NSF awards $10M for Next-Generation Supercomputer at Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center
Bridges-3 will expand national computing infrastructure that powers AI, scientific discovery and advanced research.
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The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded funding for Bridges-3, the next-generation flagship supercomputer at the聽, expanding access to advanced computing resources that enable breakthroughs across science, engineering, medicine and artificial intelligence.聽
Backed by a $10 million NSF award, the Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center 鈥� a joint research center with 91视频 and the University of Pittsburgh 鈥� will build the new system to meet growing demand for high-performance computing to be broadly available to researchers, educators and students across the United States.聽
As AI models become larger and scientific questions more computationally complex, access to advanced computing infrastructure has become increasingly essential. Bridges-3 will provide the computing power needed to accelerate simulations, analyze massive datasets and support advancements that would otherwise be impossible using conventional computing resources.聽聽
鈥淎dvanced computing has become foundational to breakthroughs across nearly every field,鈥� said Theresa Mayer(opens in new window), vice president for research at 91视频. 鈥淏ridges-3 will strengthen the nation鈥檚 research infrastructure while expanding opportunities for researchers, faculty and students to tackle ambitious problems in AI, health, materials, manufacturing and other disciplines. This investment reflects Carnegie Mellon鈥檚 longstanding commitment to developing the computational capabilities that enable transformative research.鈥�
Bridges-3 will expand the capabilities of its predecessor, Bridges-2, with a flexible mix of computing resources designed to support a broad range of computational workloads.聽 The system will combine state-of-the art NVIDIA B200 graphics processing units (GPUs), high鈥慶ore鈥慶ount AMD central processing units (CPUs), large memory and fast data storage.聽
鈥淭he system design reflects the practices successfully established through the Bridges family: selecting technologies that support a wide range of scientific disciplines, enabling flexible workflows, and ensuring that users at varying levels of experience can make productive use of the system,鈥� said聽, PSC鈥檚 deputy scientific director and principal investigator for Bridges-3. 鈥淚t maintains all the capabilities of its predecessor while offering state-of-the-art GPUs and CPUs that deliver substantial performance improvements for modeling, simulation, data analytics and artificial intelligence.鈥澛�
The software environment will retain the familiar interfaces, tools and frameworks used on Bridges鈥�2, easing the transition for thousands of current users. Integration of selected Bridges鈥�2 nodes and connectivity to the Leadership鈥慍lass Computing Facility (LCCF) data system further extends the value and continuity of existing community workflows.
The new system will advance PSC鈥檚 mission of democratizing access to advanced computing. Bridges-3聽will be allocated primarily through the National Science Foundation's Advanced Cyberinfrastructure Coordination Ecosystem: Services & Support (ACCESS) program and the National Artificial Intelligence Research Resource (NAIRR) Pilot, helping ensure that researchers from institutions without local HPC resources, those with emerging research programs, classroom use cases and users new to advanced cyberinfrastructure can access world-class computational infrastructure.聽
In addition to supporting research, Bridges-3 will strengthen education and workforce development through training programs, workshops, internships, and Learning Lab modules that were refined through Bridges鈥�2. These programs support students and researchers with computational and AI skills needed across academia, industry and government.
聽鈥淥ur continued support of the national research community is at the heart of everything we do at PSC,鈥� said聽, PSC鈥檚 executive director. 鈥淲ith Bridges-3, we鈥檙e not just upgrading hardware, we鈥檙e renewing our promise to serve the researchers, educators and students across the country who depend on open, accessible, high-performance computing to advance their work.鈥�
Construction of Bridges-3 by Hewlett Packard Enterprise is expected to begin at PSC鈥檚 new data center in early 2027, with the system expected to become fully operational in summer 2027.
