ByteBoost: A National Cybertraining Program for Cyberinfrastructure Testbed Adoption and Enhanced Research Utilizing Cutting-Edge, Specialized Computing Technologies

Abstract

Emerging cyberinfrastructure (CI) testbeds offer research communities early access to novel computing architectures, but researchers often lack structured pathways for evaluating and adopting these technologies within their own workflows. ByteBoost 2.0, a National Science Foundation Cybertraining award led by the Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center (PSC) at Carnegie Mellon University in partnership with Texas A&M University and Stony Brook University, builds on a successful two-year pilot to establish a national, centralized training program spanning three NSF-funded testbed systems: Neocortex at PSC, ACES at Texas A&M, and Ookami at Stony Brook. The program combines an annual virtual webinar series with an in-person "Bring Your Own Science" workshop, giving early-career researchers, including graduate students, postdoctoral associates, and assistant professors, hands-on experience porting real research workflows onto novel architectures under the guidance of platform mentors. A dedicated educator track supports the development of modular, portable curriculum materials, extending the program's impact into the classroom. By delivering instruction through a single learning management system across a broad set of CI testbeds and architectures, ByteBoost 2.0 helps participants critically evaluate the advantages, disadvantages, and key considerations of each technology so they can select and use the most appropriate computing solution for their research goals. The program's objectives are to broaden adoption of cutting-edge CI technologies, build durable evaluation and deployment skills within the research workforce, strengthen computational education through reusable curricular materials, and scale a proven pilot into a sustained, interdisciplinary national training program.