Support to young researchers from the Faculty of Electrical Engineering

The NCC Montenegro team at the University of Montenegro (UoM) regularly meets and collaborates with various research groups within the university. In this way, they stay updated on new research projects, emerging research directions, and especially the topics pursued by young researchers. As a result, the need for high-performance computing (HPC) resources has been identified for the master’s research conducted by two research assistants at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, UoM, led by Assistant professor Miloš Brajović.

Their research deals with Graph Neural Networks (GNNs), with a particular focus on data representation, interpretability and scalability for complex scientific datasets. GNNs have demonstrated remarkable potential in modeling relational and structured data across various domains, including physics, chemistry, biology and computer vision. However, despite their predictive power, their “black-box” nature poses challenges in terms of explainability and trustworthiness, especially in critical applications such as scientific discovery and engineering.

Successful submission for EuroHPC call

To benchmarking state-of-the-art GNN architectures, evaluate their performance and scalability, and develop and test new GNN models and interpretability techniques for graph-based applications, these two researchers will require access to HPC resources. Therefore, the NCC Montenegro team supported them in preparing and submitting an application for the Development call to gain access to the Leonardo HPC. As a result, they got access to the Leonardo Booster partition, securing 4,500 node hours for their research.

Master Thesis Defense: Development of Edge/AI Applications with HPC Support

Mr. Elvis Taruh successfully defended his master’s thesis titled “Development of Edge/AI Applications with HPC” at the Faculty of Information Systems and Technologies, University of Donja Gorica.

Mr Elvis Taruh

ABSTRACT – The efficiency of training artificial intelligence (AI) models has become a crucial factor in modern research, especially when dealing with complex systems that require substanial computational power. This study explores how the application of high-performance computing (HPC) and Edge devices can optimize the AI model training process, reducing processing time and improving efficiency. Through an experimental approach, AI model training was analyzed across three different platforms. Local computer, Google Colab and the HPC cluster at the University of Donja Gorica. As a practical example, livestock detection was used. By comparing the training time, memory consumption, and model accuracy, the research demonstrates that HPC clusters significantly accelerate the training process compared to traditional methods, while Edge devices enable faster real-time data analysis.

There was around 30 people attending. This was a small celebration for EuroCC2 and EuroCC4SEE projects

Master Thesis Defense: AI Tutors with LLMs and HPC

Mr. Arnad Lekić successfully defended his master’s thesis titled “Development of an AI Tutor Using Large Language Models and HPC” at the Faculty of Information Systems and Technologies, University of Donja Gorica.

Mr Arnad Lekic

ABSTRACT – This thesis explores the development of a personalized AI tutor using large language models (LLMs), with a specific focus on the LLaMA architecture and the application of High-Performance Computing (HPC) resources. The research involves the acquisition, setup, and evaluation of an open-source LLaMA model, with the goal of building a system capable of automated test grading. Special emphasis is placed on the training efficiency and feasibility of running the model locally using the available computing nodes, compared to cloud-based solutions like Google Colab. Beyond the technical implementation, the study also addresses the ethical challenges of using generative AI in education. Through experimental analysis, the research demonstrates that open models can be effectively adapted for educational purposes, with the potential to expand to grading diverse exam formats and generating educational content. The work provides directions for future development of systems leveraging advanced multimodal models for more complex tasks.

The defence was attended by over 30 people. We had three candidates that day, all in the context of EuroCC2 and EuroCC4SEE

Master Thesis Defense: HPC and AI for Education Enhancement

Ms. Enisa Trubljanin successfully defended her master’s thesis titled “Deep Learning with Application in Education” at the Faculty of Information Systems and Technologies, University of Donja Gorica. The development and testing of these solutions were supported by high-performance computing (HPC) resources provided through the EuroCC initiative in Montenegro.

Ms. Enisa Trubljanin

ABSTRACT – This master’s thesis explores the potential application of deep learning in education through the development and evaluation of two concrete solutions: an intelligent chatbot for solving matrix problems and a model for detecting cheating during online exams by analyzing eye movement. The first part of the thesis provides a theoretical foundation of deep learning, with a focus on neural networks, their architectures, transfer learning, and evaluation metrics. The practical part presents the development of a chatbot based on advanced language and mathematical models, implemented using high-performance computing cluster resources, enabling students to engage in interactive mathematics learning. Additionally, a model for detecting cheating through gaze analysis was developed, trained on the Columbia Gaze Dataset, and integrated into an online exam proctoring system. Evaluation results demonstrate a high level of accuracy and user satisfaction for both solutions. Beyond the technical aspects, the thesis also addresses ethical issues and privacy concerns related to the use of artificial intelligence in educational settings. Based on the findings, the study highlights the broad range of potential applications of deep learning in modern educational systems.

