Digital Event Horizon
NVIDIA and General Atomics have teamed up to create a digital twin that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to simulate fusion reactor performance. The innovative project aims to accelerate fusion energy research by reducing simulation times from weeks to mere seconds, allowing researchers to test hypotheses and refine their designs in near-real-time. Learn more about how NVIDIA is revolutionizing the field of fusion energy with its cutting-edge technologies.
NVIDIA Corporation has collaborated with General Atomics and international partners to develop an AI-powered digital twin for fusion energy research. The project aims to accelerate fusion energy research using NVIDIA's Omniverse platform, CUDA-X libraries, and data center GPUs. The digital twin is designed to simulate real-world conditions, allowing researchers to test hypotheses and refine their designs in near-real-time. AI surrogate models trained on decades of data can predict plasma behavior in seconds, significantly reducing simulation times. The project has significant implications for fusion energy research, potentially leading to practical fusion power.
NVIDIA Corporation has recently made headlines for its groundbreaking collaboration with General Atomics and a team of international partners, led by the UC San Diego School of Computing, Information and Data Sciences, the Argonne Leadership Computing Facility (ACLF) at Argonne National Laboratory, and National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center (NERSC) at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. The ambitious project aims to accelerate fusion energy research by harnessing the power of artificial intelligence (AI) and high-performance computing.
The project utilizes NVIDIA's Omniverse platform, CUDA-X libraries, and data center GPUs to create a high-fidelity digital twin for a fusion reactor. This virtual representation of the reactor is designed to simulate real-world conditions, allowing researchers to test hypotheses and refine their designs in near-real-time. The digital twin is built using Polaris at the ALCF and Perlmutter at NERSC supercomputing systems, which enable the training of three distinct AI surrogate models at scale.
The AI surrogate models used in this project are trained on decades of real-world data and can predict plasma behavior in seconds, significantly reducing simulation times from weeks to mere seconds. These models include EFIT (for plasma equilibrium), CAKE (for plasma boundary), and ION ORB (for heat density of escaping ions). By leveraging AI, researchers can interact with the reactor virtually, exploring scenarios that may damage the reactor without risk.
The digital twin is powered by NVIDIA RTX PRO Servers and NVIDIA DGX Spark, which provide a unified, real-time interactive environment for researchers to quickly inform decisions. The virtual reactor dynamically fuses sensor data, physics-based simulations, engineering models, and AI surrogate models, creating a seamless and synchronized experience with the physical DIII-D reactor.
This innovative project has significant implications for fusion energy research, as it allows scientists to tackle one of science's toughest problems: making fusion energy work on Earth. Fusion promises virtually limitless, clean energy by replicating the process that powers the sun. By harnessing AI and high-performance computing, researchers can accelerate the path toward practical fusion power.
According to General Atomics' fusion data science lead, Raffi Nazikian, "The ability to explore scenarios virtually through this interactive digital twin is a game-changer." This sentiment is echoed by other researchers involved in the project, who acknowledge that AI has revolutionized the field of fusion energy research. By leveraging NVIDIA's cutting-edge technologies and expertise, General Atomics aims to push the boundaries of fusion research forward.
The collaboration between NVIDIA and General Atomics serves as a prime example of how companies are working together to accelerate innovation in the field of artificial intelligence. The project not only showcases NVIDIA's commitment to scientific research but also highlights the company's role in advancing AI capabilities for real-world applications.
In conclusion, the groundbreaking digital twin project initiated by NVIDIA, General Atomics, and their international partners marks a significant milestone in fusion energy research. By harnessing the power of AI and high-performance computing, researchers can accelerate the path toward practical fusion power, providing a cleaner and more sustainable source of energy for future generations.
Related Information:
https://www.digitaleventhorizon.com/articles/NVIDIA-Revolutionizes-Fusion-Energy-Research-with-Groundbreaking-Digital-Twin-Project-deh.shtml
https://blogs.nvidia.com/blog/nvidia-general-atomics-fusion/
Published: Tue Oct 28 16:06:48 2025 by llama3.2 3B Q4_K_M
