The basic objective of the ELI-ALPS project is to create a user infrastructure for laser-based research disciplines. Each facility serves separate but complementary research activities. The Extreme Light Infrastructure (ELI) project is an integral part of the generation of large-scale research facilities planned or under construction in Europe, brought together by the European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures (ESFRI). The ELI is the world’s first facility to enable the examination of interaction between light and matter at unprecedented intensities, even in the so-called ultrarelativistic range. This will open new doors in physics and can lay the foundations of new technical developments, such as relativistic microelectronics and compact (desktop size) laser particle accelerators. ELI will have a significant impact on many areas of materials science, medicine and environmental protection.