New partnership brings greater speed, bandwidth and research brainshare critical for corporate America to maintain global competitive advantage

AUSTIN, Texas, Nov. 19 -- Today, Darkstrand, a pioneer in corporate high-speed connectivity bridging research and commercialization, announced a strategic partnership agreement with the New Mexico Computing Applications Center (NMCAC), a premier research institution dedicated to applications-driven high-speed computer problem solving. NMCAC currently hosts the 12th fastest supercomputer in the world, according to the biannual TOP500 Project, known as "Encanto," and this alliance opens a virtual gateway for corporate America to the vast supercomputing resources and expertise that NMCAC holds. Corporations with connectivity to the Darkstrand fiber optic network will now have the power to drive innovative, high-performance computing (HPC) initiatives in real-time collaboration with NMCAC supercomputer and its affiliated institutions.

"The state of New Mexico and NMCAC are on the forefront of an economic development explosion," said Bill Richardson, Governor of New Mexico. "By bringing together New Mexico's scientific talent, the power of Encanto, and this advanced networking technology we are creating a new model of innovation that can bring sources of revenue to New Mexico from companies, not only within our state borders, but throughout the world."

Darkstrand changes the game, allowing companies to leverage research labs and universities nationwide. For the first time, corporations can actively collaborate in the entire R&D cycle, beginning with discovery, moving through prototype development and ending with commercialization. This new collaborative R&D and collaborative model is taking shape because of the power of the Darkstrand network to drive massive production data seamlessly between geographic locations on dedicated 10 G circuits. This capability enables companies located anywhere in the United States to work intimately with researchers and HPC applications at NMCAC member institutions.

"Darkstrand was created to liberate innovation in American corporations by leveraging the technology and minds of academia that can connect ideas with computing capability," said Michael Stein, CEO and founder of Darkstrand. "Today's partnership with NMCAC further extends the reach of our network, giving companies the unleashed power and speed they need to solve workflow problems using high-performance computing tools."

In the coming months, Darkstrand and NMCAC will work on a joint implementation plan that creates a seamless corporate path from discovery to commercialization. Darkstrand and NMCAC will also work with the state of New Mexico on public sector initiatives like education and healthcare, with the goal of extending the state's reach into all geographic areas for access to information and critical services.

"Our supercomputer was created to drive groundbreaking research for education and commerce in the state of New Mexico, and our ability to partner with the Darkstrand Network will advance innovation and collaboration by providing the hardware and the subject matter expertise that corporations are looking for," said Thomas J. Bowles, PhD, science advisor for Governor Richardson. "NMCAC brings to the corporate doorstep a wide range of R&D expertise in sectors like health, biotechnology, digital film and media, energy, and oil and gas."

In addition to direct access to the NMCAC, the Darkstrand partnership will connect companies with NMCAC-affiliate research institutions, including Los Alamos National Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratories, University of New Mexico, New Mexico State University and New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology. Encanto, the NMCAC and its affiliates will connect directly to the Darkstrand Network, which is currently upgrading its backbone to 40 Gig speed.

The NMCAC Encanto supercomputer is located at Intel Corporation's Fab 7 plant in Rio Rancho. The 172 teraflop supercomputer was built using advanced technology from Intel and Silicon Graphics, Inc. (SGI). The NMCAC is located in Albuquerque, N.M., but will be connected in a network of gateway sites at the national labs, universities and colleges across New Mexico and ultimately throughout the US and globally. For more information on the NMCAC, visit http://www.newmexicosupercomputer.com/.

In June 2008, Darkstrand developed a business alliance with the NLR, acquiring one half of National LambdaRail's (NLR) 15,000-route mile optical network that is currently spread across 30 U.S. cities. NLR's unparalleled network supports large-scale digital production work for research groups that need multi-gigabit speed and access to high-performance computing power. The NLR is the backbone of the Darkstrand Network, providing a direct-line from the knowledge-driven science world such as NMCAC to results-oriented enterprises that will ultimately enable U.S. companies to innovate and more effectively compete globally.

About Darkstrand

Darkstrand, Inc. leverages enterprise-level network bandwidth to close the collaboration gap between corporations and research communities. Darkstrand is a pivotal corporate partner for solving real workflow, development and collaborative challenges, linking teams, facilities and suppliers into one ecosystem in a high-speed, networked grid environment via the National LambdaRail (NLR), a vast 15,000-route mile optical network spread across 30 U.S. cities. Darkstrand shortens time to insight and expands productivity for companies wanting a competitive edge. Based in Chicago, Illinois, Darkstrand was established in 2005, and has raised $12 million to date from private investors. For more information, visit http://www.darkstrand.com.

About New Mexico Computing Applications Center

The New Mexico Computing Applications Center was approved by New Mexico's Legislature in 2007 and began operations in 2008 as a resource for applications-driven high-speed computer problem solving. Working closely with the Los Alamos National Laboratory, Sandia National Labs and the State's three research universities, the NMCAC is dedicated to serving the needs of the people of New Mexico as well as tackling some of the nation's most pressing problems like energy and the environment using high-speed computing.

The Center works with federal institutions, other states and private companies to run their own applications or develop new ones using its 172 teraflop SGi supercomputer named 'Encanto' which is based at Intel's New Mexico headquarters in Rio Rancho just a few miles from Albuquerque.

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Source: Darkstrand, Inc.