HPC Nexus Lab at TU Dublin Partners in All-Island Initiative to Grow Women's Representation in High-Performance Computing
TU Dublin is proud to announce that its HPC Nexus Lab is collaborating with the Irish Centre for High-End Computing (ICHEC) and Northern Ireland High-Performance Computing (NI-HPC) in launching the Women in High-Performance Computing (WHPC) Ireland Chapter. Officially inaugurated at a special event in Dublin on Thursday, 20th March 2025, the WHPC Ireland Chapter aims to expand the representation of women in High-Performance Computing (HPC) across the island of Ireland. Dr Tania Malik, Lecturer and Founding Director of the HPC Nexus Lab at TU Dublin, expressed enthusiasm for the initiative:
The formation of the WHPC Ireland Chapter is not just a milestone; it’s a movement that reinforces our shared commitment to equity, collaboration, and innovation. By bringing together academia, industry, and the wider HPC community across the island of Ireland, we hope to create pathways for meaningful participation, mentorship, and leadership for women and underrepresented groups in this field. We are proud to stand alongside ICHEC and NI-HPC in supporting this important initiative.
The launch event drew a diverse audience of industry professionals, academic leaders, researchers, and students from Ireland and Northern Ireland. Attendees participated in keynote talks, panel discussions, and networking sessions, all designed to inspire and empower underrepresented voices in HPC. Professor Kate Robson Brown, Vice President for Research, Innovation, and Impact at University College Dublin, opened the event, stating:
I am delighted to support the launch of the Women in HPC Ireland Chapter. High Performance Computing underpins many of our national ambitions in research, innovation and learning, and we must work together to offer opportunities to engage as widely and deeply as possible and maximise accessibility within and across sectors. W-HPC Ireland will bring researchers, technicians and developers together from commercial and higher education sectors right across our shared island.
The All-Island initiative seeks to address gender diversity in HPC by creating greater opportunities for women and underrepresented groups in the field. Through mentorship, professional development, and international networking, WHPC Ireland will connect individuals with the global WHPC movement, fostering inclusivity and innovation in computing research and development. Professor Jean-Christophe Desplat, Director of the Irish Centre for High-End Computing, emphasised:
At ICHEC, we are fully cognisant of the importance of gender diversity in the workplace and yet have been struggling to achieve the necessary balance, despite our commitment to diversity. The creation of an all-Ireland Chapter of Women of HPC, with our friends from NI-HPC, provides a much-needed vehicle to define and implement a longer-term, more structured approach to solving this challenge, sharing experiences and best practice.
By leveraging expertise from academia, industry, and research centres, this initiative aims to create lasting change in the field, ensuring that diverse perspectives are included in the development and application of cutting-edge technologies. Professor Peter Robertson, Associate Pro-Vice Chancellor for Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion at Queen’s University Belfast, commented:
AI and HPC are at the forefront of global research, impacting not only tech and science but industries of all kinds. We’re thrilled to welcome the WHPC Chapter to the island of Ireland. As researchers, we must do everything we can to ensure women and underrepresented voices have a platform. Diversity fuels innovation, and with this initiative, we have the chance to make lasting change.
By working together across borders, the WHPC Ireland Chapter is set to make a tangible impact on gender diversity in computing. David Smyth, Director of Northern Ireland High-Performance Computing, remarked:
It is wonderful to see the extension of the Women in HPC community to the island of Ireland. Now, more than ever, it is important that we have a diverse and inclusive voice in the supercomputing community, raising the visibility of underrepresented groups and highlighting their contribution to the success of HPC and the wider research environment. NI-HPC are fully behind the mission and strategic objectives of Women In HPC and are committed to being supportive allies of the Chapter.
Learn more: Women in High-Performance Computing
About the Partners:
- HPC Nexus Lab is the first dedicated centre for High-Performance Computing research at TU Dublin, officially established at the School of Informatics and Cybersecurity, Faculty of Computing, Digital, and Data in May 2024. The lab fosters a community of graduate students, academics, and industry professionals dedicated to advancing HPC research and interdisciplinary collaboration.
- NI-HPC is a UK Tier-2 National HPC facility jointly managed by Queen’s University Belfast and Ulster University, funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council. It aims to broaden access to HPC technologies across Northern Ireland.
- ICHEC, based at the University of Galway, is Ireland’s national centre for High-Performance Computing. Supported by the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation, and Skills, ICHEC provides computing infrastructure and expertise to academia, industry, and the public sector.