Today marks a strategic milestone for Switzerland as a business location: at the uptownBasel innovation campus in Arlesheim (BL), operator PHOENIQS, the uptownBasel innovation campus, and area developer Fankhauser have jointly commissioned the country's most powerful commercial AI supercomputer. The new infrastructure enables companies, research institutions, and public bodies to run demanding AI applications under Swiss jurisdiction — with full control over data, models, and workloads.
As artificial intelligence grows at a rapid pace, demand for powerful, secure infrastructure is rising sharply. Many global AI platforms were primarily designed for international scale. Companies and public institutions are therefore increasingly asking where their data is processed, which laws apply, and how sensitive AI applications can be operated under control over the long term.
The new AI supercomputer in Arlesheim closes precisely this gap: it makes it possible to run complex AI models, data-intensive workloads, and production AI applications locally — without dependence on foreign hyperscalers and without data flowing abroad.
Commercial top-tier performance and digital autonomy
Operated by PHOENIQS and built on state-of-the-art technology together with NVIDIA, IBM, and Dell, the system gives companies and institutions access to high-performance computing capacity that was previously often available only through international hyperscalers. With 192 NVIDIA H100 GPUs currently installed, the infrastructure ranks among the most powerful commercially available AI systems in Switzerland — offering up to ten times the computing power of many AI infrastructures in use today.
“Our AI infrastructure creates the foundation for companies and public institutions to develop and operate high-performance AI applications in Switzerland — while meeting the highest requirements for data protection, security, and digital sovereignty,” — Thomas Taroni, Founder and Executive Chairman, PHOENIQS
A key driver of market access is the exclusive partnership with Sunrise. It combines PHOENIQS's AI infrastructure expertise with the B2B network of the Swiss telecommunications provider, giving companies access to AI solutions developed, hosted, and operated within Switzerland.
uptownBasel: a location for the next generation of industry
With the AI supercomputer now in operation, uptownBasel continues to grow as an innovation campus for the technologies shaping tomorrow's industry. In Arlesheim, about ten minutes from Basel, an ecosystem is taking shape that brings together quantum computing, artificial intelligence, industry, energy, cybersecurity, cloud infrastructure, life sciences, start-ups, and venture capital in a single location.
“uptownBasel provides the space and the infrastructure for the technologies that will be decisive tomorrow. With the AI supercomputer, another central building block of our innovation ecosystem is in place — and a strong signal for Switzerland as a technology and business location,” — Bardo Magel, CEO, uptownBasel Group
The AI supercomputer complements the campus's already-active quantum computer, Switzerland's first commercially usable system of its kind. While the quantum computer is geared toward highly specialized optimization and simulation tasks, the AI supercomputer addresses the rapidly growing industrial demand for scalable AI models and production applications.
uptownBasel today comprises 18 companies with around 400 jobs across a 75,000-square-meter site, with three buildings already in operation. The campus is set to keep growing: more than 21 companies and around 1,100 jobs are planned by 2027, and 50 to 100 companies with around 2,500 jobs by 2030 and beyond.
Sustainable AI infrastructure, unique in Switzerland
uptownBasel's architectural and energy concept demonstrates that high-performance computing and ecological responsibility can go hand in hand.
“High-performance AI needs more than computing power. It needs places built for it. With uptownBasel, we have created exactly such a place — a site that combines energy, cooling, digital infrastructure, and sustainable development into one functioning overall system,” — Hans-Jörg Fankhauser, Architect and Area Developer
The supercomputer as part of the energy system
The computer is part of an integrated system comprising stable power supply, efficient cooling, grid stability, security, and building technology. Power is supplied via Swissgrid and Primeo Netz, with around three megawatts of capacity available for AI operations. The system is complemented by battery storage to smooth load peaks, thermal buffer storage, and additional backup power based on biodiesel.
Cooling is provided by a closed, water-cooled system. Heat is removed directly at the rack level before it can spread into the room. The AI racks generate waste heat of around 50°C during operation. This energy is converted into hot water, used to heat the site, and fed into the regional Primeo Wärme district heating network.
