Kazakhstan unveils first national supercomputer
President Tokayev attends historic supercomputer launch
#Kazakhstan #HPC - Kazakhstan has officially launched its first national supercomputer in partnership with UAE-based AI company Presight, marking a landmark advancement in the country's digital transformation and technological sovereignty ambitions. The project, developed by Kazakhstan's Ministry of Digital Development, Innovation and Aerospace Industry with Abu Dhabi Stock Exchange-listed Presight, will serve as the cornerstone for Kazakhstan's AI ecosystem, enabling advanced research, large-scale model training, and secure data infrastructure whilst establishing the nation as a regional Central Asia hub for AI and cloud computing.
SO WHAT? - The new high-performance computing facility is Central Asia's first national supercomputer deployment, designed to supply computing power for universities, startups and enterprises, allowing advanced research and AI model training. Located at the national AI centre Alem.AI, the new two exaFlop supercomputer positions Kazakhstan as the regional leader in AI infrastructure whilst demonstrating how Gulf-Central Asian partnerships are helping to advance high performance computing and artificial intelligence.
Here are some key points about the new supercomputer:
Kazakhstan has officially launched its first national supercomputer in partnership with UAE-based AI company Presight. President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev attended the unveiling ceremony alongside senior government officials and global technology leaders, emphasising the strategic importance of the initiative.
The new supercomputer cluster is powered by NVIDIA H200 GPU clusters, providing up to two exaflops of performance using FP8 (Floating Point 8-bit) precision, making it the most powerful computing system in Central Asia.
UAE-based AI and big data analytics company Presight, majority-owned by G42 Group, collaborated with Kazakhstan's Ministry of Digital Development, Innovation and Aerospace Industry to develop the supercomputer infrastructure.
The system will accelerate Kazakhstan's role as a regional hub for AI and cloud computing, fostering cross-border collaboration across Central Asia, the Middle East, and beyond.
Presight inaugurated its first regional office in Astana during May, coinciding with Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan's official visit to Kazakhstan.
The company recently signed a $190 million, six-year agreement with Astana's municipal government to implement an AI-powered smart city project featuring traffic optimisation and enhanced public services.
The Astana Smart City project employs over 60% local suppliers and Presight Kazakhstan now employs more than 50 specialists, supporting technology transfer and local expertise development.
Construction includes a data centre, command centre at Kazakhstan’s international AI centre Alem.AI, and deployment of AI analytics systems as part of the comprehensive smart city infrastructure.
The supercomputer will enable advanced research capabilities, large-scale AI model training, and secure data infrastructure supporting Kazakhstan's data sovereignty objectives
ZOOM OUT - Presight has established Kazakhstan as its Central Asia hub, following the May inauguration of its regional office at Astana International Financial Centre during Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan's visit. The company's $190 million smart city project with Astana includes creating a digital twin of the city with 60% local participation, whilst Presight now employs over 50 specialists locally. This expansion represents one facet of broader UAE-Kazakhstan cooperation, with over $5 billion in agreements signed during the Crown Prince's visit spanning AI, logistics, education, and agriculture sectors.
[Written and edited with the assistance of AI]
Read more about Presight in Kazakhstan:
Presight secures $190 million Smart City deal with Astana (Middle East AI News)
Presight launches integrated AI development platform (Middle East AI News)
Presight secures $190 million Smart City deal with Astana (Middle East AI News)
Presight FY 2024 revenue grows 24% (Middle East AI News)
Presight launches accelerator for early stage AI startups (Middle East AI News)