OpenAI taps George Osborne to lead global Stargate expansion and government AI partnerships

OpenAI picks George Osborne to head Stargate expansion

Follows Nick Clegg at Meta and Rishi Sunak at Anthropic in snuggling up to US tech OpenAI has hired former UK finance minister George Osborne, continuing a trend of British politicians whose careers have peaked cozying up to US tech giants. Osborne, who served as Chancellor of the Exchequer from 2010 to 2016 under Prime Minister David Cameron, announced the move on X, the social media site formerly known as Twitter, saying he will work as managing director and head of OpenAI for Countries while based in London. He follows the lead of Nick Clegg, the former Liberal Democrat leader and deputy PM under Cameron's coalition government, who did a stint as chief apologist for Facebook parent company Meta between 2018 and 2025, and former PM Rishi Sunak, who has taken up advisory roles with both Microsoft and AI biz Anthropic. OpenAI for Countries is an effort to export the company's Stargate project to other nations beyond the US. Stargate itself is an ambitious plan to somehow raise and invest $500 billion over the next four years to build infrastructure to power AI in America, which kicked off last year as a union between the AI developer and Microsoft. Announcing OpenAI for Countries in May, the biz claimed it had "heard from many countries asking for help in building out similar AI infrastructure," and that they "want their own Stargates and similar projects." Osborne said in the post announcing his appointment: "I recently asked myself the question: what's the most exciting and promising company in the world right now? The answer I believe is OpenAI." "In my conversations with Sam Altman, Brad Lightcap, and other senior colleagues, it's clear they are exceptionally impressive leaders and that they care very deeply about their mission to ensure the power of artificial intelligence is developed responsibly, and the benefits are felt by all," he added. Osborne's legacy as Chancellor of the Exchequer is that his austerity policies following the financial crisis of 2007-2008 introduced tax rises and harsh spending cuts that were blamed for delaying Britain's economic recovery and damaging public services, while failing to deliver on the goal of reducing the country's budget deficit. After this, he served as editor of London newspaper The Evening Standard during a period that saw its continued financial decline, so it is easy to see why OpenAI decided he is a safe pair of hands for its international expansion. However, concerns have already been raised over OpenAI's finances, with HSBC warning that the business would need to secure $207 billion in new financing by 2030 to support its expansion plans, yet isn't expected to turn a profit before then. The company has also announced a number of circular deals with other tech businesses, in which they agree to invest in OpenAI and it in turn agrees to invest some or all of the cash back into procuring products or services from them. In September, for example, GPU maker Nvidia said it would hand OpenAI up to $100 billion in investment, while the ChatGPT creator agreed to buy "at least 10 gigawatts" of Nvidia systems for its datacenters. Then, in October, AMD announced it had issued OpenAI with a warrant for up to 160 million shares of the chip company's common stock, in exchange for "6 gigawatts" of AMD GPUs to help drive AI model development. OpenAI - along with other AI firms - has also been involved in controversy over allegations that it used copyrighted material to train its models without gaining permission from the rights holders. Publisher O'Reilly claimed that content from its books had been used to train some OpenAI models. OpenAI even asked the US government to ensure it had access to any data it wanted to train models, and to block foreign countries from trying to enforce copyright rules against it. ®

OpenAI Hires Ex-UK Treasury Chief Osborne for Global AI Push

OpenAI has hired former UK Treasury chief George Osborne to lead a new effort to work with governments on building artificial intelligence infrastructure, tapping a high-profile political figure as countries race to secure the data centers and computing power needed to run advanced AI systems. OpenAI Chief Operating Officer Brad Lightcap said in a social media post Tuesday that Osborne will serve as head of "OpenAI for Countries." Lightcap said governments need help understanding how AI fits into their economic strategy and public services such as health care and education.

