OpenAI plans to transform its London office into its biggest research center outside the United States. The company, which opened a UK office in 2023, aims to grow its London research team by recruiting talent from top British universities. Specific hiring numbers remain undisclosed.
Ideal Location for AI Innovation
Mark Chen, OpenAI’s chief research officer, stated, “The UK brings together world-class talent and leading scientific institutions and universities, making it an ideal place to deliver the important research which will ensure our AI is safe, useful and benefits everyone.”
Competing for Top Talent
This expansion positions OpenAI in direct rivalry with Google DeepMind for elite researchers. Headquartered in London and led by British researcher Demis Hassabis, DeepMind maintains strong ties with Oxford University and the University of Cambridge through sponsored professorships, research funding, and collaborative projects.
Recent careers events at Oxford University draw crowds of undergraduates seeking AI roles, with recruiters vying for candidates. “The demand and supply is increasing on both sides, even within a year,” noted Jonathan Black, director of Oxford’s careers service. “To have something like this turn up is a really positive sign.”
Focus on Safety and Performance
The London team will keep supporting products like Codex and GPT-5.2 while taking full ownership of model development in safety, reliability, and performance evaluation.
UK Government Welcome
UK Science and Technology Secretary Liz Kendall called the move “a huge vote of confidence in the UK’s world-leading position at the cutting edge of AI research.”
The announcement aligns with UK efforts to expand data centers and power infrastructure to support surging AI compute needs from companies like OpenAI.
