SciNet
SciNet is a non-profit high-performance computing consortium at the University of Toronto operating one of Canada's most powerful academic supercomputers, providing free GPU/CPU compute, secure enclaves, storage, and training to Canadian academic researchers across multiple disciplines.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2005
- HeadquartersToronto, Canada
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
SciNet firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- SciNet
- Legal name
- SciNet High Performance Computing Consortium at the University of Toronto
- Website
- https://scinethpc.ca
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2005
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- SciNet is a non-profit high-performance computing consortium at the University of Toronto operating one of Canada's most powerful academic supercomputers, providing free GPU/CPU compute, secure enclaves, storage, and training to Canadian academic researchers across multiple disciplines.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
SciNet industry classification
Industry- Product category
- High-Performance Computing Services
- NAICS
- Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services (518210), Computer Systems Design and Related Services (5415), Other Computer Related Services (541519), Computer Training (611420), Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (6113)
- SIC
- Electronic Computers (3571), Computer Storage Devices (3572), Computer Communications Equipment (3576), Services-Computer Processing & Data Preparation (7374)
- akta.pro primary industry
- HPC Clusters & Scale-Out Compute (x86/ARM) (HDACAOAB)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- High-Performance Computing (HPC) Cluster Nodes & Systems (HDACABAH), Storage Networking & Connectivity (Fibre Channel, iSCSI, HBAs, Switches) (HDACACAF), Research Computing & High-Performance Computing (HPC) User Support (EDALAMAK), Technical & Scientific Expert Networks (BPAHALAH), Confidential Computing & Hardware-backed Protection (TEE/HSM) (HDADAFAJ)
Keywords
Where SciNet is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Toronto
- HQ country
- Canada
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
SciNet business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Government Funding: Funded by Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED), the Digital Research Alliance of Canada, the Ontario Ministry of Colleges and Universities, and the University of Toronto
- Commercial Usage Fees: Former academics and collaborators can continue using HPC infrastructure at a competitive fee. Commercial users receive 40 dedicated Neptune nodes and same level of support as academic users.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Free academic access for Canadian researchers |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels8 records
SciNet product offering
Product offeringCore offering
SciNet operates large-scale high-performance computing (HPC) infrastructure and provides the associated expertise to enable Canadian academic research at scale. Core offerings include the Trillium supercomputer (241,056 cores, 252 GPUs), the Balam GPU cluster (41 NVIDIA A100 GPUs), a CMMC 2.0 Level 2-compliant S4H secure enclave for sensitive data, a 90 PB HPSS tape-backed hierarchical storage system, and Open OnDemand for browser-based scientific application access. SciNet also delivers a training and education program comprising certificate programs, graduate courses taught with UofT departments, summer schools, and a Teach Cluster configured for instruction.
Product overview
SciNet is a supercomputing consortium at the University of Toronto providing Canadian researchers with computational resources and expertise for research at scale. The core product is the Trillium supercomputer (241,056 cores, 252 GPUs), complemented by the Balam GPU cluster (41 Nvidia A100 GPUs). Additional offerings include S4H (a CMMC Level 2-compliant secure enclave for sensitive data), the High Performance Storage System (90 PB tape-backed storage), and Open OnDemand for browser-based access to applications. Training and education services include a Certificate Program (Scientific Computing, HPC, Data Science), Graduate Courses in partnership with UofT departments, the Teach Cluster for instruction, Compute Ontario Summer School, and the International HPC Summer School.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Trillium Supercomputer A 241,056-core, 252-GPU supercomputer consisting of a 1,224-node CPU subcluster (AMD Turin) and a 63-node GPU subcluster (AMD Genoa with 4 NVIDIA H100 GPUs each), connected via NDR InfiniBand at 400/800 Gb/s with 29 PB VAST NVMe storage and 34 PF theoretical peak performance. One of the most powerful supercomputers in Canada available for academic research; designed for large parallel jobs of 1,024 cores or more.
- Balam GPU Cluster GPU cluster featuring 41 NVIDIA Tesla A100 GPUs, operated by SciNet on behalf of the Acceleration Consortium at the University of Toronto for GPU-accelerated research workloads.
- S4H Secure Enclave
Quantifiable outcome
- Over 13 million jobs completed on Niagara and Mist clusters
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use SciNet
Customer profileNamed customers5 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
SciNet technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration2 records
Feature5 records
SciNet partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
13 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.
- Digital Research Alliance of CanadacoreSciNet provides resources for the Digital Research Alliance of Canada (formerly Compute Canada), advancing Canada's position in advanced research computing, research data management, and research software.
- University of TorontocoreSciNet is hosted at UofT, which co-funds the consortium and provides administrative support and facilities.
- Compute OntariocoreNot-for-profit supporting advanced computing in Ontario through central strategies, planning, and advocacy. Partners with SciNet, SHARCNET, CAC, and HPC4Health.
- SHARCNETmajorOntario HPC consortium collaborating on Compute Ontario Summer Schools and joint training programs.
- Centre for Advanced Computing (CAC)majorOntario HPC consortium collaborating on Compute Ontario Summer Schools and joint training programs.
