Data and AI vendor Databricks has revealed plans to invest more than $850 million in the U.K. over the next ten years, in a bid to build out its AI talent and standing in the region.
Databricks plans to quadruple its London office footprint and using the funds to attract new talent and train the next generation of data and AI leaders.
The upgraded London hub will include a dedicated executive briefing center, designed to host partners and customers for training and collaboration. It will also support the growth of a local R&D team, complementing existing EMEA engineering hubs in Amsterdam, Berlin, and Belgrade.
Databricks added that it will also work to address growing demand for Lakebase, its database for AI agents, and its AI agent Genie.
“When we opened our first dedicated U.K. office and EMEA hub in 2024, we had a clear aim: to be at the heart of the U.K.’s data and AI community,” Michael Green, U.K. and Ireland managing director of Databricks, said in a release. “This new office and investments accelerate that ambition even further.”
The development builds on Databricks’ plans, unveiled in October, to train 100,000 people across the U.K. and Ireland with data and AI skills by 2028.
This includes partnerships with universities, including the London School of Economics, University College London and University College Dublin, with students and professionals alike able to access the company’s free platform.
It also comes amid a wider U.K. push to strengthen the vendor’s standing in the global AI race, with market research from SAP finding businesses there are planning to ramp up AI investment by an average of 40% by 2027.
Databricks said its customers include Unilever, Rolls Royce, Nationwide, Virgin Atlantic, Department for Education, Royal National Lifeboat Institution, Octopus Energy and Flo Health.
