In Southeast Asia’s race to become a truly digital economy, a silent force is reshaping the region’s technological backbone: high-performance computing (HPC). Once confined to scientific research labs and elite academic institutions, supercomputing is now emerging as a strategic tool in government policy, industrial innovation, and business competitiveness. From climate simulations and national security to AI development and energy exploration, HPC is no longer a niche capability — it’s becoming an essential component of digital transformation.
The timing couldn’t be more relevant. Across the region, governments are doubling down on their AI ambitions, investing in digital infrastructure, and pushing national roadmaps for innovation. At the same time, private sector players — particularly in sectors such as oil and gas, manufacturing, healthcare, and logistics — are facing the growing complexity of big data, real-time decision-making, and sustainability targets. Supercomputing, once viewed as too costly or inaccessible, now offers a pathway to solve problems that were previously out of reach.
Singapore leads the pack with its National Supercomputing Centre (NSCC), which is powering efforts in climate modelling, biomedical research, and quantum computing. It’s ASPIRE 2A and 2A+ systems condensed millennia of climate data into actionable insights for the country’s adaptation strategy — a clear example of how HPC delivers real-world impact. Meanwhile, Thailand’s investments in AI upskilling through its national supercomputing centre and Vietnam’s recent wave of global AI acquisitions signal a regional shift towards computing power as a form of strategic capital.
What’s driving this momentum isn’t just processing speed; it’s what HPC unlocks: predictive analytics, simulation at scale, and AI model training that feeds everything from fraud detection to disease diagnosis. For startups and enterprises in Southeast Asia, this represents a new frontier. HPC-as-a-service models and cloud-based infrastructure now allow even smaller companies to access the same computational power once reserved for tech giants and global labs.
Still, challenges remain. The energy footprint of supercomputing, infrastructure gaps across emerging markets, and a shortage of skilled professionals in parallel computing and data science could slow down progress. That’s why the next leap forward won’t just depend on faster machines, but on coordinated efforts across education, policy, and industry to build the talent pipelines and sustainable systems needed to support HPC adoption.
Southeast Asia stands at the threshold of its next wave of innovation, where AI-driven diagnostics, real-time disaster response, and smarter urban planning will be built not just on ambition, but on teraflops and cooling racks. Supercomputing isn’t the future. It’s the infrastructure of now, and the businesses and governments that embrace it today will shape the technological edge of tomorrow.
To learn more, we spoke to Joseph Yang, General Manager of HPC and AI, APAC and India at HPE.
High-performance computing is no longer confined to labs or research centres. What’s driving the increased regional interest in supercomputing across Southeast Asia’s public and private sectors?
A key factor driving interest in supercomputing across Southeast Asia is the rapid advancements in artificial intelligence (AI), which requires immense computational power for processing large-scale data sets and solving complex global challenges such as climate change, health, and food security.
Governments in the region are also investing in digital infrastructure and national AI strategies to strengthen their digital economies, making high-performance computing a strategic enabler.
In the private sector, the energy and oil & gas industries are among the most active adopters of supercomputing, using it to accelerate innovation and gain a competitive advantage. For instance, PTT Exploration and Production (PTTeP) in Thailand recently deployed “The Crust 2.5”, a HPE Cray-powered supercomputer for seismic research, which ranked #92 on the Top500 list. In Italy, ENI deployed ENI6, now ranked the world’s 5th fastest supercomputer and the fastest not operated by a public lab or IT company. ExxonMobil has also expanded its use of HPE supercomputing to increase 4D seismic imaging capabilities, highlighting the transformative impact of HPC on exploration and production workflows.
Emerging technologies such as quantum computing are further shaping the next generation of supercomputers, offering unprecedented speeds and efficiency.
Where are we seeing the most tangible outcomes from supercomputing capabilities in Southeast Asia today? Could you share any specific examples?
Singapore has made significant investments in high-performance computing infrastructure, research initiatives, and collaborations with global tech leaders. Singapore’s National Supercomputing Centre (NSCC) and partnerships with companies like AMD and Nvidia are driving advancements in various fields, including AI, quantum computing, and biomedical research.
NSCC’s new ASPIRE 2A and 2A+ systems, which are research supercomputers, have delivered impactful results to advance climate projections. The National Environment Agency’s Centre for Climate Research Singapore (CCRS) utilised NSCC’s supercomputing power for the Third National Climate Change Study (V3) to create Southeast Asia’s most detailed climate projections. By refining global climate models from 100 km to 2 km over Singapore, they condensed over 3,000 years of climate data analysis into a four-year timeframe. This groundbreaking simulation offers crucial insights for policymakers and businesses to prepare for extreme weather events, urban heat stress, and rising sea levels, ultimately strengthening Singapore’s infrastructure and economic resilience against future climate challenges.
Countries like Thailand are also making notable progress. The NSTDA Supercomputer Centre or ThaiSC has bolstered competitiveness in AI and HPC by providing computational resources to the Super AI Engineer Program to reskill and upskill the AI workforce.
