AI in focus as ADS Lab at Umeå University brought together 100 experts in cloud research

AI in focus as ADS Lab at Umeå University brought together 100 experts in cloud research

The Autonomous Distributed Systems Lab research group at Umeå University focuses on the automated management of clouds and their building blocks, striving to make this technology efficient and secure.

"We develop systems for managing applications and resources, everything from individual servers to large-scale cloud data centres, ensuring that processes run optimally and so that the services running in the cloud are as accessible and reliable as possible, whilst minimising energy consumption," says Professor Erik Elmroth, who established the successful research group.

Gathering Tech

Every year, experts from academia and industry are invited to share experiences and develop partnerships. This year's event, The 19th Cloud Control Workshop, was attended by 30 industry representatives. These included Google, Microsoft, Red Hat, Ericsson, IBM, Databricks, OpenChip, Siemens, and Saab, as well as the Umeå-based company Elastisys.

During those intensive days, the latest developments in autonomous cloud control, distributed systems, and machine learning were discussed.

Changing design and application

"The discussions centred on the rapid developments currently taking place, driven by large language models and AI agents," says Prof. Erik Elmroth.
This is a process that poses challenges to areas central to research into Cloud Control.
"On the one hand, we will see changes in how we build systems, design infrastructure, and develop software. On the other hand, AI applications are placing new demands on what the cloud must deliver."

Leading researchers from top universities

Some of the world's most prominent universities were represented with nearly 40 professors from institutions such as Harvard, Cambridge, and Carnegie Mellon attended, as did representatives from Umeå University, the Royal Institute of Technology and Lund University.

Nearly forty professors from some of the world's most prestigious universities - including Harvard, Cambridge, and Carnegie Mellon - were in attendance, alongside representatives from Umeå University, the Royal Institute of Technology, (KTH), and Lund University.

Several participants are also affiliated with WASP, the Wallenberg AI, Autonomous Distributed Systems and Software Program - Sweden's largest research programme, in which Umeå University plays a key role.

"Meeting in this way, alongside the business community and industry, adds a further dimension of knowledge and experience for us," says Erik Elmroth.

Energy, security and digital sovereignty

The event also highlighted key issues relating to electricity consumption and security, topics that have only grown in relevance in recent years.

"We need to find ways forward and define which types of research problems academia is best placed to solve, and which issues industry should focus on", says Prof. Elmroth.

"For Sweden and the EU, it is also becoming increasingly clear that it is important to continue building our own expertise in this area and not simply rely on a handful of large American companies. Although this was the 19th time the workshop had been organised, several participants remarked that it is now, in fact, more important than ever," says Professor Elmroth.
Planning for the 20th edition is already underway!

Computing Science at Umeå University

The Department of Computing Science at Umeå University has grown at record pace in recent years, with an influx of international top researchers from around the world. This has strengthened not only the research being carried out, but also the content and quality of the education on offer.

In Umeå, students can specialise in distributed systems and cloud services, as well as AI, cyber security, interactive and intelligent environments, and robotics.

The Department of computing science is also linked to WASP, Sweden's largest research programme, and WASP-HS, which focuses on the consequences and effects of AI, as well as eSSENCE and HPC2N, a national center for Scientific and Parallel Computing.

Further Information

Please contact Erik Elmroth, Professor at the Department of computing science for further information about ADS Lab.

Follow the links below and read more about our research and study opportunities.