March 2019 Summaries

In a Big Compute Podcast episode, Gabriel Broner interviews Dave Turek, IBM's Vice President of HPC and Cognitive Systems, to explore how artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming high-performance computing (HPC) workflows. AI's growth, driven by innovation and increased compute capacity, offers significant opportunities for enhancing simulations and analyzing results, potentially replacing traditional simulations in some instances. Turek emphasizes the integration of AI and HPC as a unified approach to improving workflows and solving complex problems more efficiently, citing examples from the pharmaceutical and chemical industries where AI dramatically reduced computing requirements. The discussion also covers the democratization of AI, enabling smaller companies to compete with larger ones by automating processes and accessing advanced technologies through cloud services. The conversation concludes with insights into the future of HPC and AI, highlighting the need to embrace emerging tools and frameworks that will become integral to analysts' toolkits in the coming years.

In a Big Compute Podcast episode, host Gabriel Broner interviews Josh Krall, co-founder and VP of Technology at Boom Supersonic, about the company's use of high-performance computing (HPC) in the cloud to design Overture, a passenger supersonic plane. Boom aims to overcome the economic and technical challenges that derailed the Concorde by offering a more efficient and affordable aircraft, utilizing modern materials and propulsion systems. The company leverages cloud-based HPC to perform extensive simulations, facilitating rapid design iterations and enabling engineers to manage complex aerodynamic challenges more efficiently. Krall discusses the benefits and challenges of using cloud resources, emphasizing the flexibility and scalability they provide, which are crucial for a startup like Boom. The company plans to test its supersonic demonstrator aircraft, XB1, by the end of the year, with a focus on refining the design of the planned 55-seat airliner, Overture, expected to be in service by the mid-2020s. The podcast highlights Boom's innovative approach to supersonic travel, aiming to reduce flight times and redefine global connectivity, while also addressing the economic viability that the Concorde lacked.

In a Big Compute Podcast episode, host Gabriel Broner converses with Marek Michalewicz, Director of the High Performance Computing (HPC) center at the University of Warsaw, about the transformative potential of HPC cloud platforms in academia. They discuss the shift from traditional on-premise HPC systems to more flexible cloud-based solutions, which offer users access to a variety of architectures and technologies, thereby reducing queue times and accelerating research. Michalewicz argues that this evolution towards cloud-based HPC is inevitable and emphasizes the need to overcome psychological barriers and resistance from traditional IT sectors to fully embrace this change. He envisions a future where HPC is democratized and accessible to all, including newcomers to the field, by eliminating obstacles to resource access. The conversation highlights the potential for increased collaboration and innovation in research through the enhanced scalability and flexibility of cloud HPC platforms.