There is a lot of buzz around AI and its applications in various fields such as healthcare, arts, literature and industry, and transportation. Artificial intelligence supercomputers from the National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA) will also join the fray.
NCSA received a $10 million grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to deploy DeltaAI, an advanced computing and data resource that will serve as a companion system to NCSA's supercomputer Delta. DeltaAI triples computing power for AI and greatly expands the capabilities available in this advanced computing ecosystem.
Bill Gropp, director and principal investigator of the NCSA, said: "We are very excited about the expansion of capabilities to support AI research. "DeltaAI is about twice as performant as Delta, and they will be integrated into the same complex while also retaining separate work items."
The Delta AI system builds on NCSA's efforts and success with the Delta system, leveraging NSF's existing investment in this infrastructure. This is thanks to the deployment of DeltaAI through the use of similar systems and storage hardware, as well as the same high-speed interconnects. A large number of next-generation graphics processing units (GPUs) enable a technological leap in AI computing power, which will make DeltaAI the cornerstone of NSF's AI computing portfolio for years to come.
Advanced web-based interfaces will enable more and more fields to use AI methods in research, making resources more accessible, while powerful computing power will make more resources available to more diverse researchers.
DeltaAI will provide powerful capabilities for simulation and data science, with a focus on supporting artificial intelligence, as demand grows in many areas of science and engineering. The project aims to expand the use of AI methods in research by providing easier access, training, and other support to promote a wider group of researchers.
"DeltaAI represents a step in the direction recommended by the U.S. National Artificial Intelligence Research Resources Task Force, which urges intergovernmental efforts to increase funding for machine learning and AI research," Gropp said. ”
The system will meet the computing and data analysis needs of the U.S. nation through a variety of distribution plans. The National Science Foundation will manage 90 percent of available computing resources through ACCESS (Advanced Network Infrastructure Orchestrated Ecosystem: Services and Support), and the Delta AI project will coordinate the remaining 10 percent, which will be allocated by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.