Supercomputers are already changing the lives of European citizens. Machines many thousands of times more powerful than a desktop computer are making breakthroughs in climate modelling, personalised medicine, energy-saving strategies and epidemic control. This Projects Info Pack showcases the recently created European High Performance Computing Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC JU) and its work in developing Europe’s supercomputer capabilities.

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© European Union, 2022

No European country has the capacity to develop world-class supercomputing resources individually. Cooperation, knowledge-sharing and the pooling of resources at European level are essential. The EuroHPC JU brings together the resources and expertise of 31 European countries and partners to build a leading European supercomputing ecosystem. The aim is to offer every participating country more opportunities than they would otherwise have, and lead the way in the global supercomputing race.

Since its creation in 2018, the Joint Undertaking has substantially increased overall investments in HPC at European level and has started to restore Europe’s position as a leading HPC power globally. The Joint Undertaking is not only procuring supercomputers, but investing in research to develop innovative and competitive supercomputing technologies, applications, skills and expertise, based on a supply chain that will reduce Europe’s dependency on foreign manufacturers.

From the initial 29 research projects currently managed by the EuroHPC JU, this Projects Info Pack highlights nine that reflect the diverse range of topics addressed by the Joint Undertaking.

A central objective of the Joint Undertaking is developing innovative, homegrown and sustainable HPC technologies, such as the development of a low-power microprocessor (EPI SGA2), a platform for users to submit complex simulation requests to HPC data centres (HEROES), and a unique incubator for quantum-HPC hybrid computing (HPCQS).

Another objective of the EuroHPC JU is to develop applications, algorithms and software to be run on the supercomputers by public and private users. These include drug design (LIGATE), disease modelling (MICROCARD) and aerospace engineering (NextSim), as well as energy, climate research and more.

A third objective is to develop the skills needed to widen the use of HPC for a larger number of public and private users, wherever they are located in Europe.

EuroCC is creating a network of national HPC Competence Centres to ease access to European HPC opportunities in different sectors, while FF4EuroHPC supports SMEs which want to benefit from the use of HPC services to develop innovative products and services. Finally, EUMaster4HPC has set up a pioneering pan-European HPC Master of Science programme to educate the next generation of HPC experts across Europe.

Currently, five EuroHPC JU supercomputers are operational in Bulgaria, Czechia, Finland, Luxembourg and Slovenia. The construction of an additional three supercomputers is under way in Italy, Portugal and Spain, with more systems planned for the near future. The investment delivered by the Joint Undertaking is of critical importance in developing a world-class supercomputing ecosystem in Europe, which will boost European competitiveness and innovation, and improve the quality of life of European citizens.

Building the future

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Preparing Europe for a future of quantum computing

Sometimes even a supercomputer isn’t super enough to get the job done. That’s why this EU-funded project is making the leap towards quantum computing.

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Building Europe’s high performance computing capabilities

With the development of new processors and accelerators, this EU-funded project aims to equip the EU with its own world-class supercomputing technology.

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HEROES / HPC marketplaces for more efficient industrial products

HEROES promises to deliver the benefits of high performance computing to energy and manufacturing industries. The project’s future framework will enable small and medium-sized enterprises, large businesses, universities and research centres to create more energy-efficient products.

Applied computing

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Fast-tracked drug discovery tackles unmet medical needs

LIGATE promises a revolutionary exascale computing-based drug discovery process able to identify effective drugs in a matter of days instead of years.

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Modelling every cell of an arrhythmic heart

By bringing computer scientists, mathematicians and biomedical engineers together, the MICROCARD project hopes to better help patients with heart rhythm disorder. Their new software is expected to solve many problems inherent to current numerical models.

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NextSim / Next-generation algorithms for a more competitive aerospace sector

The NextSim project consortium feels that it is time for the aerospace industry to benefit from high performance computing power. The project’s new simulation tools will speed up problem-solving during research, development and testing phases of next-generation aircraft designs.

21st Century skills

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National one-stop shops for HPC competencies

EuroCC’s National Competence Centres act as hubs to promote and facilitate HPC and related technologies across a range of industries, increasing access to opportunities and offering tailored solutions for this fast-evolving field.

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Access to cutting-edge technology boosts business

By supporting experiments that connect businesses with HPC resources, FF4EuroHPC’s success stories are inspiring small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to embrace cutting-edge technologies.

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Mastering the science of high performance computing

A new Master’s programme aims to provide Europe with the skilled workforce it needs to leverage the opportunities presented by high performance computing.