The government of Singapore has committed S$270 million (US$204m) to develop the country’s supercomputing infrastructure and bolster its National Supercomputing Centre (NSCC).
The funding announcement was made by Heng Swee Keat, deputy prime minister and chairman of the National Research Foundation (NRF), at the official launch of two research supercomputers managed by the NSCC, the Aspire 2A and Aspire 2A+.
Provided by the NRF, the grant will support the development of the successor to the Aspire 2A+, expected to be operational in the latter half of 2025 and allow researchers to explore the integration capabilities of classical supercomputers and quantum computers.
Talent and skills development in the city-state will also be supported by the funding, with the NSCC set to collaborate with local universities, research institutes, and HPC companies to mentor and train workers. Meanwhile, a Young Investigator Seed Programme will nurture early-career researchers and provide access to HPC resources.
In a written statement published on the official government website for the prime minister of Singapore, Keat outlined all of the initiatives the government would be looking to support, stating: “These investments are part of Singapore’s continuing commitment to build robust national supercomputing infrastructure and to develop our talent and capabilities, to enhance the lives of people, here in Singapore, in our region, and around the world.”
He added: "With continued investment in high-performance computing, strategic partnerships, and a strong focus on developing experts, we are well-positioned to work with like-minded partners in our region and around the world to make impactful innovations.”
In July 2024, the Singaporean government signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Quantinuum to provide Singaporean institutions with access to Quantinuum’s H-Series and Helios quantum computers and collaborate on quantum computing use cases.