Blue Lion based on Vera Rubin chip architecture

The latest technology for LRZ's latest supercomputer: It will be based on the Vera Rubin chip architecture from NVIDIA and the next generation of Cray technology from Hewlett Packard Enterprise and will offer approximately 30 times the computing power of its predecessor.

LRZ's next supercomputer, BlueLion, is being built based on NVIDIA's Vera Rubin chip architecture. This was announced at ISC25 in Hamburg. Blue Lion is scheduled to go into operation in 2027 and will offer science and research around 30 times the computing power of the current high-performance or HPC system at the LRZ. “It was important to us that researchers get results faster and can combine classic calculations and simulations with the possibilities of artificial intelligence,” says Prof. Dieter Kranzlmüller, Director of the LRZ, explaining the choice. “Research is increasingly relying on this combination of technologies, supplementing and improving classic simulations in surrogate models with the help of AI solutions or training further AI models with simulation data – a methodology that greatly increases the gain in knowledge.”

Vera Rubin is the latest technology, will be launched at the end of 2026 and promises to speed up calculations and simulations - another detail for greater sustainability. The new chip architecture from NVIDIA combines Central Processing Units (CPU) and Graphics Processing Units (GPU): “Together, they form a platform that combines simulation, data and AI into a single high-performance machine for science - with high bandwidth and low latency,” writes the US chip manufacturer in its blog.“It combines shared memory, coherent computing and accelerated network processing.”This enables classic simulation, data storage and processing with artificial intelligence methods.The LRZ's computing resources are used by many research disciplines, such as astrophysics, natural and life sciences, as well as social sciences and the humanities.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) is responsible for building the next high-performance computer, which is expected to be launched in 2026. HPE is relying on the next generation of its Cray technology and 100% fanless liquid cooling architecture.

Doudna, the planned supercomputer at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) in Berkeley, California, will also rely on Vera Rubin.

Blue Lion based on Vera Rubin chip architecture

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