Italy
The Italian node is a joint undertaking of three partners, CNR (the National Research Council), CINI (the National Interuniversity Consortium for Informatics) and CNIT (the National, Inter-University Consortium for Telecommunications). Together, CNR, CINI and CNIT represent the totality of public research on Next Generation Internet at the national level. The SLICES node is supported by the Ministry for University and Research, as one of the key RIs in the areas of post-5G Internet, cloud-continuum, quantum Internet. In this framework, SLICES-ITA is included in the National Research Infrastructure Program (part of the National Research Program) for 2021-27. The Italian node of SLICES focuses primarily on (i) post-5G networks; (ii) edge computing, IoT and XR network technologies; (iii) pervasive AI (iv) quantum Internet. Currently, it is organized as a multi-site infrastructure distributed across the country. Specifically, it already includes the Ubiquitous Internet Lab and the Wireless Networks Labs of CNR in Pisa, and the Smart Radio Environments of CNR in Turin, the Smart Cities National Lab of CINI (with its sites in Bologna and Messina), and the CNIT National Labs on Smart and Secure Networks (Genova). It is a fast-evolving national RI that, thanks to the joint involvement of the three partners, will significantly improve its offer in the framework of the SLICES European partnership.