What is the Rhea1 Project?
Rhea1 is a groundbreaking HPC and AI processor developed under the SiPearl brand, marking a major milestone as the most complex processor ever designed in Europe. Born from the European Processor Initiative (EPI) consortium, this processor aims to equip European supercomputers with sovereign, cutting-edge hardware. Designed by SiPearl’s R&D teams, Rhea1 delivers exceptional computing power and energy efficiency tailored for high-performance computing and AI inference workloads. Currently being manufactured at TSMC, the world’s leading semiconductor foundry, Rhea1 is set for sampling in early 2026 and will power JUPITER, Europe’s first exascale supercomputer capable of performing a billion billion calculations per second.
Main Benefits of Rhea1
Rhea1 packs a punch with its impressive specs and strategic advantages:
- Surpasses the performance of 10,000,000 laptops combined.
- Significant energy savings thanks to its Arm-based architecture.
- Designed to be flexible, working seamlessly with any third-party accelerator—GPU, AI, or even quantum.
- Backdoor-free and kill switch-free to ensure secure, end-to-end data transmission.
- Supported by a mature Arm software ecosystem for robust development and deployment.
- Strengthens Europe’s technological sovereignty and leadership in strategic sectors.
Technical Features That Set Rhea1 Apart
Rhea1 integrates 80 Arm® Neoverse V1 cores, each equipped with two 256-bit Scalable Vector Extension (SVE) units. It boasts built-in High Bandwidth Memory (HBM) with four stacks, alongside four DDR5 interfaces supporting two DIMMs per channel. The processor also features 104 lanes of PCIe Gen5 interface, ensuring blazing-fast data transfer. This combination of generous memory capacity and high bandwidth delivers extraordinary performance and energy efficiency, achieving an unrivaled byte-per-flop ratio. Plus, it’s supported by a wide range of compilers, libraries, and tools, making it a versatile powerhouse for HPC and AI workloads.
SiPearl and the European Processor Initiative Consortium
SiPearl is at the heart of this ambitious project, collaborating closely with 30 partners from the European Processor Initiative consortium. These partners include leading scientific institutions, supercomputing centers, and industry players who are both stakeholders and future users of the technology. With over 190 employees spread across France, Germany, Italy, and Spain, SiPearl is driving the development of this high-performance, low-power microprocessor dedicated to supercomputing and AI inference. The goal? To build a sovereign European microprocessor that supports the EuroHPC Joint Undertaking ecosystem and addresses major challenges in medical research, security, energy management, and climate change.
Strategic Importance and Sovereignty
In today’s complex geopolitical landscape, Rhea1 is more than just a processor—it’s a strategic asset. By enabling Europe to develop and control its own high-performance computing hardware, Rhea1 contributes to technological sovereignty in critical areas such as security, defense, medical research, energy, climate, and engineering. This sovereignty is vital for ensuring that Europe can independently manage sensitive data and applications without relying on external suppliers. Moreover, Rhea1’s energy-efficient design supports a reduced carbon footprint, aligning with Europe’s commitment to sustainable technology development.
Impact on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
- SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being – advancing medical research through powerful computing.
- SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy – optimizing energy management with efficient HPC.
- SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure – fostering technological innovation and infrastructure sovereignty.
- SDG 13: Climate Action – supporting climate research with reduced environmental impact.
- SDG 16: Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions – enhancing security and defense capabilities.
Looking Ahead: The Future of European Supercomputing
Rhea1 is just the beginning. Positioned at the core of supercomputers and servers, this processor and its future generations will tackle the strategic scientific, industrial, and societal challenges of our time. By powering next-generation supercomputing infrastructures, Rhea1 will help improve the daily lives of citizens across Europe and beyond. With its blend of high performance, energy efficiency, and sovereignty, Rhea1 sets a new standard for European technology in the global HPC and AI landscape.
