The University of Edinburgh has been announced as the home of the UK's next national supercomputer.
The significant investment represents a huge endorsement of the University and its future as a world-leader in supercomputing and AI, recognising the strength and value of Edinburgh’s expertise.
Major investment
The UK Government has confirmed funding of up to £750 million for this vital piece of national infrastructure, which will be located at the University's Advanced Computing Facility.
Announced as part of the Chancellor’s Spending Review, the new supercomputer will give scientists across the UK access to compute power on a world-leading scale.
It places the University, the city of Edinburgh and wider region at the centre of a nation-wide effort to drive technological innovations and support industry using computing and AI.
The decision will protect jobs, which may otherwise have been lost from Scotland, and provide further benefits and investment to the regional economy.
New horizons
Once operational, the supercomputer will provide high-performance computing capability for key research and industry projects across the UK.
It will enable researchers to undertake large-scale complex modelling, test scientific theories and improve products and public services in areas including medicine, climate change and national security.
The new supercomputer will vastly exceed the capacity of ARCHER2, the current national supercomputer also hosted by the University.
It will work alongside the forthcoming AI research resource, a network of the UK’s most powerful supercomputers built to bolster scientific research.
Building on expertise
The University has been home to the UK’s high-performance computing services for more than 30 years.
The new supercomputer will be housed in a new wing of the Advanced Computing Facility (ACF), operated by EPCC and its team of staff.
The University has been a world-leader in AI and computing for more than 60 years. It is the birthplace of AI research and learning in Europe.
Extracted from University of Edinburgh, read more here