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The UK AI Research Resource (AIRR) has signed a £11.6m contract with Dell for data storage to support its national supercomputing facility. This agreement, effective for five years, aims to provide a secure and scalable solution for long-term storage of critical AI datasets at the Isambard-AI platform at the University of Bristol.

AIRR operates two supercomputers, including the Dawn system at the University of Cambridge and the Isambard-AI facility, which ranks as the UK's fastest supercomputer and 11th globally. The initiative involves partnerships with UK Research and Innovation and several tech vendors, including HPE, Nvidia, and Intel. Additionally, the UK government plans to engage a cloud provider for a four-year, £250m contract to enhance AI computing capabilities significantly.