University of Utah’s ‘AI supercomputer’ debuts among fastest systems in the world 

The University of Utah’s “AI supercomputer” was christened “Redtail” as it went online last month. As its designers showcased its features to students for the first time, the supercomputer had already ranked among the world’s fastest and most energy efficient.

Redtail, expected to be an essential part of what university officials describe as a new artificial intelligence ecosystem, ranked No. 159 for performance and No. 76 for energy efficiency, according to Top500, a list that ranks the 500 most powerful supercomputers in the world. 

“I believe Redtail is more than one of the world’s fastest and greenest supercomputers, it is the foundation of Utah’s AI future,” Taylor Randall, University of Utah president said in a release. 

“We are building an AI ecosystem with our partners where researchers, students, entrepreneurs and communities can use AI to solve society’s greatest challenges,” Randall said. “Because we believe the future of AI will be measured not just by the speed of our computers, but by the impact it will have on people’s lives.”

University of Utah’s ‘AI supercomputer’ set to come online this summer

The supercomputer had an estimated price tag of $50 million, which was paid by philanthropists and the public sector, with the Utah Legislature allocating a one-time payment of $15 million for it. It includes HPE supercomputing infrastructure and NVIDIA technologies. 

With the supercomputer, meant to be a resource for Utah universities, state organizations and the commercial sector, university officials say they hope to help accelerate discoveries in cancer, Alzheimer’s, mental health, and genetic and environmental research.

But, to get to those results, the university said in its release, the project needs more than just hardware. It requires expertise to deploy, maintain and use effectively. The university’s Center for High Performance Computing will operate the supercomputer and will enable a broader ecosystem with AI ambassadors and engineers, as well as training programs and innovation labs.

“Our aim is to lower barriers to entry so that Utah researchers, educators, students, businesses and public servants can easily use AI at scale to accelerate their projects,” Bill Miller, director of the Center for High Performance Computing said in the release.

The project is in an initial operating period, which will be followed by full user operations starting in late fall this year. 

The University of Utah released a call for proposals for “AI challenge projects” open to Utah System of Higher Education researchers and educators. Those selected will have six months of access to Redtail and assistance from AI experts to help run the projects.