Pure Storage® Powers PROJECTR®

Pure Storage® Powers PROJECTR®.

PROJECTR® and Pure Storage Inc today announced a partnership to power PROJECTR’s artificial intelligence and virtual reality research programmes with the installation of a powerful Kubernetes cluster backed by high performance storage designed to accelerate the training of AI models, machine learning algorithms and the computational processes associated with rendering for virtual reality, particularly photogrammetry VR.

PROJECTR® is the home of Virtual Reality in New Zealand. The collaborative workspace has recently added two expert resident teams with a focus on Artificial Intelligence, broadening access to allow more multidisciplinary engagement between these new technologies. With 20 companies operating from the Centre, partnering with Pure Storage® allows PROJECTR® Wellington to be able to offer in-house processing power to drive innovation.

Headquartered in Mountain View California, Pure Storage Inc. (NYSE: PSTG) was founded in 2009 and accelerates data driven outcomes, transforming businesses in ways previously unimagined. The company’s disruptive, software-driven storage technology drives business and IT transformation for customers through dramatic increases in performance and efficiency at lower costs.

The Kubernetes cluster is designed specifically to provide rapid data access to speed up training for AI and machine learning, persistent data portability to move prototypes from the training centre into larger scale production environments, and orchestrated provisioning of development environments.

On-demand AI infrastructure
For local startup and PROJECTR resident, Intela AI, the high performance Kubernetes cluster will provide on-demand AI infrastructure; enabling their team of data scientists to accelerate the development of machine learning models for their own product development and for client projects.

Intela co-founder and CEO, Asa Cox, is thrilled to have facilitated the installation and says that there is building anticipation from his team to gain access. “Having all of this processing power sitting in the next room is a godsend for our business,” says Mr Cox.

PROJECTR and Pure Storage have granted Intela exclusivity to promote a new AI Training service to external clients.

“We are excited to support the local AI community and New Zealand businesses in the investigation of potential AI applications where previously, suitable hardware had previously been a constraint,” enthused Mr Cox.

The power of Pure Storage and NVIDIA innovation
PROJECTR and Pure Storage are working with NVIDIA to add additional GPU and deep learning capability to the Kubernetes cluster. NVIDIA have developed their graphical processing units into a computer brain that lies at the intersection of virtual reality, high performance computing and artificial intelligence.

For the resident team tackling major photogrammetry projects at RealityVirtual, working with phenomenally large datasets is all in a day’s work. The expansion of their big data operation with an increase in processing and manipulation means access to brute force computational requirements is a must.

RealityVirtual founder and Chief Visionary Officer, Simon Che de Boer, believes that the processing power of Pure Storage in conjunction with the CUDA architecture from NVIDIA will provide a tremendous leap forward in their ability to turn around 'slice-of-life' VR experiences on a scale that exceeds their advanced pipeline in data management.

“As a director of Virtual Reality, I am truly excited as to the tantalizing possibilities that Pure Storage and NVIDIA will open up for us. The passion and artistic license that can be supported by this computational power should not be understated,” says Mr Che de Boer.

Strategic Partnership
This strategic partnership between PROJECTR® Wellington and Pure Storage Inc. will provide a high-profile showcase of world class AI and VR solutions powered by this technology. For local Pure Storage representative, Sam Schuurman, partnering with PROJECTR to provide high end in-house computing resources to its residents was an easy decision.

“The transformational potential of AI and VR for New Zealand is enormous and PROJECTR is home to some of the best local talent in the field. The global partnership between NVIDIA and Pure Storage is helping organisations around the world improve their time to value for AI and VR initiatives, so we are very confident that this partnership will deliver impressive results for the start-ups who choose PROJECTR as their home for AI and VR,” states Mr Schuurman.

PROJECTR Wellington was conceived by virtual reality industry leader Michael Gregg in 2016 and opened in February 2017 as a collaborative cross reality (XR) co-working space, R&D project hub and events venue. This partnership with Pure Storage demonstrates the opportunities that arise from bringing together world-leading hi-tech innovators under a single roof.

Mr Gregg is adamant that this will provide a tangible lift in innovation and speed to market for PROJECTR® residents who utilise the Pure Storage® Kubernetes cluster.

“Not only can the large data processing requirements of our residents be better serviced, but this will allow for greater research and multidisciplinary collaboration between AI and VR – something we’ve been trying to stimulate in recent months,” says Mr Gregg.

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