- SOSCIP (Southern Ontario Smart Computing Innovation Platform)majorResearch and development consortium pairing academic and industry researchers with advanced computing tools. SciNet hosts SOSCIP resources.
- UofT Department of PhysicsmajorPartnership led to creation of PHY1610H Scientific Computing for Physicists course, taught by SciNet HPC analysts.
- UofT Institute of Medical SciencemajorPartnership led to MSC1090H Introduction to Computational Biostatistics with R course.
- UofT Scarborough - Department of Physical and Environmental SciencesmajorPartnership led to EES1137H Quantitative Applications for Data Analysis course taught by SciNet analysts.
- VAST DatamajorVAST Data's AI Operating System deployed across SciNet supporting large-scale GPU workloads for diverse research disciplines.
- UofT Department of AstrophysicsmajorGraduate course partnership for computational astrophysics education.
- UofT Department of ChemistryminorGraduate course partnership for computational chemistry education.
- UofT Department of Ecology and Evolutionary BiologyminorGraduate course partnership for computational biology education.
Scale indicators10 records
Recent moves11 records
Expansion highlights6 records
SciNet competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center (NERSC): US Department of Energy flagship HPC facility at Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. Larger and broader than SciNet, but highly comparable in mission (science-at-scale compute for academic researchers) and infrastructure-as-public-utility positioning.
- Argonne Leadership Computing Facility (ALCF): US DOE leadership-class HPC facility. Larger incumbent operating Aurora and Theta-class systems for open science. Comparable in scale-tier ambition and academic user community.
- Digital Research Alliance of Canada: The national umbrella organization that channels funding and allocations to SciNet and other regional consortia. Operates as the broader incumbent coordinating Canadian advanced research computing, with SciNet functioning as one of its core regional delivery arms.
Direct peers
- Calcul Québec: Quebec counterpart to SciNet within the Digital Research Alliance of Canada, providing HPC resources to Canadian academic researchers across CPU and GPU clusters. Operates under the same national allocation framework with similar user base and academic mandate.
- Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center (PSC): Joint Carnegie Mellon–University of Pittsburgh HPC center serving US academic researchers with large CPU/GPU systems. Comparable scale, mission, and bridge-HPC-and-research support role.
- San Diego Supercomputer Center (SDSC): US academic supercomputing center at UC San Diego providing large-scale compute and storage to researchers across disciplines. Comparable in operating model, training programs, and role within a national HPC ecosystem (XSEDE/ACCESS).
- Compute Ontario: Ontario not-for-profit coordinating advanced computing strategy across SciNet, SHARCNET, CAC, and HPC4Health. Direct peer in coordinating body role and Ontario HPC ecosystem governance.
- SHARCNET: Ontario-based HPC consortium that co-runs the Compute Ontario Summer School with SciNet and serves the same Canadian academic research community with shared CPU/GPU compute resources. Directly comparable in mission, funding model, and user base.
- Texas Advanced Computing Center (TACC): Major US academic HPC center operating flagship systems (Frontera, Stampede) for open scientific research. Directly comparable in mission, scale, and academic user base; SciNet has already collaborated with TACC on stellar convection simulations.
Regional players
- PRACE (Partnership for Advanced Computing in Europe): European pan-national HPC partnership allocating tier-0 compute to academic researchers across EU member states. Comparable in consortium-based academic HPC delivery model and co-organizes IHPCSS with SciNet.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
SciNet social profiles
Digital presenceSciNet compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
SciNet financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
SciNet leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles9 records
SciNet funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
SciNet M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about SciNet
What does SciNet do?
SciNet operates large-scale high-performance computing (HPC) infrastructure and provides the associated expertise to enable Canadian academic research at scale. Core offerings include the Trillium supercomputer (241,056 cores, 252 GPUs), the Balam GPU cluster (41 NVIDIA A100 GPUs), a CMMC 2.0 Level 2-compliant S4H secure enclave for sensitive data, a 90 PB HPSS tape-backed hierarchical storage system, and Open OnDemand for browser-based scientific application access. SciNet also delivers a training and education program comprising certificate programs, graduate courses taught with UofT departments, summer schools, and a Teach Cluster configured for instruction.
Is SciNet a public or private company?
SciNet is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was SciNet founded?
SciNet was founded in 2005. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is SciNet based?
SciNet is headquartered in Toronto, Canada, in the North America region.
How does SciNet make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Government Funding is the primary driver. The others are commercial Usage Fees.
Who are SciNet's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center (NERSC), Argonne Leadership Computing Facility (ALCF) and Digital Research Alliance of Canada. Direct peers are Calcul Québec, Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center (PSC), San Diego Supercomputer Center (SDSC), Compute Ontario, SHARCNET and Texas Advanced Computing Center (TACC). PRACE (Partnership for Advanced Computing in Europe) is listed as a regional player.
Does SciNet have an API?
No public API is recorded for SciNet.
What industry is SciNet in?
SciNet's product category is High-Performance Computing Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HDACAOAB, HPC Clusters & Scale-Out Compute (x86/ARM), with a secondary code of HDACABAH, High-Performance Computing (HPC) Cluster Nodes & Systems. Its NAICS code is 518210 and its SIC code is 3571.