There was three great candidates on the same day!

Technical support to ITAS in preparation of application for Development call

ITAS is in the implementation phase of the project “AI system for pathological analysis of adenocarcinoma (PathAI)”, co-financed by the Innovation Fund of Montenegro, when processing the collected images requires GPU resources that exceed locally available resources, so the application to the EuroHPC JU Development call was recognized as the optimal solution. To this end, the Director of ITAS, Ivan Bošković, requested assistance from the NCC Montenegro team in preparing the application.

Prof. Enis Kočan, a member of the NCC Montenegro team, visited ITAS on Tuesday, June 24, and provided all the information and technical details necessary for preparing the application to the EuroHPC JU Development call. ITAS will apply for the necessary GPU resources to the Development call by the end of June.

prof. Enis Kocan (UCG) and mr Ivan Boscovic (ITAS)

In addition, during the meeting, other projects that ITAS is currently working on were discussed, as well as possibilities for cooperation with the NCC Montenegro team. Prof. Enis Kočan presented to Director Bošković the second open Fortissimo plus call for Business Experiments, intended for small and medium-sized enterprises.

Two Montenegrin SMEs Secure EuroHPC Access for AI-Powered HR

We are pleased to announce that two Montenegrin SMEs, Recrewty and DigitalSmart, have been awarded access to the Leonardo Booster at CINECA, one of Europe’s most powerful high-performance computing (HPC) systems. The access is granted under the EuroHPC JU Development Call, providing 12 months of HPC resources to support advanced AI development and innovation.

The awarded project, HPC4HR – High-Performance Computing for Human Resources, aims to revolutionize recruitment processes in the Western Balkans through the integration of generative AI (GenAI) and HPC technologies. The project focuses on analyzing multimodal data—text, audio, and video—from candidate applications to enable efficient, unbiased, and culturally sensitive hiring processes. The HPC resources will be used in support to their joint FFPlus project GenAI-HPC4WB (link).

The GenAI-HPC4WB project combines GenAI, ML, and HPC to optimize hiring processes and enhance business culture in the Balkan region

To achieve this, the project will leverage cutting-edge AI models such as LLaMA 3.x, Mistral, Wav2Vec 2.x, Whisper, FaceNet, and DeepFace, all fine-tuned using HPC resources at CINECA. These models will be developed to evaluate resumes, analyze psychometric traits from audio recordings, and interpret emotional and behavioral cues from HR data. By utilizing HPC, the project ensures scalability and processing speed, enabling large datasets to be handled efficiently, significantly shortening recruitment cycles and improving candidate matching. In addition to enhancing operational efficiency, HPC4HR emphasizes ethical AI development, aiming to reduce biases in recruitment and promote diversity and inclusion. The expected outcomes include a set of adaptable, high-performance AI tools that set new standards for digital transformation in human resources, applicable across industries and geographies.

Leonardo Booster partition will be used in this project

The success of Recrewty and DigitalSmart reflects the growing impact of NCC Montenegro in strengthening the national HPC and AI ecosystem. By supporting companies in accessing leading European HPC infrastructure, NCC Montenegro continues to drive digital innovation, competitiveness, and technological excellence in the region.

FIST at UDG Wins EuroHPC JU Grant for HPC-Powered Research Development

The Faculty for Information Systems and Technologies (FIST) at the University of Donja Gorica (UDG) has been awarded a prestigious grant through the EuroHPC Joint Undertaking Open Call, marking a significant milestone for Montenegrin academic engagement with cutting-edge high-performance computing (HPC) resources.

As part of this grant, FIST has secured access to the Leonardo Booster partition at CINECA, one of the most powerful supercomputers in Europe. This will enable FIST researchers to perform large-scale experiments that are otherwise infeasible with standard computing infrastructure.

FIST at UDG gained access to Leonardo BOOSTER via EuroHPC JU open calls

The awarded project focuses on cross-lingual transfer learning in large language models (LLMs), aiming to systematically evaluate how model architecture and scale influence multilingual performance. By fine-tuning major LLM families (LLaMA, Mistral, DeepSeek) across model sizes from 1B to 70B parameters, the research will generate insights into optimal model selection under real-world resource constraints—critical for European institutions working with diverse languages and limited compute budgets. This is a development project with HPC resources available for 12 months.

The research focuses on cross-lingual transfer learning in large language models (LLMs)

This achievement underscores the growing capacity of UDG and FIST to contribute to frontier AI research, while reinforcing the mission of the National Competence Center in HPC (NCC Montenegro) to support HPC adoption across academia and industry in the region.

We congratulate the FIST team on this major success and look forward to sharing results from their HPC-powered investigations.