Daejeon Metropolitan City, Yuseong District. Daedeok Research Complex.
This was the Daedeok Research Complex, Korea's representative core hub for science and technology research, developed over many years after the government established a national-level plan in 1973 to advance and achieve self-reliance in science and technology, which had lagged behind compared to advanced countries.
With Chungnam National University's Daedeok Campus, the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), various universities, numerous government-funded research institutes, and private research centers all gathered in one place, it was no exaggeration to call it the cradle of Korea's science and technology.
Recently, a new facility had been built in one corner of this Daedeok Research Complex: the new research center of the Advanced Institute of Technology.
Built on a vast site of over 690,000 pyeong, the Daedeok Research Center was constructed with a main building of four basement levels and eight floors above ground at its core, surrounded in a semicircle by eight auxiliary buildings.
Wearing a slim, high-end suit, Seok-won visited the Daedeok Research Center of the Advanced Institute of Technology, where finishing work was in full swing, with a safety helmet on his head.
Normally, a site manager would handle the tour, but since Seok-won was a VIP among VIPs, Executive Director Lee Hap-su came down in person from the headquarters of Hyeonwoo Construction, the company in charge of the project.
Tall and broad-shouldered, Executive Director Lee Hap-su, with a yellow safety helmet pressed down on his head, explained the progress of the construction with a slightly tense expression.
"As you can see, we've finished all the structural work, and we're currently proceeding with the interior construction."
As he looked around the main lobby, which was quite bright with sunlight streaming in, Seok-won asked,
"What's the overall progress rate?"
Executive Director Lee Hap-su, who had caught his gaze, quickly replied,
"We've passed 90%."
"Then the construction is almost finished."
"At the latest, we should be able to complete it by January next year."
True to the fact that the project was in its final stages, the lobby walls and floors were already laid with marble finishes, and all the large floor-to-ceiling glass windows had been installed.
"Finishing the construction quickly is good, but it would be a problem if defects appear or an accident happens along the way. Make sure the work is carried out safely and thoroughly, no matter what."
"Of course. We're building it sturdy enough that even an earthquake wouldn't faze it, so please don't worry."
Executive Director Lee Hap-su replied with confidence.
After being entrusted with two large-scale projects in a row, from the Seogwipo Space Center to the Daedeok Research Center, and with the client not only setting a generous construction budget but also paying on time, and in cash, this was, from the construction company's point of view, the best possible client.
On top of that, since Seok-won owned WB Bank, which held a large stake among the creditors jointly managing Hyeonwoo Construction while it was in workout status, they had no choice but to pay even more attention to the project.
"The ceiling is quite high."
Seok-won said as he tilted his head back and looked up.
"We designed it to enhance the sense of openness not just in the lobby, but throughout the entire building, so that the researchers can think creatively in a comfortable environment."
Seok-won gave a small nod as if in agreement.
"It's better in many ways to have spacious rooms rather than cramming people in like sardines."
Most research would be done indoors, but having a bright, wide-open space to step out into once in a while to catch one's breath would be refreshing and good for a change of pace.
As Seok-won began to walk forward slowly, Executive Director Lee Hap-su hurried to follow behind with the rest of the group and continued his explanation.
"This main building, as well as each of the individual buildings, has been equipped with its own high-capacity emergency generator, so even if a power outage occurs, we can supply electricity independently for at least four days."
"When important research is underway, we can't afford problems caused by external factors, so make sure not only the power systems but all facilities are duplicated."
At that, Choi Sang-su, the director of the Advanced Institute of Technology, who was walking along on the left, picked up the conversation with a smile.
"Of course. Just as you instructed, Chairman, the emergency generators you heard about earlier have been installed as two separate units, a main and a sub, so we can respond immediately to any unexpected variables."
"Good work."
Seok-won replied with a satisfied expression.
After touring the interior of the research center, where the finishing work was in full swing, the group arrived at a plain, box-shaped four-story building attached right next to the main building.
Unlike the other buildings, it had no windows at all except on the first floor, giving it the look of a massive block of concrete.
Passing through a small lobby and going inside, they were met with a vast space that looked as if an entire floor had been completely emptied.
Fresh paint had been neatly applied to the walls, and the epoxy-coated floor shone smoothly like a mirror.
It was a space that even felt somewhat barren, but Director Choi Sang-su spoke in a voice full of pride.
