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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Technology
Aisha Down and Dan Milmo

From press release … to scrap metal site: the Essex ‘supercomputer’ that’s still a scaffolding yard

A truck in a yard filled with scaffolding, photographed through an open gate
It generally takes 18 to 36 months to build a hyperscale AI site – such as, presumably, one of the world’s most powerful supercomputers. Photograph: Martin Godwin/The Guardian

The press releases announcing a gleaming supercomputer on the outskirts of north London depict a glass and concrete building, rising from a tree-lined street. Accompanied by images of glowing blue robot faces, it looks like the centre of a technological revolution.

By the end of this year, that artist’s impression is supposed to be a reality.

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