IU to dedicate new supercomputer

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (Inside INdiana Business) — Indiana University will Monday dedicate its new artificial intelligence supercomputer as part of the university’s bicentennial celebration. IU acquired the supercomputer, now known as Big Red 200, last summer to replace its existing system, which it says has become obsolete.

Big Red 200 is one of the fastest university-owned supercomputers in the country. IU says it would take everyone in the state of Indiana to perform one calculation per second 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, to perform the same number of calculations that Big Red 200 can do it one second.

IU says Big Red 200 is a milestone in the university’s effort to use computing to advance research.

“I am excited about utilizing the AI capabilities of Big Red 200 to accelerate the research programs in the Department of Medical and Molecular Genetics at the IU School of Medicine,” said Tatiana Foroud, chair of the department. “I believe this new AI-capable supercomputer will enable breakthrough discoveries across a broad range of research areas, including neurodegeneration and the study of Alzheimer’s disease.”

Foroud adds the supercomputer will be an “essential resource” for the Precision Health Initiative, which is one of IU’s Grand Challenges that launched in 2016. 

IU President Michael McRobbie will host the dedication ceremony, which is free and open to the public. The university will live stream the ceremony, which you can watch by clicking here.