paper at https://www.gxfs.eu/download/1703/
A monthly newsletter provides interested parties with the latest information on GXFS, sign up at https://www.gxfs.eu/newsletter/