UK funds Sunrise 1.4MW AI supercomputer for fusion

The UK government is investing £45 million to deploy a 1.4MW mission-focused supercomputer named ‘Sunrise’ at UKAEA’s Culham Campus, targeted to begin operation in June, as a first step toward establishing an AI Growth Zone.

• Main announcement & implementation: The UK government (funded by DESNZ) is providing £45 million to build the 1.4MW Sunrise supercomputer at UKAEA Culham Campus, targeted for operation in June; Sunrise will deliver up to 6.76 Exaflops of AI-accelerated modelling to address plasma turbulence, materials development, and tritium fuel breeding and support fusion programmes (LIBRTI, STEP).
• Background & partners: The project is a collaboration between AMD, Dell Technologies, Intel, UKAEA, University of Cambridge, WEKA, DSIT and others; it links to prior investment including £36 million into the Cambridge supercomputing center in January 2026 and builds on earlier plans to use supercomputers and AI (Industrial Metaverse) for fusion powerplant development.