Energy reveals plans for two new AI supercomputers at Oak Ridge
The Department of Energy is set to deploy a new artificial intelligence supercomputer at Oak Ridge National Laboratory early next year, bringing the machine online at “record speeds” thanks to a new public-private partnership the agency unveiled Monday.
The deal with Advanced Micro Devices will provide Oak Ridge with the company’s Lux AI cluster, giving the lab expanded “near-term AI capacity” that will accelerate its work on fusion, fission, materials discovery, advanced manufacturing and grid modernization, per a press release announcing the partnership.
“Winning the AI race requires new and creative partnerships that will bring together the brightest minds and industries American technology and science has to offer,” Energy Secretary Chris Wright said in a statement. “That’s why the Trump administration is announcing the first example of a new commonsense approach to computing partnerships with Lux.”
Energy also announced plans for the 2028 launch of Discovery, a system built by HPE and powered by AMD processors and accelerators. Discovery, according to the DOE, will “far” outperform Oak Ridge’s Frontier machine — currently the world’s second-largest supercomputer.
Discovery will bring together high-performance computing, AI and quantum systems. Its performance capabilities will help scientists process and analyze data faster than ever before, according to the press release, paving the way for “new advances in medicine, energy, cybersecurity, and advanced manufacturing” in expedited timelines.
AMD chair and CEO Lisa Su said in a statement that the partnership with DOE “exemplifies public-private collaboration at its best. With Discovery and Lux, we are delivering leadership compute systems that combine performance and energy efficiency to advance America’s research priorities and strengthen U.S. leadership in AI, energy, and national security.”
Oak Ridge Director Stephen Streiffer said Discovery “will drive scientific innovation faster and farther than ever before. Oak Ridge’s leadership in supercomputing has transformed how researchers solve problems. With Discovery and Lux, we’re accelerating the pace of Gold Standard Science at a scale that secures America’s leadership in an increasingly competitive world.”
The Tennessee lab has been ground zero for many of the country’s advances in AI — and the Trump administration has signaled that there’s more to come. In an RFP released earlier this month, the DOE solicited proposals for the buildout and maintenance of AI data centers and energy generation infrastructure at Oak Ridge.
