The United States currently has the most powerful supercomputer in the world and the country could do so for a while thanks to the announcement that Cray Computing and AMD are building an exascale device with Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The system is expected to make its debut in 2021 when Cray and Intel will launch their own Aurora exascale supercomputer at Argonne National Laboratory. Energy Secretary Rick Perry welcomed the announcement in a statement, declaring: "Frontier's record performance will ensure our country's ability to lead the world in science that will improve the lives and economic prosperity of all Americans and the world". Frontier will accelerate innovation in the field. AI by providing US researchers with world-class computing resources and data to ensure the next great inventions are made in the United States."
Frontier Supercomputer
According to Cray's CEO Pete Ungaro, Frontier will have the combined power of the 160 largest supercomputers in the world today, with 1.5 exflops. Thomas Zacharia, director of Oak Ridge National Laboratory, said Frontier would be "the most powerful artificial intelligence machine ever seen." He also revealed that it would be the most expensive machine ever produced under Frotnier's technology and system contract, costing more than €600 million. Frontier will use Cray's Shasta supercomputer system and Slingshot interconnect, plus custom AMD graphics processors and EPYC processors. The system will occupy a space almost as large as two full-size basketball courts and will include 90 kilometers of cable. Scientists and engineers will use Frontier for a wide variety of projects, including climate change prediction, hurricane forecasting, and the development of new pharmaceuticals. The supercomputer will also be used to model fusion power sources, simulate combustion engine systems, and perform cosmological simulations for the distribution of billions of galaxies. Via Engadget