" This is where the supercomputer, which will become the heart of the new research center, will be installed. "
Since they were set to have, along with the Seogwipo Space Center, the highest-performance supercomputer in the country, not only Director Choi Sang-su but also the other institute executives with him had faces full of excitement and anticipation.
Seeing that, Seok-won let out a small chuckle, then spoke as if something had just come to mind.
"By the way, there was something I meant to tell you but forgot. We decided to switch to a different model instead of the supercomputer we originally planned to install."
"Pardon?"
At the sudden news, Director Choi Sang-su and the institute executives stirred, their faces showing confusion.
"W-What do you mean by that?"
"It was a decision I made right before returning to the country, so I didn't get a chance to tell you."
The way he said it, with both hands shoved into his trouser pockets, Director Choi Sang-su was left at a loss for words.
The institute executives standing behind him also fell silent, exchanging glances with one another.
The model that had originally been slated for installation was a supercomputer with a performance of 12.3 teraflops, costing a staggering 120 million dollars.
So if it had been changed to a different model, everyone seemed to assume that the performance had been downgraded because the cost burden was too great.
They were deeply disappointed, given how high their expectations had been, but Director Choi Sang-su tried hard not to show it and spoke.
"No, it's fine. The model we were going to bring in originally was a bit over-spec, after all."
Dr. Park Sang-mo, who was standing beside him, also hurriedly chimed in.
"That's right. Considering that all the supercomputers currently in operation domestically have performance below 1 teraflops, it really was overkill."
The other institute executives nodded in agreement, but they could not completely hide their disappointed expressions.
Swallowing a smile, Seok-won put on an innocent face and said as if it were nothing.
"The new supercomputer we're switching to instead of the original model is based on Linux and uses 130,000 state-of-the-art high-performance processors, so it can deliver a maximum computing speed of 367 teraflops."
"I see. Even if it's 3.67 teraflops, that's still far superior to the supercomputers currently in use domestically, so..."
As Director Choi Sang-su was going on, he suddenly realized something was off and blinked.
"Did you just say 367 teraflops? Not 3.67?"
Seok-won broke into a grin, showing his white teeth with a playful expression.
"That's right. You heard it correctly."
"Good heavens!"
Director Choi Sang-su sucked in a sharp breath, his eyes wide open.
The institute executives with him were also so shocked that they froze on the spot.
After all, it was a computing speed that far surpassed the 35.6 teraflops of the NEC Earth Simulator at Japan's Marine Science and Technology Center, which was the world's highest-performance supercomputer in existence at the time, so it was only natural to be stunned.
Director Choi Sang-su, the first to regain his composure, asked again as if to confirm it, his face still full of disbelief.
"Are you sure you didn't mean 36.7 teraflops by mistake?"
At that, the other institute executives also looked at Seok-won with blazing eyes.
As the institute staff suddenly began to show a strange eagerness and slowly gathered closer, Executive Director Lee Hap-su and the construction company staff standing on the opposite side had no idea what was going on and looked at him with puzzled expressions.
With everyone's attention focused on him, Seok-won spoke in a relaxed manner.
"It's 367 teraflops."
"!"
With their pupils trembling violently, Director Choi Sang-su stammered as he asked.
"But 367 teraflops… I've never even heard of that. Even Japan's supercomputer, which is said to be the world's best, is only 35.6 teraflops. How could something like that suddenly appear?"
The institute executives also looked confused about whether they should believe this or not.
Hearing "367 teraflops," they had been momentarily swept up in excitement, but when they thought about it, it was performance that was simply impossible to believe.
At that moment, Dr. Lee Jong-bae, who had earned his degree in computer engineering at MIT, stepped forward while adjusting his horn-rimmed glasses.
"Are you saying that a supercomputer with that kind of performance really exists?"
Seok-won shrugged and replied.
"Well, since it hasn't actually been built and put into operation yet, it's hard to say that it truly exists."
"Ah…"
Dr. Lee Jong-bae and the institute executives, who had shown disappointed expressions for a moment, swallowed dryly at what came next.
"But IBM has already completed both the design and development at the request of the U.S. Department of Energy. So, unless something major goes wrong, it will be installed here at the Daedeok Research Center and at the Seogwipo Space Center for the first time, at the same time as in the United States, next year."
As if something had suddenly come to mind, Dr. Lee Jong-bae asked in a trembling voice.
