Where are the world’s supercomputers?
On July 9, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev inaugurated Kazakhstan’s new supercomputer in Astana, based on NVIDIA H200 graphics processors. The ceremony took place at the National Supercomputing Center Alemcloud, reports a Kazinform News Agency correspondent.
The supercomputer arrived in Kazakhstan in May 2025. Built on the latest NVIDIA H200 chips -designed specifically for artificial intelligence and high-performance computing (HPC) - the system was installed and launched at the new data center of the Ministry of Digital Development, Innovations and Aerospace Industry in cooperation with international partners. With a performance capacity of up to 2 exaflops (FP8 format), it is now the most powerful computing system in Central Asia.
President Tokayev emphasized that the supercomputer’s launch is a key step toward digitalizing major sectors of the economy. It will enable startups developing neural networks, universities, research institutions, and public and private organizations to access advanced computing power.
Kazakhstan’s supercomputer can:
· model technological risks well in advance,
· simulate urban traffic years ahead,
· assist doctors with big-data-based diagnostics,
· train large language models that understand the Kazakh language and context,
· support the launch of domestic AI products independent of foreign servers.
The project is part of Kazakhstan’s AI Development Concept through 2029 and a milestone in building national digital infrastructure.
Top 10 supercomputers
A supercomputer is a computing machine capable of performing the most complex calculations and processing massive volumes of data at incredible speeds. These systems are designed to tackle the most resource-intensive tasks - from weather forecasting to research in artificial intelligence (AI) and medicine.
In June 2025, the updated Top500 list was released, ranking the 500 most powerful publicly known supercomputers in the world. This project began in 1993, and the list is updated twice a year.
According to the ranking, the Top 10 includes:
1. El Capitan - USA
2. Frontier - USA
3. Aurora - USA
4. JUPITER Booster - Germany
5. Eagle - USA
6. HPC6 - Italy
7. Fugaku - Japan
8. Alps - Switzerland
9. LUMI - Finland
10. Leonardo - Italy
Countries leading in supercomputing power
According to the June 2025 Top500 list, the United States leads with 175 supercomputers, followed by China with 47 and Germany in third. Japan (39), France (25), South Korea (15), Italy (17), Canada (13), the UK (13), and Brazil (9) also make the top ten. Other countries with powerful systems include Norway (9), Russia (7), and India (6). North America leads by continent, followed by Europe and Asia.
Note: Military or classified systems may not appear in public rankings.
Supercomputer market outlook
According to The Business Research Company (January 2025), the global supercomputer market is growing rapidly. Valued at $13.55 billion in 2024, it is projected to reach $15.75 billion in 2025 (CAGR 16.2%), driven by government R&D investment, defense applications, weather modeling needs, AI, and machine learning. By 2029, the market is expected to reach $32.11 billion, with a CAGR of 19.5%.
As reported earlier, President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev was presented on Wednesday with local IT solutions in MedTech, EdTech, GovTech, and manufacturing.
