The International Conference for High Performance Computing, Networking, Storage, and Analysis
The International Conference for High Performance Computing, Networking, Storage, and Analysis
Authors: CJ Newburn (NVIDIA Corporation), Javier Gonzalez (Samsung), Sagi Grimberg (VAST Data), Vikram Mailthody (NVIDIA Corporation), Aanand Krishnan (Oracle), Rory Bolt (Kioxia), Vijay Dwivedi (Stanford University)
Abstract: History has never seen applications induce changes in storage architectures and requirements so fast. Agentic workloads, KV caching for LLM inference, vector databases, relational graphs, and GNNs offer new challenges: bringing insight from unstructured data, improving IOPs/TCO for fine-grained access to unbounded data, permissions, and interoperability of GPU-initiated storage with traditional file/object systems. To spur the creativity of our community and frame emerging opportunities for new technologies, we’ve gathered experts on usage models, vendor technologists, and CSPs. The audience will gain new knowledge of emerging tech and new perspectives on topics that they may have only recently heard of.
Long Description: This is an exciting time for storage technology. New usage models like KV caching with disaggregated inference/RAG, LLM checkpoints, loading inference models interactively, and huge volumes of fine-grained accesses from the GPU to data sets of unbounded size for GNN training and vector search have cranked up storage technology innovation. This BoF gathers expert academics and practitioners to elucidate key emerging technologies that address urgent technical gaps. We’ll bring insight, motivated requirements, humor, and spice to ongoing conversations with the broader community. Our organizers are the right people to draw customers, academic collaborators, CSPs, enterprise customers, and even competitors with an interest in collaborative de facto standards together in lively discussion and insightful debate.
The BoF broadens visibility into ongoing collaborative engagements such as the recurring meetings of over 100 representatives in the Storage-Next effort that involves over 25 industry partners, and invites further collaboration. The interaction of researchers’ and practitioners’ varied perspectives grounds the community in practical considerations. Our diverse panelists have a proven track record of focusing on technological insight vs. product marketing or partisan concerns. Our representatives will highlight new usage models, including those they’ve had a hand in shaping through publication and serving on boards. Our panelists are VPs, Fellows, Distinguished Engineers, Senior Researchers, and standards body representatives. We discussed in advance how the technical insights our panelists and other committed audience contributors each bring can be woven together into a provocative and insightful tapestry. But competing views of market and technical opportunities and practical concerns also help spice up our debate.
Historically, organizers’ strong and established social networks and advertising machinery have drawn per-event participation at 150-250 live with up to 10K asynchronous views at past BoFs. Examples of such events include BoFs at SC21, SC23, and SC24 and Panels and presentations at GTC22, GTC23, GTC24, and GTC25 on Accelerating Storage IO to GPUs and Securing Data. Organizers have a stated vested interest in inviting members of the broader community, customers, and even competitors to come prepared with questions and insights to share. Engaged industry partners are well motivated to advertise this event. 90% of polled participants of the packed SC25 BoF room looked forward to a follow-up this year.
We’ll use a proven approach for deep technical engagement. In a three-minute overview, each panelist will share key insights and diverse perspectives, followed by fifteen minutes of responses to probing questions that focus the ensuing discussion and stir up contention. Panelists will seed the ensuing lively audience discussion with suggested questions to panelists. Many additional parties have vied to come prepared with questions, viewpoints, and contributions to make from the floor.
We’re excited to capture this moment in the history of technical innovation and further the broader goals of the HPC/AI community by inspiring insight, making connections up and down the application and infrastructure stack, and advancing the state of practice in this area. We have full confidence in an exciting program and are honored to contribute to the impact of SC25!
Website: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Ak4-pcpi73uCJSKcgHM6cvfP6OSnupmPjiA6gw8skHc/edit?usp=drive_link