"Are you talking about the Blue Gene/L project, by any chance?"
"That's right. As expected of someone in the field, you know it well."
Dr. Lee Jong-bae, visibly excited, nodded repeatedly and spoke rapidly.
"I once heard from a former colleague at MIT that the U.S. Department of Energy was developing an ultra-high-performance supercomputer for joint use not only by its affiliated research labs but also by NASA and the ASCI university consortium. But I never dreamed that we would bring that here and get to use it ourselves."
Then Dr. Lee Jong-bae suddenly stiffened and looked at him with a troubled expression.
"If it's a supercomputer with that level of performance, it would be equipment that the U.S. government manages as a strategic asset. I wonder whether we'd even be able to install and use it…"
Director Choi Sang-su and the other institute executives, who had been listening intently, also had worried looks pass across their faces.
But Seok-won replied with a relaxed smile.
"There's no need to worry. We've already received approval from the U.S. government."
At that, Dr. Lee Jong-bae looked puzzled.
"Are you saying the U.S. government agreed to let a supercomputer with that level of performance be exported so easily?"
"That's right."
Seok-won gave a light shrug and added,
"In fact, along with Blue Gene/L, IBM also developed a supercomputer called ASCI Purple. I hear it has monstrous performance, capable of performing 467 trillion calculations per second."
"G-Good heavens. 467 teraflops!"
"That's incredible."
"We don't even have a 1-teraflops supercomputer yet, and they've developed a new one with hundreds of times that performance…"
"As expected of the United States."
The institute executives could not hide their bitter expressions, even as they marveled at America's overwhelming technological prowess.
And they could understand why the U.S. government had approved the export of Blue Gene/L, which had such overwhelming performance.
"From the standpoint of the Department of Energy and IBM as well, wouldn't it be more beneficial to build three units at the same time and greatly reduce costs, rather than producing just a single supercomputer that requires so much manpower and effort?"
"That's certainly true."
Dr. Lee Jong-bae nodded, looking convinced.
Given that a supercomputer had performance far beyond anything comparable to an ordinary computer, it inevitably had to use a large number of specially manufactured parts rather than off-the-shelf components.
Naturally, that would drive the manufacturing cost through the roof, but if they built three units at once instead of just one, there was the advantage of effectively splitting the cost by a third.
"With performance like that, the supercomputer must be extremely expensive."
When Director Choi Sang-su said this while rubbing his chin, Seok-won replied as if it were no big deal.
"It is, a bit."
"…May I ask how much, by any chance?"
"For now, we got a quote of 240 million dollars per unit."
Director Choi Sang-su's mouth fell open when he heard the figure.
It was an enormous sum, about 300 billion won in Korean currency, so it was only natural.
And that was not even just one unit. Including the one to be installed at the Seogwipo Space Center, it came to a staggering 480 million dollars.
But even as the people around him were aghast, Seok-won acted as if it were nothing special.
"Japan already has a 35.6-teraflops supercomputer, so we can't exactly bring in something inferior and install it while calling it the latest model."
Seok-won smiled faintly as he looked at Director Choi Sang-su, who still seemed unable to fully process things.
"It's a shame we can't have the top-performing supercomputer, but even if we bring in the second-fastest model, it will be a huge help for research."
"Of course! If we can really make use of a supercomputer like that, we'll be able to greatly reduce the researchers' effort and time."
The other institute executives also nodded vigorously, their faces full of anticipation.
They all looked eager to start using a supercomputer with such incredible performance as soon as possible.
Seok-won then turned his head and looked at Executive Director Lee Hap-su, who had been standing there awkwardly, unable to take part in the conversation at all.
"Since the model of the supercomputer to be installed has changed, you'll need to reinforce the capacity of the cooling and power systems to match the new specifications."
"Ah, yes."
"While you're revising it anyway, make sure to secure plenty of extra capacity so it'll be easy to expand later. The people from the institute will help you with the details."
"Understood."
Seok-won then resumed walking, finished touring the research facilities, and returned to Seoul with everyone seeing him off.
TL/n -
The maximum computing speed of 367 teraflops refers to the performance of the IBM Blue Gene/L supercomputer, which achieved this milestone in its performance testing. This measurement indicates the number of floating-point operations that can be performed per second, making it one of the most powerful supercomputers in the world.