RIKEN is collaborating with Fujitsu Limited (Fujitsu) and NVIDIA to launch an international initiative for the development of Japan's new flagship supercomputer - the next-generation successor to the current "Fugaku" supercomputer - (development codename: "FugakuNEXT"). For the first time in Japan's flagship supercomputing systems, GPUs will be adopted as accelerators, with NVIDIA leading the design for the GPU infrastructure. Fujitsu, which has already been working with RIKEN, will lead the basic design of the overall system, compute nodes, and CPUs. As a foundation for high-performance computing (HPC) infrastructure, the three organizations will work together to build an "AI-HPC platform" to solve challenges through computation.

Aiming for operation around 2030, FugakuNEXT is envisioned to deliver not only the simulation performance pursued by previous supercomputers, but also world-leading capabilities in both simulation and AI, with the two working in close integration as a unified "AI-HPC platform". To this end, FugakuNEXT will extend the CPU technologies developed for Fugaku, while incorporating GPUs as accelerators, aiming to maximize execution performance for both simulation and AI applications. At the same time, to continuously generate scientific achievements through the use of next-generation computing infrastructure, it is becoming increasingly important to pursue not only advances in hardware technology, but also comprehensive innovations in software and algorithms.