News / University of Bristol

UK’s most powerful supercomputer coming to Bristol

By Martin Booth  Wednesday Sep 13, 2023

A supercomputer named after Isambard Kingdom Brunel is expected to be the most powerful supercomputer in the UK and among the most powerful in Europe when it is turned on in Bristol in 2024.

The University of Bristol has been chosen to host a new national supercomputer research facility focused on artificial intelligence.

Isambard-AI will be based at the National Composites Centre (NCC), hopefully spearheading AI innovation and scientific discovery, as well as placing Bristol at the centre of the global AI revolution.

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The new multi-million-pound facility at the NCC in Emersons Green will be used by a wide range of organisations from across the UK to harness the power of AI, a driver of emerging technologies like big data and robotics; as well as accelerating automated drug discovery and climate research.

Bristol is already one of the top UK universities for AI research and scientific computing, with the Isambard 3 supercomputer due to be installed soon to support research in AI and machine learning.

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Read more: Bristol brewery collaborates with Adidas to create new ‘Isambard’ trainers

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Professor of high performance computing at the University of Bristol and Isambard-AI project lead, Simon McIntosh-Smith, said: “We’re delighted to be chosen as the site to host the UK’s first ever Artificial Intelligence Research Resource.

“Isambard-AI will be one of the world’s first, large-scale, open AI supercomputers, and builds on our expertise designing and operating cutting-edge computational facilities, such as the incoming Isambard 3.”

Professor Phil Taylor, pro vice-chancellor for research & enterprise at the University of Bristol, added: “AI is expected to be as important as the steam age, with ramifications across almost every area of academia and industry. Bristol’s proud to be at the forefront of this revolution.”

Main photo: University of Bristol

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