President Cabrera's Favorite Tech Numbers
By: Ángel Cabrera, MS Psy 93, PhD Psy 95 | Categories: Featured Stories
304 GPUs
It would take a single NVIDIA H100 graphics processing unit (GPU) one second to process an operation that 50,000 people would need 22 years to achieve. And we have 304 GPUs at Georgia Tech! Thanks to Tech’s AI Makerspace, which is the first of its kind at a higher education institution, our students are tackling challenges in healthcare, energy, and transportation. Biomedical students have already used the makerspace to create PatchPals, an AI tool that automates foam cutting for wound care.
4,400° Fahrenheit
The Ben T. Zinn Combustion Lab can reach up to 4,400 degrees during fuel combustion tests. For context, titanium melts at about 3,000 F. There are about 130 students working in the 20,000-square-foot research lab at any time. They’re conducting experiments that have powered many of Tech’s pioneering aerospace achievements, including advanced propulsion systems and sustainable aviation fuels.
231–1 ($2,147,483,647)
This is the eighth Mersenne prime, and it’s the 2027 fundraising goal for Transforming Tomorrow: The Campaign for Georgia Tech. We deliberately chose this unconventional campaign number because of its significance in math and science. It was the largest known prime number from the years 1772 to 1867 and is one of the most significant historical figures in modern mathematics, science, and engineering. It has significance in computing and video gaming, and it pays homage to important historic milestones that shaped Georgia Tech about every 31 years.
15,000 Degrees
One of four “Big Bets” in the 2030 Institute Strategic Plan is to double the annual number of degree and non-degree learners. That comes out to 15,000 degrees a year. We intentionally chose degrees because the goal isn’t to keep as many students as possible enrolled, but for those students to graduate and move on to bigger and better things. We’re already ahead of where we need to be with 13,616 degrees conferred in 2025, the largest graduating class in Georgia Tech history.
$1.67 Billion
This is our 2030 target for research expenditures, a measure of our research activity and competitiveness. Our goal is to double the scale and amplify the impact of our research enterprise. Again, we’re ahead of where we need to be to achieve this goal. In fiscal year 2025, we hit $1.43 billion in expenditures, a new record and a 7% increase over the previous year. We’re now No. 2 in the nation for federally sponsored research, according to the National Science Foundation. All this support we receive from taxpayers, foundations, and corporate partners allows us to advance areas of science and technology to keep our nation safe, healthy, and competitive.
—Ángel Cabrera, MS Psy 93, PhD Psy 95, Georgia Tech President
