Community Meeting 25 November 2025 Summary
🌟 Summary of the Community Meeting on November 25, 2025 - PASTA-ELN, AI & Interface Updates
In this eLabFTW Community Meeting, we welcomed two presenters. First, Steffen Brinckmann gave a presentation on data synchronization between PASTA-ELN and eLabFTW, with a technical demonstration of PASTA-ELN and its integration capabilities. Second, Nandjafot Mendy gave a presentation about plans for the integration of AI tools into ELNs. We also discussed improvements to the user interface, such as navigation enhancements and new accessibility features. The team responded to various technical questions and development plans, including template sharing and interoperability standards, while touching on future improvements like dark mode development.
Synchronizing data between PASTA-ELN and eLabFTW
Speaker: Steffen Brinckmann (Creator of PASTA-ELN)
Title: “Synchronizing data between PASTA-ELN and eLabFTW”
Steffen presented a demonstration of PASTA-ELN, a desktop software for managingexperimental data, and its synchronization with eLabFTW. He showed howPASTA-ELN allows users to organize data in a notebook-like layout, synchronize it with their file system, and upload entries to Zenodo. He also discussed the challenges of synchronizing different ELN solutions due to differing design goals and user flows.
AI as an everyday companion for scientific research
Speaker: Nandjafot Mendy (Co-founder of Emerit Science)
Title: “AI as an every day companion for scientific research: is it possible in 2026?”
Nandjafot presented on the integration of AI into ELNs, highlighting his startup’s focus on developing AI solutions for scientific research, including protocol design, experimental analysis, and data management. He emphasized the need for AI companions in ELNs to enhance efficiency and data handling, while ensuring data sovereignty and the use of open-source models.
eLabFTW Interface Design Updates
Nicolas discussed proposed changes to the eLabFTW user interface, which aim to improve navigation by replacing vertical scrolling with a tabbed layout and a simplified toolbar. The team discussed various UI/UX improvements, including dark mode and accessibility features, with Moustapha noting that dark mode development would likely begin in early 2026. Moustapha confirmed that the spreadsheet editor was still in the beta version, with ongoing improvements. The team also addressed questions about compound import/export functionality and discussed the ELN Consortium’s approach to interoperability standards. Sydney announced that a new template-sharing website was being developed and would be opened up for public user input soon.