OSKI was inspired by the Sparsity framework for automatic tuning of sparse matrix kernels, and PHiPAC, the first automatically tuned matrix multiply generator. The OSKI interface was designed to be a basis for an implementation of the recent Sparse BLAS Standard, and a module for PETSc is in the works.
 
OSKI shares the spirit of a number of related projects in automatic program generation and performance tuning.

• ATLAS:Automatically Tuned Linear Algebra Software
• AURORA Project at the University of Vienna
• FFTW for signal processing kernels
• FLAME: Formal Linear Algebra Methods and Environment
• SPIRAL for software and hardware generation of DSP algorithms
• The Tensor Contraction Engine for quantum chemistry computations
• UHFFT/Parallel FFT software
• X-Ray software for automatic detection and measurement of memory hierarchy parameters

See also the recent Proceedings of the IEEE Special Issue on Program Generation, Optimization, and Platform Adaptation, particularly for additional references to related compiler projects and run-time systems.
 
For comprehensive pointers to other sparse and dense linear algebra software, including other sparse BLAS-style libraries, see Jack Dongarra's list.

Oski: "Go Bears!"