Four AI startups have emerged as winners in the EU’s supercomputing alliance competition, securing a significant boost to their operations. These companies will share a staggering €1 billion in funding and gain access to millions of hours on top-tier high-performance computer systems to enhance their AI models.
The importance of computational resources in training AI models cannot be overstated. The EU’s dedicated supercomputer alliance, EuroHPC, aims to support innovative startups in the AI space by providing access to cutting-edge technology. Through initiatives like the Large AI Grand Challenge, the alliance helps bridge the gap between startups and resources.
The four winning startups, selected from a pool of 94 submissions, will receive a share of the funding and access to the LUMI and LEONARDO supercomputers for a year. These supercomputers, located in Finland and Italy, are among the most powerful systems globally, enabling the startups to accelerate their AI model training from years to mere weeks.
In addition to the cash prize and computing hours on LUMI and LEONARDO, EuroHPC has also awarded an extra 800,000 hours on the Mare Nostrum supercomputer in Barcelona to a fifth startup, Multiverse Computing, specializing in quantum computing and AI. The startups are expected to release their findings under open-source licenses after the 12-month period, further contributing to the advancement of AI technology in Europe.
