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GSoC 2026: P4 Language Consortium Accepted

By February 23, 2026No Comments
P4 Google Summer of Code 2026

The P4 Language Consortium is back in Google Summer of Code (GSoC) 2026 for the third year in a row, and we’re looking for students who want to spend the summer coding with us.

GSoC is a Google-funded program that strengthens open source communities by welcoming new contributors. Selected students work closely with maintainers and experienced contributors to deliver impactful projects for the P4 ecosystem.

Project Ideas

This year, we proposed eight project ideas, grouped into three categories:

1. Core P4 Tooling

  • Modernizing BMv2: BMv2 with Bazel and packet trace support: add Bazel as an additional build system, and add support for structured packet trace representation.

2. Exploratory P4 Tooling

  • ns-3 / P4sim traffic management: redesign the switch model to make simulations more realistic by adding per-egress traffic management, queueing and scheduling, and more accurate delay modeling.
  • Polyglot P4TC: P4TC brings the P4 programming model to Linux Traffic Control, but today it’s mostly driven via CLI and scripts. This project adds Python and Rust APIs so developers can manage pipelines, tables/actions, and runtime updates programmatically.
  • PCIe TLP processing with P4 (FPGA): use P4 to parse/control PCIe Transaction Layer Packets on FPGAs, with a concrete DMA demo.
  • 4MLIR exporter: implement idiomatic P4 from the P4MLIR representation, expand construct coverage, add tests, and integrate into existing workflows

3. P4 Research

  • Extend Alkali with P4MLIR: build conversions between Alkali IR and P4MLIR to enable P4-based SmartNIC backends and reuse Alkali optimization flows.
  • P4-SpecTec tutorials: write a hands-on tutorial, based on “nano-P4”, plus Docker images for easy onboarding and reproducible experimentation.
  • Planter and P4Pi: integrate Planter into P4Pi, add p4c-dpdk target support, and ship end-to-end examples and teaching materials for ML-assisted dataplane workflows

Browse the full ideas list (with potential mentors) here and keep an eye on the page.

Next steps GSoC 2026

  • February 19 – March 15: Community bonding & proposal shaping. If you want to apply, reach out early to a P4 community member listed as “Potential Mentor” and share a short draft: your goal, approach, and expected deliverables.
  • March 16 – March 31 (18:00 UTC): Contributor application window. Submit your proposal through the official GSoC portal.