OpenAI hires George Osborne to spearhead global 'Stargate' expansion

OpenAI has hired former UK chancellor George Osborne to lead the start-up's work building "democratic" artificial intelligence for the world. The architect of the former Conservative government's austerity programme is set to play a central role within the high-spending company as the head of OpenAI for Countries, an overseas expansion of the $500bn "Stargate" initiative to build data centres in the US. The ChatGPT maker has billed Stargate as a way to ensure American companies and values are at the foundation of the international build-out of AI, providing a bulwark against Chinese alternatives. "I asked myself the question: what's the most exciting and promising company in the world right now? The answer I believe is OpenAI," said Osborne, adding his work would help "societies around the world share the opportunity this powerful technology brings." Chris Lehane, OpenAI's chief global affairs officer, likened OpenAI for Countries to the creation of the modern monetary system. "We are in a Bretton Woods moment," said Lehane. "In 1944, democratic nations came together to create a financial system based on democratic values. We're now at a similar moment with the laying of the AI rails." OpenAI's move for Osborne follows rival AI start-up Anthropic's appointment of Rishi Sunak, another former Conservative chancellor and prime minister, as an adviser in October. Osborne's role will be to lead all of OpenAI's work deploying AI with overseas governments, spanning from developing infrastructure to using the technology for education and training. Stargate was announced at the start of this year by OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman and partners including SoftBank chief Masayoshi Son and Oracle's Larry Ellison at a White House event. The initiative was lauded by President Donald Trump as "a resounding declaration of confidence in America's potential under a new president". The Financial Times reported that OpenAI was considering expanding Stargate beyond the US in April, with OpenAI for Countries launched a month later. OpenAI has since struck deals in the UK and the United Arab Emirates and the company said it was in conversation with 50 countries about helping them develop "sovereign AI". The company has said those deals would help to ensure that "democratic principles" including free speech, free markets and the prevention of mass government data collection are built into the technology. Stargate is also at the centre of OpenAI's efforts to create AI infrastructure that can power its future growth. But lossmaking OpenAI and its partners must raise enormous sums to fund the sites, fuelling concerns of a financial bubble inflating around the rapid build-out of data centres. Osborne will start his new job in January and be based in London. The role adds to an expansive portfolio of positions held by Osborne since he stepped down as a Conservative member of parliament in 2017. The 54-year-old edited the Evening Standard newspaper from 2017 to 2020 and was an adviser to investment group BlackRock until 2021. That same year he took a role as a partner at boutique investment bank Robey Warshaw, which was acquired by Evercore earlier this year. Osborne pocketed little of the windfall from the takeover, the FT previously reported, and is now leaving his role at Evercore. "George has made a significant contribution to the life and business of Robey Warshaw, and I am confident he will bring the same impact to OpenAI," said Sir Simon Robey, a founding partner of Robey Warshaw. Osborne recently lost out in the selection process to become HSBC's new chair, with the bank's board instead choosing its interim chair Brendan Nelson this month. Osborne is the chair of the British Museum, co-presenter of the Political Currency podcast with former Labour party shadow chancellor Ed Balls and a visiting fellow and lecturer in management at Stanford University. He is an adviser to the cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase, where Lehane also serves on the board.

Former chancellor George Osborne joins OpenAI

"I recently asked myself the question: what's the most exciting and promising company in the world right now? The answer I believe is OpenAI," he said on X. The announcement follows news that government-level negotiations between the UK and the US over a tech deal that included greater co-operation in AI have faltered. OpenAI's chief global affairs officer Chris Lehane said Osborne's decision to join the company reflected "a shared belief that AI is becoming critical infrastructure - and early decisions about how it's built, governed, and deployed will shape economics and geopolitics for years to come." OpenAI for Countries is designed to work with governments "to ensure that global AI systems are built on democratic values", Mr Lehane wrote on LinkedIn. So far the programme has engaged with more than 50 countries. He said Osborne will work with governments to help develop AI infrastructure, build AI literacy and use AI to improve public services. "In his new role, George will help to expand existing partnerships and build new ones," Mr Lehane added. Osborne, who co-hosts a podcast and is also chair of the British Museum, said he joined the firm after conversations with OpenAI's chief executive Sam Altman and chief operating officer Brad Lightcap. He said the pair are "exceptionally impressive leaders and that they care very deeply about their mission to ensure the power of artificial intelligence is developed responsibly, and the benefits are felt by all". Osborne added: "That's exactly what the OpenAI for Countries initiative intends to achieve, helping societies around the world share the opportunity this powerful technology brings." Osborne said he was leaving his current role at investment bank Evercore, which was a "huge wrench". He was also previously editor of the Evening Standard newspaper from 2017 to 2020. Osborne's new job was first reported by the Financial Times.

