Japan Aims to Make World's Fastest Computer

Computergram International, August 17, 1999

Japan's Science and Technology Agency will begin a project to develop the world's fastest computer next year, according to the local media. To be used for gene analysis it will be able to handle 1,000 trillion calculations per second the agency said, which is 25 times faster than the current fastest model which has also been developed by the agency to simulate a major environmental change.

The three-year Peta Computing Project, will be based at Japan's Institute of Physical and Chemical Research and will be jointly developed by the public and private sectors and universities. It is one of the millennium projects proposed by Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi.

The agency plans to request 6bn yen ($52m) in research expenses from the government in the fiscal 2000 budget with which it will hire a staff of 100 researchers. Three prototypes are to be developed, two for gene analysis to support development of new drugs, and the third for analysis of chemical reactions. The agency will also look at producing commercial versions of the computers.