Meanwhile, Vietnam is gaining global attention for its progress in AI. Rapid innovation has led to acquisitions by global tech giants. Nvidia recently acquired VinBrain, a Vietnamese AI startup, and Qualcomm acquired the GenAI unit of Vingroup. These moves highlight how local innovation, supported by emerging HPC capabilities, is positioning Vietnam as an emerging force in the global AI ecosystem.
As Southeast Asia works to strengthen its digital economy, how crucial is it for governments and educational institutions to invest in HPC literacy and training programs? What are some promising developments on this front?
As Southeast Asia strengthens its digital economy, investing in HPC literacy and training programs is crucial to building a skilled workforce capable of harnessing the power of supercomputing. Governments and educational institutions play a key role in this process.
In Singapore, the National Research Foundation (NRF) has provided a S$270 million grant to support the development of the country’s national supercomputing infrastructure. This includes initiatives to enhance the skills of local researchers and scientists in advanced algorithms, large-scale HPC, and AI projects, enabling faster breakthroughs across various fields.
The ASEAN High-Performance Computing (HPC) School is another promising development. A collaborative effort between governments and international organisations, it offers hands-on training in HPC design and applications. It also covers emerging technologies like AI and Quantum Computing, preparing the region’s workforce for future advancements.
Through a concerted effort involving government, regional organisations, industry bodies and enterprises to identify and nurture top talent, it can ensure Southeast Asia’s digital transformation and technological competitiveness are supported, keeping the workforce updated with the latest HPC developments and enabling them to innovate with and operate high-performance computing systems effectively.
Given the energy and infrastructure demands of supercomputing, how can organisations in this region approach HPC adoption in a way that balances performance, sustainability, and cost-efficiency?
Investments in high-performance computing (HPC) deliver long-term value for businesses by enabling them to tackle complex challenges and unlock insights that traditional computing cannot handle. While HPC systems can be costly and operationally demanding, solutions like clustered smaller computers or HPC as a service offer cost-effective alternatives, allowing businesses to scale resources as needed and pay only for what they use.
HPC drives advancements in key areas such as fraud detection, medical record management, and weather prediction, allowing companies to process large datasets quickly and accurately. This leads to increased efficiency, innovation, and a competitive advantage. Additionally, with the rise of accelerated computing and AI, HPC enhances capabilities in modeling, simulation, and data analytics, driving digital transformation across industries. By adopting these technologies, businesses can stay ahead in the ever-evolving digital landscape, ensuring long-term growth despite initial investments and operational challenges.
A great example is El Capitan, which addresses data transfer and energy efficiency challenges. Powered by HPE’s Cray EX supercomputing platform and AMD’s MI300A APUs, El Capitan uses HPE Slingshot for fast data transfer across over 11,000 nodes. Its fanless direct liquid cooling system reduces cooling power by 37% per server blade, cutting utility costs and carbon emissions, while its high-density design reduces floor space, ensuring a more sustainable HPC infrastructure.
What misconceptions do you think still exist around the role of high-performance computing in innovation and digital transformation, and how should those be addressed in Southeast Asia’s business landscape?
A common misconception around high-performance computing (HPC) is that it’s only accessible to large organisations with significant budgets. While infrastructure costs can be high, cloud-based HPC services provide scalable, cost-effective solutions that make supercomputing capabilities more accessible to smaller businesses and academic institutions.
Another misconception is that HPC is limited to specific industries like research or technology. In reality, HPC has broad applications in sectors such as healthcare, finance, and manufacturing. However, the lack of skilled workers in parallel programming and data processing remains a challenge in Southeast Asia. To address this, targeted education and training programs are essential to build expertise.
Additionally, concerns around data privacy and security, particularly in sensitive sectors like healthcare, still impede HPC adoption. Governments and businesses must collaborate to implement strong cybersecurity measures and adhere to data protection regulations to foster trust and accelerate HPC integration across industries.
- Looking ahead, what role do you see supercomputing playing in shaping the next wave of breakthroughs in areas like AI, climate resilience, and national security across Southeast Asia?
Supercomputing will continue to play a pivotal role in driving breakthroughs in AI, climate resilience, and national security by providing the computational power needed for complex simulations, data analysis, and model development.
Supercomputing enables the training of large, complex models and the processing of massive datasets, accelerating the development of AI applications in sectors such as healthcare, finance, and urban planning helping in tasks such as natural language processing, image recognition, and predictive analytics.
In climate resilience, supercomputing allows for the development of sophisticated models to predict and mitigate the impacts of climate change, helping Southeast Asia prepare for extreme weather events and their effects on ecosystems and industries.
For national security, supercomputing supports advanced simulations for military training, weapons design, and cyber defense, while enabling faster, more accurate threat identification and the development of countermeasures for cyberattacks. In each of these areas, supercomputing will be a key enabler of innovation, helping Southeast Asia tackle some of its most pressing challenges.