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The Advanced Computing System for Latin America and the Caribbean (SCALAC) recently released a report on the current state of high-performance computing (HPC) in the region. Supported by RedCLARA, SCALAC promotes the development of HPC in the region to contribute to closing the digital divide and achieving technological autonomy and data sovereignty.

The authors of the report are SCALAC General Chair and Director of the Scientific and High-Performance Computing Center (SC3UIS) at the Industrial University of Santander (UIS) in Colombia, Dr. Carlos Jaime Barrios Hernandez; Professor of the University of Córdoba (Argentina) Dr. Nicolas Wolowick, and UIS engineer and professor Luis Alejandro Torres Niño, with contributions of Dr. Phillippe Navaux, President of SCALAC and Professor of the University Federal of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS - Brazil); Dr. Harold Castro Barrera, Professor of University of the Andes (Colombia); and Dr. Esteban Meneses, Director of the National Center for High Technology of Costa Rica.

The report, titled "High-Performance Computing Robust Systems Report in Latin America and the Caribbean”, is a comprehensive compilation of 41 reference platforms from 29 academic and governmental institutions across nine countries in the region. Eleven of these institutions are affiliated with SCALAC, and seven provide connectivity through a national network or RedCLARA. The findings of this report are of significant importance to the academic and government institutions in the region, providing valuable insights into the current status of high-performance computing systems and their connectivity.

The report was a collaborative effort, drawing on information provided by the various institutions, data previously gathered by the RISC-2 Observatory, and additional information collected by SCALAC and RedCLARA. While the report maps capabilities by country, it does not rank them or analyze platform performance and supremacy.

Beyond the machines listed in the international Top500 ranking (concentrated in Brazil and including the Argentine machine Clementina XXI as of June 2024), the report concludes that region's infrastructures hold great promise, mainly supporting hybrid research needs in scientific computing, data analytics, and artificial intelligence. If countries were ranked by installed capacity, Brazil would have the highest capacity among the studied nations, followed by Argentina, Mexico, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Uruguay, Ecuador, and Bolivia.

The report, with a new version already announced for September 2024 to include more platforms, also highlights the growing investments in HPC from the public and private sectors. Investments in robust infrastructures have the potential to support a wide range of needs and open exciting possibilities for the future of computing in Latin America and the Caribbean. These needs extend beyond traditional scientific computing and simulation, including data analysis and artificial intelligence.

Founded in 2012, SCALAC is the Advanced Computing System for Latin America and the Caribbean, a regional alliance supported by the national research and education networks (NRENs) members of RedCLARA. In 2018, SCALAC become an international civil society organization, with its legal headquarters in Costa Rica.

To download the report, please visit https://bit.ly/3AeMN0Y.