The University of Edinburgh is set to receive £750m to fund the creation of an exascale supercomputer, poised to be the most powerful in Britain and operational by early 2027.
The supercomputer will work alongside the AI Research Resource, a division of advanced supercomputers nationally.
This project will take over from the existing ARCHER2, with funding anticipated to cover the supercomputer itself, staff required for operations, electricity, and the final infrastructure developments.
Through the Edinburgh Parallel Computing Centre, the university has been recognised for its leadership in supercomputing and AI, and already has strong credentials in successfully running supercomputing services on a national scale.
£31m has already been expended on the construction of a new purpose-built site for the supercomputer.
Once operational, the supercomputer will have the ability to test large-scale modelling, highly complex scientific simulations, and improve both products and public services in a variety of sectors.
Ian Murray, the UK Secretary of State for Scotland, said the project “places Scotland at the cutting edge of computing power globally.”
He continued: “This will see Scotland playing a leading role in creating breakthroughs that have a global benefit – such as new medicines, health advances, and climate change solutions.”
Illustration by Berenika Murray for The Student.