OpenAI CEO Sam Altman previously said that he “would love to do a Stargate Europe”
In sum – what you need to know:
Stargate eyes UK expansion – OpenAI and SoftBank are considering the U.K. for the first international site of their $500 billion Stargate AI infrastructure project.
$100B phase kicks off – The Stargate project aims to massively scale AI compute capacity, starting with a $100 billion investment and targeting full buildout to $500 billion over four years.
UK builds AI-ready ecosystem – Government efforts like the AI Energy Council, supercomputing hubs and Growth Zones are positioning the U.K. to host large-scale AI infrastructure and attract global tech partnerships.
OpenAI and SoftBank Group are looking to expand their $500 billion AI infrastructure Stargate project beyond the United States, with plans to potentially bring it to countries like the U.K., Germany and France.
According to a report by the Financial Times, the U.K. is currently the leading candidate for this international expansion of the Stargate project — a partnership between OpenAI, SoftBank and Oracle.
The report stated the U.K. has taken the lead over Germany and France thanks to Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s push to boost investment in artificial intelligence. A source familiar with the plans told the FT that the Stargate team is focused on locating in places “where the compute is,” meaning areas with strong computing power and infrastructure.
However, the report noted that the potential expansion to the U.K. will only move forward if the joint venture initially achieves success in the United States.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman previously said that he “would love to do a Stargate Europe,” adding that he had had promising conversations in the continent. He added that governments around the world had reached out to talk to him about Stargates for their respective countries.
The Stargate project was first announced in January by U.S. President Donald Trump.
The Stargate initiative is set to invest up to $100 billion at first, with the potential to grow to $500 billion over the next four years. The goal is to significantly boost AI infrastructure and computing capacity across the U.S.
The U.K. Government recently unveiled an ambitious Artificial Intelligence (AI) Opportunities Action Plan, aiming to position the nation as a global leader in AI technology. This comprehensive strategy outlines significant investments in AI infrastructure, regulatory frameworks and talent development to harness AI’s transformative potential across various sectors.
As part of the council’s goal of drastically increasing sovereign compute capacity, the U.K. plans to develop a “state-of-the-art” supercomputing facility, set to double the capacity of the national AI Research Resource. The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) is spearheading this initiative, with researchers and small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) expected to access these resources in early 2025, leveraging powerful supercomputers located in Bristol (Isambard AI) and Cambridge (Dawn).
To stimulate private sector investment and foster close collaboration between government and industry, the U.K. also said it is establishing AI Growth Zones (AIGZs). These zones offer enhanced access to power and streamlined planning approvals to accelerate the development of AI infrastructure. The inaugural AI Growth Zone is planned for Culham, home to the UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA). This pilot project aims to develop one of the U.K.’s largest AI data centers, starting with a capacity of 100 megawatts (MW) and scaling up to 500MW.
The U.K. has launched a new AI Energy Council to ensure the country’s energy system can support the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence infrastructure — particularly as it plans to scale sovereign compute capacity by at least 20 times by 2030.
The council held its first meeting earlier this month with representatives from the energy and technology sectors, including Microsoft, Google, Amazon Web Services (AWS), National Grid and EDF.
The main goal of the council is to align the U.K.’s clean energy ambitions with the growing demand for power-hungry AI infrastructure.
The initiative is part of the government’s broader Plan for Change, which places AI and clean energy at the center of the U.K.’s economic growth strategy.
