Supercomputer is super-charging the economy, report finds

The UK’s national supercomputer has returned more than £8 for every £1 of investment, it is claimed.

The Edinburgh-based facility is said to have created billions of pounds in economic benefits over its five-year lifespan.

The figures come from new analysis carried out for government agency UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).

The Archer2 system is hosted by Edinburgh University’s supercomputing centre, known as EPCC.

Professor Mark Parsons, director of EPCC and dean of research computing at the University of Edinburgh, said: “This report provides a resounding justification of the value of government investment in large-scale national supercomputing.

“EPCC works very hard to deliver an excellent service for our users. This report shows how our users repay our efforts by delivering world-class research and real value to the UK economy.”

Work by London Economics found Archer2 had enabled more than £4.2bn in economic benefits over five years, a sum equivalent to £8.30 on every £1 in public funding spent on the system.

It launched in 2021 with build costs of £100m. Another £400m has been committed on research funding.

Most of the economic benefits – £3.75bn – are attributed to academic research and development (R&D) undertaken on Archer2, arising through knowledge transfers, the commercialisation of research conducted using the supercomputer and by facilitating subsequent private sector R&D, according to the report.

Another £517m comes from the formation of spin-out companies, the creation of new products and services, and firms benefitting from staff trained in computational R&D moving into industry.

Edinburgh University said Archer2 “enables modelling of the world around us that would otherwise be impossible to study using experiments”. Examples include simulations of climate change impacts and the performance of jet engines, as well as the efficacy of new drugs.

Archer2 was funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), both part of UKRI.

Jane Nicholson, executive director for research at EPSRC, said: “This independent evaluation demonstrates the excellent value that Archer2 has delivered for UK research and innovation since its launch in 2021.

“A return of £8.30 for every £1 of public funding invested is a positive result, but what truly brings these figures to life are the real-world breakthroughs this supercomputer has enabled. From advancing treatments for heart disease and tackling antibiotic resistance, to accelerating the development of cleaner aircraft as well as understanding and addressing climate change. These outcomes from Archer2 usage clearly demonstrate the contribution that access to supercomputing makes both for science and for society as a whole.”