Anthropic Announces Major UK Expansion
"The UK combines ambitious enterprises and institutions that understand what's at stake with AI safety with an exceptional pool of AI talent -- we want to be where all of that comes together," said Pip White, Anthropic.
Anthropic has announced plans to significantly expand its UK footprint with a new office in London, stepping up its competition with OpenAI.
The AI firm's new UK hub in Central London's "Knowledge Quarter" will have space for 800 staff, a notable step up from Anthropic's current base in the capital, home to just 200 employees.
In a statement shared with CNBC, Anthropic's head of EMEA North, Pip White, said that the new site would give the company the space to grow, with London already "one of our most important research and commercial hubs outside the US".
"The UK combines ambitious enterprises and institutions that understand what's at stake with AI safety with an exceptional pool of AI talent -- we want to be where all of that comes together," said White.
The move follows reports last week that the UK Government was trying to take advantage of Anthropic's highly public rift with the Trump administration in an attempt to woo the firm to increase its presence in London, including discussions of a potential dual stock listing.
According to the FT, London Mayor Sadiq Khan also reportedly wrote to Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei earlier this year to pitch the capital as a base, saying that London offered a "stable, proportionate and pro-innovation environment", his letter coming a week after Trump hit out at the firm as being run by "left wing nutjobs".
While the government have yet to comment, the news that Anthropic is signing a new London lease shows that Labour's efforts are paying off, and perhaps not a moment too soon.
Recommended reading
Earlier this week, OpenAI announced its own plans for the firm's first permanent office in London, with capacity for 544 staff, with the firm promising a "long-term commitment" to investing in the UK.
However, despite OpenAI's stated mission to make the new London base its "greatest research hub outside of the US", the firm has paused plans for its major infrastructure project, Stargate UK, citing concerns around UK energy costs and nascent AI regulations.
OpenAI's shelving of Stargate UK has come as a blow to the government's wider AI Action Plan, a potential chink in the UK's relationship with the AI firm that Anthropic could pry open with its slower, sure-footed approach.