Microsoft has announced it is creating a new location in London for AI research. This follows the company’s announcement that it had created a new division in the company called Microsoft AI that is focused on building out its commercial AI offerings, such as Copilot.
The new location will focus on innovating on large language models and the infrastructure required to run them, creating tooling for foundation models, and collaborating within the company and with external partners like OpenAI.
Microsoft AI London will be led by Jordan Hoffman, who was previously a research scientist at DeepMind and Inflection.
By establishing a base in London, the company hopes to attract more U.K.-based talent to work on AI at Microsoft. It will begin posting job listings over the next several weeks.
“This is great news for Microsoft AI and for the U.K,” Mustafa Suleyman, EVP and CEO of Microsoft AI, wrote in a press release. “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 U.K., and I’m excited to make this commitment to the U.K. on behalf of Microsoft AI. I know – through my close work with thought leaders in the U.K. government, business community and academia – that the country is committed to advancing AI responsibly and with a safety-first commitment to drive investment, innovation and economic growth. Our decision to open this hub in the U.K. reflects this ambition.”