Microsoft to Open New Hub to Advance State-of-the-Art AI
Microsoft has announced plans to open a new AI hub in London as it aims to further advance its AI capabilities.
The company recently announced the creation of a new organisation, Microsoft AI, intended to help advance its consumer AI products and research. Now, Microsoft AI has announced that it is opening a new AI hub in London, aimed at driving pioneering work to advance state-of-the-art language models and their supporting infrastructure, and to create world-class tooling for foundation models, collaborating closely with Microsoft’s AI teams and with partners such as OpenAI.
According to a blog post written by DeepMind founder turned Microsoft AI CEO Mustafa Suleyman, the new hub – located in Microsoft’s London Paddington office – will be led by former Inflection and DeepMind AI pioneer Jordan Hoffmann.
“There is an enormous pool of AI talent and expertise in the UK, and Microsoft AI plans to make a significant, long-term investment in the region as we begin hiring the best AI scientists and engineers into this new AI hub,” he said.
“As a British citizen, born and raised in London, I’m proud to have co-founded and built a cutting-edge AI business here. I’m deeply aware of the extraordinary talent pool and AI ecosystem in the UK, and I’m excited to make this commitment to the U.K. on behalf of Microsoft AI.”
AI hub represents Microsoft’s latest expansion of presence in the UK
London was the home of OpenAI’s first international expansion in June 2023, seen by CEO Sam Altman as an ‘opportunity to attract world-class talent and drive innovation in AGI development and policy’. The Microsoft AI London hub adds to Microsoft’s existing presence in the UK, including the company’s research lab in Cambridge, which is home to some of the foremost researchers in AI, cloud and productivity.
The announcement also follows Microsoft’s recently announced £2.5bn (US$3.18bn) investment to upskill the UK workforce for the AI era and to build the infrastructure to power the AI economy, including a commitment to bring 20,000 of the most advanced GPUs to the country by 2026.
“The UK has a very real opportunity to be a leader in the era of AI, but as our research shows, there are barriers stopping the UK turning its ambition into action,” Clare Barclay, CEO of Microsoft UK, said at the time. “That’s why Microsoft is expanding its skills commitment. By 2025 we will support one million people to gain the AI skills they need to start, or move into, a career in technology. And in doing so, we will open up the opportunities of AI to diverse talent across the UK.”
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