Abstract: High Energy Physics (HEP) is entering an exciting era with the imminent start of LHC Run 3 as well as upcoming experiments like DUNE and the EIC. While the vast data provided by these facilities represent an opportunity, they will also challenge our field in terms of their consistent interpretation and the need to extract meaningful physics conclusions from them. To achieve higher precision in HEP, it will be necessary to leverage the coming data in comprehensive global analyses based on fundamental theory inputs of steadily growing accuracy.

In this talk, I focus on QCD global fits of standard model quantities like the parton distribution functions (PDFs); such analyses are based on the latest QCD and electroweak theory, big-data computational methods, and various statistical techniques. To avoid potential systematic biases going forward, it will be crucial to perform more-and-more universal analyses to simultaneously constrain the many interrelated physics processes which may be involved, ultimately including physics beyond the standard model (BSM). I highlight recent activity to develop these futuristic analyses, focusing on several high-priority HEP experiments as well as the essential interface between theory and advanced computation needed for next-generation precision.