SC - The International Conference for High Performance Computing, Networking, Storage, and Analysis – Event Attendee & Buyer Profile Analysis
SC is a major international conference for high performance computing, networking, storage, and analysis. The event serves as a convergence point for technical decision-makers, research organizations, public sector stakeholders, infrastructure providers, and solution vendors operating in compute-intensive environments.
The conference is highly relevant for business development, procurement intelligence, research partnerships, and technology selling because it attracts buyers and influencers involved in supercomputing platforms, data centers, networking architecture, storage systems, cloud and hybrid infrastructure, and scientific computing ecosystems. It is particularly strong for targeting enterprise IT leaders, public sector computing teams, lab and university researchers, and specialist OEM / integrator ecosystems.
1. Who Attends: Buyers / Attendees
| Buyer / Attendee Segment |
Typical Organizations |
Buying Role or Influence |
Relevance to Exhibitors / Suppliers |
| HPC / research computing leaders |
National labs, universities, research institutes, supercomputing centers |
Define compute roadmaps, funding priorities, and platform requirements |
Very high for HPC hardware, software, storage, scheduling, and services |
| Procurement and sourcing teams |
Public research institutions, federal labs, universities, enterprises |
Issue RFPs, evaluate suppliers, negotiate contracts |
High for vendor registration, approved supplier lists, and contract opportunities |
| IT infrastructure decision-makers |
Enterprises, cloud providers, research IT, data centers |
Approve architecture, vendors, security, performance standards |
High for servers, networking, observability, and storage providers |
| Scientific computing and AI research teams |
AI labs, computational science groups, government research programs |
Specify performance and workflow requirements for AI/HPC workloads |
High for accelerators, interconnects, software, and workflow platforms |
| Data center and facilities leaders |
Colocation, hyperscale, university data centers, national labs |
Manage power, cooling, uptime, and infrastructure expansion |
High for cooling, racks, power systems, monitoring, and facility services |
| Network architects / engineers |
Research networks, enterprise IT, service providers |
Specify fabric, bandwidth, latency, and interconnect requirements |
High for switching, optical, routing, and network management vendors |
| Storage / data management leaders |
Research institutions, tech firms, cloud and platform teams |
Own capacity, performance, lifecycle, backup, and archival requirements |
High for storage arrays, software-defined storage, and data lifecycle tools |
| Software / platform product managers |
ISVs, HPC software vendors, simulation and analytics providers |
Drive product integration and partnership decisions |
High for developer tools, orchestration, scheduling, and performance software |
| Government program / contracting stakeholders |
Federal labs, defense agencies, public research institutions |
Guide compliance, purchasing pathways, and award structures |
High for suppliers with public sector and regulated buying motions |
| Industry consultants and integrators |
HPC consultants, systems integrators, managed service providers |
Influence vendor selection and implementation |
High for channel partnerships and referral-based selling |
2. Event Location and Attendee Geographic Origin
| Geographic Area |
Likely Attendee Origin |
Buyer Concentration |
Notes |
| Chicago host market |
Local universities, enterprises, data centers, technology firms |
Medium |
Likely local participation due to convenience and regional industry base |
| Midwest United States |
Regional research institutions, manufacturing, logistics, and IT organizations |
High |
Strong regional access through major transport links and corporate density |
| U.S. national reach |
Federal labs, national research centers, universities, enterprise IT teams |
Very High |
SC has strong national relevance due to its technical depth and procurement value |
| Canada |
Research computing, universities, government labs, and technology vendors |
Medium |
Likely cross-border attendance for high-value technical buyers and partners |
| Europe / Asia-Pacific / global research community |
International labs, OEMs, academic computing centers, software vendors |
Medium |
The conference has strong global research and vendor appeal |
| North American technology corridor |
Cloud, hardware, networking, storage, and systems integration companies |
High |
Strong buyer concentration for solution providers selling into complex technical environments |
3. Audience Reach
4. Sample Buyer Companies and Websites
| Buyer Company / Organization |
Buyer Type |
Why It Is Relevant |
Website |
Best Job Titles to Target |
Evidence Level |
