‘A true vote of confidence’: Databricks announces $850m UK investment as firm looks to quadruple London office footprint

Databricks has announced plans to invest more than $850 million (£643m) to expand its UK presence over the next three years.

The investment will see the company quadruple its UK office footprint with the launch of a new 137,000-square-foot headquarters in Fitzrovia.

Databricks said the new site will serve as its primary hub to drive growth across the EMEA region. The company already hosts a team of over 500 people across the UK and Ireland, and this is expected to surpass 1,000 people in the coming years.

The space will have a “dedicated executive briefing center”, allowing Databricks to host partners and customers, and expand its local research and development (R&D) team.

Samuel Bonamigo, Databricks’ senior vice president and general manager for EMEA, said the investment is “a true vote of confidence” in the company’s regional team, partners, and customers.

“Our new EMEA hub will enable us to drive growth in the EMEA region and help businesses, at whatever stage of their journey, scale faster by unlocking the full power of Lakebase and Genie,” he said.

Databricks boasts long-standing ties with a host of large organisations across the UK and Ireland, working with partners such as Rolls Royce, Nationwide, Virgin Atlantic, and the Department for Education.

Databricks tapping into UK’s AI potential

This expansion comes as the UK “cements its position as Europe’s leading AI hub”, according to Databricks. Indeed, recent research from SAP found enterprises plan to increase AI investment in the country by an average of 40% over the next two years.

The company said it hopes to capitalize on this growth, noting that demand for services such as Lakebase, its serverless Postgres database for agents, and its Genie agent, has surged.

Databricks specifically highlighted its continued contributions to the UK’s burgeoning AI ecosystem, particularly in areas such as skills development.

Last year, the company announced plans to train over 100,000 people across the UK and Ireland in data and AI skills by 2028.

The training scheme included partnerships with a host of UK and Ireland-based academic institutions, including London School of Economics (LSE) and University College Dublin.

Michael Green, Databricks’ managing director for the UK and Ireland, said the company boasts a “strong commitment to the market” and plans to continue support.

“When we opened our first dedicated UK office and EMEA hub in 2024, we had a clear aim: to be at the heart of the UK’s data and AI community, providing a space for our team and partners to come together to collaborate on the future of data and AI,” he said.

“This new office and investments accelerate that ambition even further.”

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