Germany Unveils Jupiter: Europe's Fastest AI Supercomputer in Bid to Catch Up with US and China

Germany's Merz inaugurates Nvidia supercomputer for research

BERLIN, Sept 5 (Reuters) - German Chancellor Friedrich Merz inaugurated a supercomputer powered by Nvidia (NVDA.O), opens new tab chips on Friday that is the world's fourth-fastest, saying it helps Europe catch up with the leaders in AI, the United States and China. "We are today witnessing a historic European pioneering project," Merz said at the Juelich research centre in western Germany, the site of the installation of the Jupiter supercomputer, which was also assembled by French IT group Atos (ATOS.PA), opens new tab and German modular supercomputing company ParTec (JY0n.DE), opens new tab. He said the U.S. and China were leading the race towards an AI-driven economy, but "we in Germany and in Europe have all the opportunities to catch up and then to hold our own". The start of Jupiter's operations marks the first European supercomputer of the Exascale class, mastering one billion times one billion calculations per second, also making it the region's fastest. That amounts to the power of about 10 million standard notebook computers. European institutions are aiming to stay competitive against the U.S. in supercomputers, used in scientific fields from biotechnology to climate research, seeking to avoid over-reliance on digital services from overseas. Jupiter "will put Germany at the forefront of global high-performance computing and improve the conditions for the development of AI," said Ralf Wintergerst, head of digital business association Bitkom, adding that access to it should be made as unbureaucratic as possible for start-ups and established companies. Reporting by Andreas Rinke; Writing by Friederike Heine and Ludwig Burger; Editing by Alex Richardson Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab

Merz inaugurates supercomputer, says Europe can catch up in AI race

Jülich (Germany) (AFP) - German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Friday that Europe can catch up in the global artificial intelligence race as he inaugurated the continent's fastest supercomputer. "The United States and China are in a neck-and-neck race to compete for future market share in an AI-supported global economy," he said at the inauguration of the Jupiter computer, which will be able to perform at least one quintillion (or one billion billion) calculations per second. "We in Germany, and we in Europe, have every opportunity to catch up and then keep pace." Jupiter, based in Juelich, western Germany, is housed in a centre about half the size of a football pitch and is packed with about 24,000 Nvidia chips, which are favoured by the AI industry. With the power of about one million smartphones, experts say it is the first supercomputer that can be considered internationally competitive in training AI models in Europe. "In Germany and in Europe as a whole, we need sovereign computing capacities that are on a par with our international competitors," Merz said. "This is a question of competitiveness as well as the security of our country." Researchers across numerous different fields will be able to access the 500-million-euro ($580-million) supercomputer, whose uses go far beyond AI. They range from creating more detailed climate forecasts that can help predict extreme weather events to medical research and studies related to the energy transition.

Merz inaugurates supercomputer, says Europe can catch up in AI race - The Economic Times

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Friday that Europe can catch up in the global artificial intelligence race as he inaugurated the continent's fastest supercomputer. "The United States and China are in a neck-and-neck race to compete for future market share in an AI-supported global economy," he said at the inauguration of the Jupiter computer, which will be able to perform at least one quintillion (or one billion billion) calculations per second. "We in Germany, and we in Europe, have every opportunity to catch up and then keep pace." Jupiter, based in Juelich, western Germany, is housed in a centre about half the size of a football pitch and is packed with about 24,000 Nvidia chips, which are favoured by the AI industry. With the power of about one million smartphones, experts say it is the first supercomputer that can be considered internationally competitive in training AI models in Europe. "In Germany and in Europe as a whole, we need sovereign computing capacities that are on a par with our international competitors," Merz said. "This is a question of competitiveness as well as the security of our country." Researchers across numerous different fields will be able to access the 500-million-euro ($580-million) supercomputer, whose uses go far beyond AI. They range from creating more detailed climate forecasts that can help predict extreme weather events to medical research and studies related to the energy transition.