| Argonne National Laboratory |
Government / research organization |
Major HPC and scientific computing buyer profile |
anl.gov |
Director of IT, HPC Manager, Research Computing Director |
Strong Market Fit, Attendance Not Confirmed |
| Oak Ridge National Laboratory |
Government / research organization |
Advanced computing, storage, and data-intensive workloads |
ornl.gov |
Procurement Manager, HPC Architect, Systems Director |
Strong Market Fit, Attendance Not Confirmed |
| Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory |
Government / research organization |
High-value supercomputing and networking procurement environment |
llnl.gov |
Director of Procurement, HPC Program Manager, Infrastructure Lead |
Strong Market Fit, Attendance Not Confirmed |
| National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA) |
Research institution |
Directly aligned with high performance computing and analysis |
ncsa.illinois.edu |
Executive Director, Research Computing Director, Systems Architect |
Strong Market Fit, Attendance Not Confirmed |
| NASA Advanced Supercomputing Division |
Government / research organization |
Mission-critical compute and storage environment |
nasa.gov |
Program Manager, HPC Lead, Procurement Officer |
Strong Market Fit, Attendance Not Confirmed |
| Microsoft |
Technology buyer / platform operator |
Consumes advanced infrastructure for cloud, AI, and research partnerships |
microsoft.com |
Principal Architect, Azure Infrastructure, Procurement Manager |
Strong Market Fit, Attendance Not Confirmed |
| Amazon Web Services |
Technology buyer / cloud operator |
Relevant for HPC cloud, storage, networking, and accelerator ecosystems |
aws.amazon.com |
Sr. Product Manager, Solutions Architect, Vendor Manager |
Strong Market Fit, Attendance Not Confirmed |
| NVIDIA |
Technology company / infrastructure buyer |
GPU computing, AI infrastructure, and HPC partnership relevance |
nvidia.com |
Business Development Director, Platform Partnerships, Technical Program Manager |
Strong Market Fit, Attendance Not Confirmed |
| Intel |
Technology company / infrastructure buyer |
CPU, accelerator, and ecosystem decision-making |
intel.com |
Product Manager, Ecosystem Manager, Engineering Director |
Strong Market Fit, Attendance Not Confirmed |
| Cray / Hewlett Packard Enterprise |
HPC vendor / solution provider |
Key ecosystem vendor for supercomputing buyers and integrators |
hpe.com |
HPC Sales Director, Product Marketing, Solutions Architect |
Strong Market Fit, Attendance Not Confirmed |
| Dell Technologies |
Infrastructure buyer / vendor |
Enterprise and HPC systems, storage, and networking |
dell.com |
HPC Account Executive, Procurement Lead, Infrastructure Director |
Strong Market Fit, Attendance Not Confirmed |
| Boeing |
Industrial / aerospace buyer |
Advanced simulation, modeling, and compute-heavy workloads |
boeing.com |
Director of Engineering IT, Procurement Manager, Digital Twin Lead |
Strong Market Fit, Attendance Not Confirmed |
| Ford Motor Company |
Industrial / automotive buyer |
Simulation, engineering compute, and analytics procurement relevance |
ford.com |
HPC Program Manager, IT Director, Sourcing Manager |
Strong Market Fit, Attendance Not Confirmed |
5. Job Profiles, Industries and Event Type
| Priority |
Job Title / Function |
Department |
Seniority Level |
Why This Role Matters |
| 1 | Chief Information Officer (CIO) | IT / Technology | C-Level | Owns technology strategy and infrastructure investment priorities |
| 2 | Director of Research Computing / HPC Director | Research IT | Director | Direct buyer for compute, storage, and workflow platforms |
| 3 | Procurement Manager / Strategic Sourcing Manager | Procurement | Manager / Director | Evaluates suppliers and purchasing pathways |
| 4 | Data Center Director / Facilities Director | Facilities / Operations | Director | Controls power, cooling, uptime, and site expansion |
| 5 | Network Architect / Network Engineering Manager | Infrastructure / Engineering | Manager / Senior IC | Influences interconnect, fabric, and routing purchases |
| 6 | Storage Architect / Storage Manager | Infrastructure | Manager / Architect | Owns capacity, performance, and retention decisions |
| 7 | Program Manager / Project Manager | PMO / Operations | Manager | Coordinates implementation and supplier onboarding |
| 8 | Principal Investigator / Research Director | Research | Director / Senior | Shapes grant-funded compute and data requirements |
| Priority |
Apollo Industry |
Why It Fits the Event |
Best Buyer Use Case |
| 1 | Information Technology & Services | Core market for infrastructure, cloud, and systems buyers | Enterprise infrastructure and platform selling |
| 2 | Computer Software | Software stacks, orchestration, and tools are central to HPC | Developer tools, workflow, observability |
| 3 | Research | Primary demand base for scientific computing and analytics | Research computing platforms and services |
