Cloud Numerics

Microsoft provided in March, 2012 a cloud service of new generation – mathematical library Cloud Numerics. The library is created especially for use in a cloud. Active part in implementation of this project was taken by Microsoft development center in Russia.

Plans to place Microsoft development center to Skolkovo it was announced on November 1, 2010 within the agreement of intent signed by the company with Skolkovo Foundation. Without waiting for construction of buildings in the innovation center, Microsoft since the end of 2010 forms new development teams which could accommodate to Skolkovo over time in Russia. The group under the leadership of Andrej Arshavsky became one of them. Created on December 31, 2010, the command quickly got into gear on creation of library and contributed significantly to development of Cloud Numerics.

"We are glad that the Microsoft development center in Russia which is going to be placed in the innovation center Skolkovo played a key role in creation of a cloud service of new generation – mathematical library Cloud Numerics, – Palladin Alexey, the director of Microsoft of work with Skolkovo Foundation emphasized. – The library created on the Windows platform of Azure is intended for the analysis of data arrays and is applicable in those industries which require modeling of processes and intensive calculations, for example, in scientific or financial spheres, medicine, mechanical engineering, etc.".

During the work on Cloud Numerics essentially new campaign to creation of mathematical library was performed: in it tools using which it is possible to create in rather short terms the programs capable in parallel to process the distributed data arrays and to carry out mathematical modeling are placed. Today the library works in the test mode as SQL Lab and does not assume technical support. The decision on further commercialization of a product will be made upon termination of testing this year.

Any specialist analyst having skills of basic programming can use library. That this cloud service is placed in the Windows Azure cloud environment access to unlimited computing powers is provided. Service will give the chance to avoid experiments which are too expensive and difficult in implementation. In Cloud Numerics it is possible to simulate, for example, medicine or the new device and to count as it will function in these or those conditions. It is extremely important for the scientists and engineers working in such areas as medicine, finance, nuclear physics, aerodynamics, modeling of weather, etc.

The Cloud Numerics library is free if it is used on own local equipment of the customer, only the actual use of resources of a cloud platform of Windows Azure is paid. It will allow the scientific and commercial organizations to cut down seriously expenses on equipment procurement and keeping of staff of programmers and also to reduce the total cost of the project and to accelerate time of an output of the created product or service.

"The analysis of data arrays and mathematical modeling is a sphere which always required serious costs of time and also investments into acquisition of computing powers and attraction of a team of highly qualified specialists. Emergence of mathematical library Cloud Numerics will simplify and will reduce the price of these tasks, important for many industries, that in general will positively affect development of the Russian science and economy", – Turkot Alexander, the chief executive officer Klastera of information technologies of the Innovation center "Skolkovo" noted.

"Mathematical processing of constantly growing amounts of data will allow to bring many fields of activity of the person to essentially new level. Thanks to Cloud Numerics experiments, on carrying out and which analysis of results decades occasionally are required it will be possible to carry out much quicker. For example, by production of medicines the long period of researches is obligatory. Scientists need to analyze different forms of a disease, compatibility of the tested medicine with other drugs, existence of ghost effects, etc., to compare a set of factors and their combinatory interaction. Now there are new opportunities to accelerate process of a miscalculation and modeling of different combinations. It will make results of a research more exact and will give a new impulse to development of science, medicine and other industries", – Andrej Arshavsky, the head of the Russian group of founders of Cloud Numerics reported

On May 21, 2012 the vice president for work with the international partners of Skolkovo Foundation Conor Lenikhan and the president of Microsoft Business Solutions Kirill Tatarinov signed the agreement on opening of the center of Research and Development of Microsoft to Skolkovo.

Within implementation of joint activity in the Center of Research and Development Microsoft to Skolkovo works on application studies and development of software solutions Microsoft Dynamics which are delivered worldwide will be conducted. Development of technologies for a cloud environment along with classical products will be one of priority activities of the Center of Research and Development of Microsoft to Skolkovo. Creation of new architecture and design of flexible structure and functionality of products for the purpose of compliance to requirements and requirements the different countries of the world will become one of the key principles of development of these products.

Microsoft is going to invest tens of millions of US dollars in this program that will become the next contribution to development of the IT industry and the innovation economy in general.

It is expected that by 2015 more than 100 IT specialists and scientists will be involved in the center of Research and Development Microsoft to Skolkovo. Moreover, based on the Center joint applied research activity with involvement of experts from divisions of Microsoft will be conducted worldwide. Also the center will actively cooperate with the Open University Skolkovo (OTUS) and the Skolkovo institute of science and technology (Skoltech) and other leading Russian universities.