DeeperML - #dell

Dell Technologies and NVIDIA are collaborating to construct the "Doudna" supercomputer for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). Named after Nobel laureate Jennifer Doudna, the system will be housed at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory's National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center (NERSC) and is slated for deployment in 2026. This supercomputer aims to revolutionize scientific research by merging artificial intelligence (AI) with simulation capabilities, empowering over 11,000 researchers across various disciplines, including fusion energy, astronomy, and life sciences. The project represents a significant federal investment in high-performance computing (HPC) infrastructure, designed to maintain U.S. leadership in AI and scientific discovery.

The Doudna supercomputer, also known as NERSC-10, promises a tenfold increase in scientific output compared to its predecessor, Perlmutter, while only consuming two to three times the power. This translates to a three-to-five-fold improvement in performance per watt, achieved through advanced chip design and system-level efficiencies. The system integrates high-performance CPUs with coherent GPUs, enabling direct data access and sharing across processors, addressing traditional bottlenecks in scientific computing workflows. Doudna will also be connected to DOE experimental and observational facilities through the Energy Sciences Network (ESnet), facilitating seamless data streaming and near real-time analysis.

According to NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang, Doudna is designed to accelerate scientific workflows and act as a "time machine for science," compressing years of discovery into days. Energy Secretary Chris Wright sees it as essential infrastructure for maintaining American technological leadership in AI and quantum computing. The supercomputer emphasizes coherent memory access between CPUs and GPUs, enabling data sharing in heterogeneous processors, which is a requirement for modern AI-accelerated scientific workflows. The Nvidia Vera Rubin supercomputer architecture introduces hardware-level optimizations designed specifically for the convergence of simulation, machine learning, and quantum algorithm development.


References :

• TechHQ: Nvidia Vera Rubin supercomputer to serve researchers in fusion energy, astronomy, and life sciences. Dell’s system targets 10x performance, 3-5x better power efficiency, to be deployed in 2026.
• futurumgroup.com: Can Dell and NVIDIA’s AI Factory 2.0 Solve Enterprise-Scale AI Infrastructure Gaps?

Classification:

• HashTags: #AI #NVIDIA #Dell
• Company: Dell
• Target: Researchers
• Product: AI Factory
• Feature: AI Infrastructure
• Malware: Vera Rubin
• Type: AI
• Severity: Informative

Dell Technologies has secured a contract with the U.S. Department of Energy to construct the next-generation NERSC-10 supercomputer, a project powered by NVIDIA's Vera Rubin architecture. This new system, dubbed "Doudna" after Nobel laureate Jennifer Doudna, a pioneer in CRISPR gene-editing technology, is poised to be a major federal investment in scientific computing infrastructure. Energy Secretary Chris Wright announced the contract during a visit to Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, emphasizing that the deployment in 2026 is crucial for maintaining American technological leadership amidst increasing global competition in AI and quantum computing.

The "Doudna" supercomputer, also known as NERSC-10, aims to significantly accelerate scientific research across multiple domains, including fusion energy, astronomy, and life sciences. Designed to serve 11,000 researchers, it represents an integration of artificial intelligence, quantum workflows, and real-time data streaming from experimental facilities. Unlike traditional supercomputers, Doudna’s architecture emphasizes coherent memory access between CPUs and GPUs, facilitating efficient data sharing between heterogeneous processors which is essential for modern AI-accelerated scientific workflows.

The Doudna system is expected to deliver a 10x increase in scientific output compared to its predecessor, Perlmutter, while only consuming 2-3x the power, translating to a 3-5x improvement in performance per watt. Nick Wright, advanced technologies group lead and Doudna chief architect at NERSC, stated, "We’re not just building a faster computer, we’re building a system that helps researchers think bigger and discover sooner." NVIDIA's Vera Rubin platform introduces hardware-level optimizations specifically designed for the convergence of simulation, machine learning, and quantum algorithm development, marking a significant advancement in cutting-edge research capabilities.


References :

• blogs.nvidia.com: Ready for a front-row seat to the next scientific revolution? That’s the idea behind Doudna — a groundbreaking supercomputer announced today at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in Berkeley, California.
• insidehpc.com: The new system, due in 2026, is named after Jennifer Doudna, the Berkeley Lab-based biochemist who won the 2020 Nobel Prize for Chemistry for her work on gene-editing technology.
• TechHQ: Nvidia Vera Rubin supercomputer to serve researchers in fusion energy, astronomy, and life sciences.
• techxplore.com: A new supercomputer named after a winner of the Nobel Prize in chemistry will help power artificial intelligence technology and scientific discoveries from a perch in the hills above the University of California, Berkeley, federal officials said Thursday.
• insidehpc.com: DOE Announces “Doudna†Dell-NVIDIA Supercomputer at NERSC
• techhq.com: Nvidia Vera Rubin supercomputer to serve researchers in fusion energy, astronomy, and life sciences. Dell’s system targets 10x performance, 3-5x better power efficiency, to be deployed in 2026.

Classification:

• HashTags: #Supercomputer #AIResearch #NERSC10
• Company: Dell
• Target: Scientific Researchers
• Product: Vera Rubin
• Feature: AI-Powered Supercomputing
• Type: AI
• Severity: Informative