Mexico to Build latin America‘s Most Powerful Supercomputer
MEXICO CITY (AP) – Mexico announced Wednesday plans to construct a supercomputer projected to be the most powerful in Latin America,a move officials say will position the country at the forefront of artificial intelligence development and considerably expand its data processing capabilities.
The project, named “Coatlicue” after the Aztec goddess of earth, is anticipated to be seven times more powerful than the current regional leader located in Brazil, according to José merino, head of the Telecommunications and Digital Change Agency. President Claudia Sheinbaum revealed the initiative during her daily press conference, stating construction is slated to begin next year, though a specific location remains undecided.
This investment reflects a growing global race to harness the potential of AI, with nations increasingly recognizing supercomputing power as critical infrastructure. Currently, Mexico’s most powerful supercomputer operates at 2.3 petaflops – one quadrillion operations per second. Coatlicue is projected to achieve a capacity of 314 petaflops, enabling advancements in fields like climate modeling, scientific research, and data analysis.
“It is going to allow Mexico to fully get in on the use of artificial intelligence and the processing of data that today we don’t have the capacity to do,” Sheinbaum, an academic and climate scientist, said.
The development comes as Latin American countries seek to reduce their reliance on foreign technology and foster domestic innovation in the rapidly evolving tech landscape. The Coatlicue project signals Mexico’s ambition to become a regional hub for AI research and development.