Overview

• The US Department of Energy announced on May 29 that it will build the Doudna supercomputer at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory’s NERSC facility.
• Developed in partnership with NVIDIA and Dell Technologies, the machine will draw on NVIDIA’s next-generation Vera Rubin GPUs and CPUs and leverage Dell’s liquid-cooling and AI-optimization technology.
• Named for Nobel laureate Jennifer Doudna in recognition of her CRISPR research, the system underscores federal support for basic scientific innovation.
• Designed to handle AI training alongside large-scale simulations, Doudna will accelerate research in fusion energy, materials science, astronomy and drug discovery.
• Slated for completion by late 2026 with user access in 2027, it is expected to exceed Perlmutter’s scientific output by more than tenfold while keeping power increases to two or three times.