Cambridge Named First CUDA Center of Excellence in Europe

LONDON, UK – DECEMBER 4, 2008 – Today NVIDIA announces that Cambridge University is the first institution in Europe to be awarded the prestigious CUDA Centre of Excellence status. This award recognises, rewards, and fosters collaboration with universities at the forefront of research with massively parallel computing with graphics processing units (GPUs).

In collaboration with universities worldwide, NVIDIA developed its CUDA parallel computing architecture to allow researchers easy access to the massively parallel computational power of the GPU. Cambridge joins the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, the University of Utah and the Tokyo Institute of Technology, an elite group of institutions which have all been named CUDA Centres of Excellence.

Dr David Kirk, NVIDIA Chief Scientist, says: “Schools identified as part of this programme have proposed a unique vision for improving the technology and application of parallel computing. With this award we are recognising Cambridge University’s unique contribution to this field, as well as donating hardware and funding to advance their discoveries.”

Dr Graham Pullan, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Lecturer in Turbomachinery at Cambridge University, adds: “We’re very pleased and honoured to receive this award from NVIDIA. Cambridge University is an epicentre of CUDA activity and as a CUDA Centre of Excellence we look forward to working with NVIDIA to cement our reputation as a leader in computational science.”

The award will be accepted by Dr Graham Pullan from Dr David Kirk at a ceremony in London this afternoon. Video coverage of the award will be available at www.youtube.com/nvidiatesla.

About NVIDIA

NVIDIA is the world leader in visual computing technologies and the inventor of the GPU, a high-performance processor which generates breathtaking, interactive graphics on workstations, personal computers, game consoles, and mobile devices. The GPU’s massively parallel processor architecture also enables high performance computing with the CUDA platform. NVIDIA serves the entertainment and consumer market with its GeForce® graphics products, the professional design and visualization market with its Quadro® graphics products, and the high-performance computing market with its Tesla™ computing solutions products. NVIDIA is headquartered in Santa Clara, Calif. and has offices throughout Asia, Europe, and the Americas.