| 4 | Higher Education | Universities are major buyers and users of HPC resources | Campus compute, shared infrastructure, grants |
| 5 | Government Administration | Federal and public-sector computing buyers are strong attendees | Public sector procurement and contracts |
| 6 | Defense & Space | Mission-critical simulation and compute environments | Secure HPC, AI, and classified workloads |
| 7 | Semiconductors | Processor, accelerator, and chip ecosystem relevance | Compute hardware and partner ecosystems |
| 8 | Computer Hardware | Servers, accelerators, storage appliances, and appliances | OEM and systems selling |
| 9 | Electrical/Electronic Manufacturing | Critical for infrastructure components and systems | Embedded, networking, and power systems |
| 10 | Logistics & Supply Chain | Relevant for infrastructure delivery, warehousing, and deployments | Supply chain visibility and procurement support |
6. Estimated Attendance
7. Key Focus Areas and Buyer Engagement
| Focus Area |
Typical Buyer Need |
Buyer Engagement Opportunity |
Relevant Supplier Offering |
| High performance computing |
Scalable compute for research and simulation |
System demos, benchmark evidence, architecture briefings |
Servers, accelerators, HPC software, managed services |
| Networking |
Low-latency, high-bandwidth fabrics |
Technical meetings with architects and engineers |
Switching, routing, optical, interconnect solutions |
| Storage and data management |
Fast, resilient storage for large datasets |
Needs analysis around throughput and lifecycle policy |
File/object storage, backup, archival, software-defined storage |
| AI / analytics workloads |
Hardware and software for model training and inference |
Target AI platform owners and research leads |
GPU platforms, AI software, data orchestration |
| Cybersecurity / secure infrastructure |
Protecting sensitive research and regulated workloads |
Security-focused briefings and risk reduction messaging |
Security tools, identity, network protection, compliance services |
| Facilities and power efficiency |
Operate dense compute economically |
Discuss cooling, density, and operational savings |
Power, cooling, racks, monitoring, facility management |
| Factor |
Assessment |
Explanation |
| Buyer relevance | Very High | Strong concentration of technical buyers, researchers, and infrastructure decision-makers |
| Decision-maker availability | High | Likely access to directors, architects, procurement, and research leaders |
| Data collection potential | High | Exhibitor, sponsor, and agenda data are typically valuable for list building when published |
| Apollo targeting potential | Very High | Clear industry, title, and department filters align well to this audience |
| Geographic targeting potential | High | Chicago provides strong regional access plus national and international draw |
| Best outreach approach | Technical, account-based, and partnership-led | Use use-case language, infrastructure pain points, and benchmark proof |
| Overall lead quality | Very High | Excellent event for high-value B2B lead generation in technical infrastructure markets |
| Best use case | Attendee list building, exhibitor prospecting, partner discovery | Useful for selling hardware, software, services, and research infrastructure solutions |
| Limitations / risks | Moderate | Current-year attendance list and headcount are not publicly confirmed in the provided source text |
| Filter Type |
Recommended Filters |
Purpose |
| Apollo industries | Information Technology & Services; Computer Software; Research; Higher Education; Government Administration; Defense & Space; Computer Hardware; Semiconductors; Electrical/Electronic Manufacturing; Logistics & Supply Chain | Match technical buyers and budget holders |
| Departments | IT; Engineering; Research; Procurement; Operations; Facilities; Program Management | Reach both technical influencers and buyers |
| Seniority | Manager; Director; VP; CXO; Owner/Partner where relevant; Senior IC for architects and principal engineers | Prioritize decision-makers and technical evaluators |
| Job titles | CIO, CTO, Director of IT, HPC Director, Research Computing Director, Procurement Manager, Strategic Sourcing Manager, Network Architect, Storage Architect, Data Center Director | Target roles likely to influence vendor selection |
| Geography | United States; Canada; Western Europe; Japan; South Korea; Singapore; broader global research hubs | Reflects international attendance potential |
| Employee size | 201–500; 501–1,000; 1,001–5,000; 5,001–10,000; 10,000+ | Capture research institutions and large enterprises |
| Keywords | HPC, supercomputing, research computing, cluster, GPU, storage, interconnect, data center, scientific computing, simulation, AI infrastructure | Increase relevance and list quality |
| Company type | Public sector; higher education; enterprise technology; OEM; integrator; lab / research center | Separate buyers from pure exhibitors where possible |