To drive digital innovation and technological advancement in the semiconductor industry in southern Taiwan, the National Center for High-Performance Computing (NCHC) under the National Institutes of Applied Research (NIAR) recently held an information session in Tainan for the "Nano 5 - Semiconductor Industry Innovation and Upgrade" Call for Proposals. The event attracted numerous semiconductor companies and startups eager to explore innovative system applications that enhance industrial competitiveness and create a high-potential innovative solutions for the semiconductor ecosystem.
The "Nano 5" is a next-generation accelerator cluster-based supercomputer, serving as a critical infrastructure for Taiwan’s AI applications and high-performance computing (HPC). Aligned with the vision of the "Chip-Driven Taiwan Industrial Innovation Program," Nano 5 supports AI applications in the semiconductor industry. It will enhance various semiconductor-related R&D applications, including accelerated chip design and verification, AI-semiconductor integration, semiconductor manufacturing data analysis, advanced packaging and heterogeneous integration, as well as wafer fabrication and smart factory solutions. Equipped with NVIDIA H100 GPU accelerators, the system delivers a total computing power of 16 PetaFLOPS, significantly enhancing AI model training and scientific simulations.
Dr. Chih-Min Yao, Deputy Director General of NCHC, highlighted that as the global semiconductor industry continues to evolve and the trend toward intelligent solutions accelerates, HPC has become a key driver of technological innovation and industrial advancement. He emphasized that Nano 5 embodies Taiwan’s semiconductor strength and innovation, integrating power and efficiency within a compact system is the perfect combination. Through this call for proposals, NCHC aims to provide exclusive HPC resources for semiconductor companies in southern Taiwan, helping them overcome technological bottlenecks and enhance their overall competitiveness.
The event also featured industry experts who shared insights into market trends and success stories. Ming-Chang Huang, consultant analyst and director at DIGITIMES, delivered a keynote speech titled "Development Trends of the Semiconductor Industry in the Era of Computing Power Economy," analyzing AI-driven trend , how does the semiconductor industry grasp emerging business opportunities and respond to challenges. Phison Electronics CTO Wei Lin shared insights on "Key Factors for Enterprise AI Transformation: The Future of Localized Training and On-Site Computing," discussing practical experiences and case studies in enterprise digital transformation. Additionally, Dr. Wen-Chieh Lee, a researcher at NCHC, presented "Accelerating Semiconductor Device Design and Innovation with AI and HPC," demonstrating how HPC can significantly enhance R&D efficiency and innovation.
This Call for Proposals by NCHC focuses on three core values: providing a high-performance computing environment to drive rapid breakthroughs in digital innovation for enterprise, supporting the development of diverse and competitive system applications to strengthen the semiconductor industry’s core technologies, and leveraging HPC technologies to enhance supply chain resilience, improving adaptability and market competitiveness.
NCHC announced that applications are now open and will be accepted until April 2. Companies and startups are encouraged to participate and contribute to advancing Taiwan’s semiconductor technology to new heights. Interested parties can find more details on the NCHC official website (https://www.nchc.org.tw/) or contact the project team at jay.chen@digitimes.com for inquiries regarding the application process and eligibility.
Date: 2025-04-02 Source: National Center for High-performance Computing