China activates 1,240-mile-wide ‘giant computer’, offers 98% efficiency of single data centre

The world’s largest distributed AI computing pool has been activated in China, according to a report. The 1,243-mile-wide computing power pool could achieve 98% of the efficiency of a single data centre.After the distant computing centers were connected, the systems work together almost as efficiently as a single giant computer.

Known as the Future Network Test Facility (FNTF), the system began operations on December 3. The large-scale, distributed AI-computing network links data centres spread across roughly 1,243-mile using a high-speed optical network, allowing them to operate almost like a single supercomputer.

Dedicated data highway Liu Yunjie, a member of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and chief director of the project, told China s Science and Technology Daily that the implications of this dedicated data highway are revolutionary for scenarios with extremely high real-time demands, such as AI large model training, telemedicine and the industrial internet. Training a large model with hundreds of billions of parameters typically requires over 500,000 iterations. On our deterministic network, each iteration takes only about 16 seconds. Without this capability, each iteration would take over 20 seconds longer – potentially extending the entire training cycle by several months, said Liu.Project leaders report that the network achieves around 98 percent of the efficiency of a unified data-centre cluster, enabling it to support demanding workloads such as training large AI models, real-time industrial applications, and telemedicine.

By synchronizing geographically distant computing resources, the hub is designed to reduce training time, lower costs, and make high-end AI development more accessible within China, according to a report. Significant advantages The step also fits into China s broader strategy to build a nationwide computing-power platform, complementing other efforts to deploy data centres in energy-rich regions and invest in emerging technologies like photonic and quantum-enhanced chips.

While the system promises significant advantages, its long-term performance under sustained load, energy demands, and security considerations will determine how transformative it ultimately becomesThe system is reportedly positioned to serve the national ‘East Data West Computing’ project.Reports have revealed that the FNTF was first outlined in China’s “Medium- and Long-Term Plan for the Construction of Major National Science and Technology Infrastructure” in 2013. Today, the facility spans 40 cities with a total optical transmission length exceeding 55,000km – enough to circle the equator 1½ times. Operating around the clock, the platform can simultaneously support 128 heterogeneous networks and run 4,096 service trials in parallel, boasting high throughput, high reliability and deterministic transmission capabilities, reported SCMP.

The system also supports other strategic goals, such as improving medical services by enabling remote diagnostics and enhancing industrial automation through real-time data processing across long distances. Although the facility promises substantial advantages, several uncertainties remain. Sustaining high efficiency across such vast distances will require exceptional network stability, and the energy demand of running multiple interconnected centres is likely to be significant.