Organised according to the Hub & Spoke model, the National HPC Centre brought together leading scientific and industrial players across 11 strategic domains, addressing topics ranging from supercomputing and quantum computing to smart cities and emergency management.

Within this framework, Leonardo played an active role in both technological development and governance, also contributing to coordination between industry and academia through the Industrial Advisory Board – which brings together industry representatives to steer the Centre’s activities towards practical and industrial needs.

From Technologies to Use Cases

The Group’s contribution spanned multiple technological and application domains, with a strong focus on integrating HPC infrastructures, data and advanced algorithms. Overall, these activities strengthened infrastructure and high-performance computing capabilities through the adoption of cloud solutions and advanced computing systems supporting research and development.

Another key area involved the management and analysis of large volumes of heterogeneous data, with the creation of data-driven architectures for space applications, Earth observation and the monitoring of complex scenarios, including real-time operations through UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) systems and artificial intelligence algorithms.

In parallel, advanced models and methodologies were developed to simulate and understand complex physical and engineering phenomena, leveraging HPC capabilities to enhance accuracy and predictive performance.

Finally, a strategic area of exploration focused on quantum computing, including studies on optimisation problems and the solution of differential equations, with the aim of assessing new opportunities beyond traditional computing paradigms.

Taken together, these activities outline a contribution centred on enabling technologies and concrete use cases, with impact across space, industrial, environmental and security domains.

Value Generated

The project represents a tangible example of how synergy between industry and research can generate high-impact innovation, with direct benefits for security, sustainability and digital transformation. In addition to strengthening internal expertise in emerging technologies, Leonardo’s contribution enabled the development of innovative solutions in strategic areas and reinforced collaboration with universities and research centres.

The National HPC Centre is a strategic initiative funded by the Italian Ministry of University and Research (MUR) through Directorial Decree No. 3138 of 16/12/2021, within the framework of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR) – Mission 4, Component 2, Investment 1.4 “Strengthening research infrastructures and creating ‘national R&D champions’ in selected Key Enabling Technologies”, and by the European Union through the NextGenerationEU fund. It involved a total of 13 Leonardo personnel across the sites of Genoa, Rome and Varese, with a total budget of €1,178,000 and expected funding from the MUR covering 50% of eligible costs.