UW, NVIDIA, NSF ASCEND Engine to Host Mountain West AI & HPC Summit Aug. 31-Sept. 2

The University of Wyoming, NVIDIA and the National Science Foundation (NSF) ASCEND Engine in Colorado and Wyoming will co-host the Mountain West AI & HPC Summit Monday, Aug. 31, through Wednesday, Sept. 2, at the UW Conference Center.

The three-day conference will focus on advancing collaboration, research, workforce development and innovation in artificial intelligence (AI) and high-performance computing (HPC) across the region.

The summit will bring together faculty, researchers, students, AI developers, entrepreneurs and technology leaders from across the Mountain West to explore the rapidly expanding role of AI and advanced computing in research, education and industry.

As AI continues to transform how organizations conduct research, educate students and prepare the workforce, the summit will provide opportunities for participants to engage with leading experts and emerging technologies through keynote presentations, technical sessions, panel discussions and hands-on training.

“Artificial intelligence and high-performance computing are fundamentally reshaping how universities advance research, prepare students and serve their states and communities,” UW President Shane Reeves says. “The Mountain West AI & HPC Summit reflects the University of Wyoming’s commitment to fostering innovation and creating opportunities for collaboration among academia, industry, government and entrepreneurs. By bringing together leading minds and emerging talent, we are positioning the Mountain West as a region where transformative technologies can drive discovery, economic growth, AI-savvy students and workforce development for AI-embedded industries.”

The event will feature an exceptional lineup of distinguished speakers from government, academia, industry and the military.

 

In addition to Reeves, invited speakers include Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon; Frank Wuerthwein, director of the San Diego Supercomputer Center and a nationally recognized leader in advanced cyberinfrastructure, high-performance computing and data-intensive scientific research; Hans van Oostrom, a leader in research computing and cyberinfrastructure who has advanced collaborations supporting AI, data science and high-performance computing initiatives across higher education; Chris Malachowsky, co-founder and NVIDIA Fellow; Mike Freeman, CEO of Innosphere and the NSF ASCEND Engine; and Parag Chitnis, UW’s vice president for research and economic development.

 

Also, Col. Christopher Lowrance, associate professor and deputy head of the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and former chief autonomous systems engineer for the U.S. Army Artificial Intelligence Task Force; and Kraig Sheetz, executive vice president of UW and former vice dean for engagement and research at West Point, will speak.

 

Together, these leaders represent nationally recognized expertise in artificial intelligence, advanced computing, high-performance computing, research administration, cyberinfrastructure, technology commercialization, innovation ecosystems, higher education leadership, military innovation, autonomous systems, national security, scientific computing and workforce development.

 

Hands-on sessions, led by NVIDIA, will focus on graphics processing unit (GPU) computing skills, performance profiling and AI model development. These workshops will provide faculty members, researchers, students, startups and industry developers with practical experience using modern AI and HPC tools and technologies.

Concurrent tracks of presentations and panel discussions will explore a range of topics, including applied AI, GPU computing, edge AI and edge computing, quantum computing, atmospheric science, transportation and other emerging technology applications. Through these sessions, attendees will gain insights into how advanced computing is driving innovation across sectors while helping address complex regional and global challenges.

“AI and advanced computing are rapidly becoming essential tools across nearly every research and industry sector,” Chitnis says. “This summit provides a valuable forum for researchers, students, developers, startups and industry partners to exchange ideas, build new collaborations and gain practical experience with cutting-edge technologies. Through partnerships with NVIDIA and the NSF ASCEND Engine, we are strengthening the region’s innovation ecosystem and helping ensure that the Mountain West is prepared to lead in the AI-driven education and economy.”

“The NSF ASCEND Engine teams are at the forefront of high consequence, applied AI, particularly in the area of natural hazard preparedness and response. Building trustworthy, operations-ready capabilities to support wildfire and drought resilience is critical for economic vitality and national security,” says Sam Malloy, director of research and development for the NSF ASCEND Engine. “This event, made possible through our close partnership with NVIDIA and the University of Wyoming, demonstrates NSF’s Regional Innovation Engines program in action, where we’re able to direct focused resources to catalyze and accelerate deep learning solutions across startups, researchers and trainees within our innovation network.”

The Mountain West AI & HPC Summit reflects a shared commitment among UW, NVIDIA and the NSF ASCEND Engine to accelerate innovation; expand access to advanced computing resources; and build the skilled workforce needed for an AI-enabled future.

For more information about the summit, including agenda details and registration information, visit the Mountain West AI & HPC Summit website.

About the NSF ASCEND Engine

The NSF ASCEND Engine -- Advanced Sensing and Computation for Environmental Decision Making -- is a U.S. National Science Foundation Regional Innovation Engine led by Innosphere. Based along the Interstate 25 Innovation Corridor, the NSF ASCEND Engine connects Colorado and Wyoming’s federal laboratories, Carnegie R1 universities and technology companies to develop scalable solutions for wildfire, drought, extreme weather and environmental resilience. Every NSF ASCEND Engine program is built with commercialization as a design requirement -- moving scientific advances efficiently from discovery to deployment through three technical layers: advanced sensing and data generation, computational analytics and decision support tools that translate research into commercial products and public services. For more information, go to www.innosphere.org/nsf-engine.