George Osborne joins OpenAI: ex-chancellor adds tech post to his CV

Former Tory chancellor tasked with helping ChatGPT owner develop ties with governments George Osborne, the former UK chancellor, is joining OpenAI to lead the ChatGPT developer's relationships with governments around the world. He will head a division known internally as OpenAI for Countries, through which the San Francisco artificial intelligence startup works with governments on national-level AI rollouts. The former Conservative politician will add the role to his growing portfolio of positions which include: chair of the British Museum; adviser to cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase; and host of a podcast with former Labour minister Ed Balls. Osborne is moving on from his role as senior managing director at Evercore, which acquired the investment bank Robey Warshaw in July where he was partner, and will be based in London rather than Silicon Valley. His hiring by OpenAI is the latest sign the big US tech firms are becoming increasingly focused on boosting AI adoption by national governments. Microsoft, Google and Palantir have all been pushing hard to provide AI services to the British government, where Osborne was in office from 2010 to 2016 alongside Nick Clegg, who spent seven years working for Mark Zuckerberg at Meta. Rishi Sunak, one of Osborne's successors' as chancellor, announced in October he was taking an advisory role with one of OpenAI's main rivals, Anthropic. Other roles Osborne has held since leaving government have included being editor of the Evening Standard between 2017 and 2020, and adviser to the US private equity firm BlackRock. OpenAI's national-level projects have included involvement in building major AI infrastructure in places such as Norway and the United Arab Emirates as part of a $500bn "Stargate" datacentre initiative. OpenAI already has a memorandum of understanding with the UK government "to establish strategic partnerships that accelerate AI-driven economic growth and deliver opportunities to materially improve people's lives" and a deal withEstonia to give all pupils and teachers access to a version of ChatGPT. Osborne will be expected to create new nation-level AI infrastructure partnerships and expand those already announced in Argentina, Australia, Germany, South Korea. In a statement marking his appointment, Osborne said he believed OpenAI, which has been valued at about $500bn, was "the most exciting and promising company in the world right now". "In my conversations with Sam Altman, Brad Lightcap [OpenAI's chief executive and chief operating officer] and other senior colleagues, it's clear they are exceptionally impressive leaders and that they care very deeply about their mission to ensure the power of artificial intelligence is developed responsibly, and the benefits are felt by all," he said. "That's exactly what the OpenAI for Countries initiative intends to achieve, helping societies around the world share the opportunity this powerful technology brings." OpenAI has been hit by recent controversies over the impact of its chatbots. It is defending several lawsuits from the families of young people who took their own lives after interacting with ChatGPT. They include the family of Adam Raine, 16, who killed himself in April after what his family's lawyer claimed was "months of encouragement from ChatGPT". Chris Lehane, OpenAI's chief global affairs officer, said Osborne's appointment "reflects a shared belief that AI is becoming critical infrastructure - and early decisions about how it's built, governed, and deployed will shape economics and geopolitics for years to come". He added: "Whether the world builds on democratic AI rails led by nations with aligned values designed to put this technology into the hands of people so they can fully participate in the opportunities of the Intelligence age or the People's Republic of China-imposed autocratic AI rails that will be used to concentrate the technology in the hands of the few - and at the expense of the many - will define what kind of a world we live in."

OpenAI reveals major hire to lead global Stargate data center expansion

Former UK Chancellor will oversee government partnerships and other Stargate expansion initiatives Former UK Chancellor George Osborne has been named Managing Director and Head of OpenAI for Countries - a role that will see him lead the company's Stargate data center expansion outside of the US. Other responsibilities will include helping governments to adopt and deploy OpenAI tools, expanding government partnerships, further work on AI infrastructure and public service use cases. The 'for Countries' expansion came to Project Stargate earlier in May 2025, in response to demand from multiple countries asking OpenAI for help building Stargate-style national AI infrastructure. Stargate kicked off with its first campus in Abilene, Texas, with more US sites planned already. The 'for Countries' initiative was added with the intention of helping countries build their own secure, sovereign infrastructure, offering customized ChatGPT experiences in terms of language and culture. When it launched, OpenAI for Countries set out with the target of working with 10 countries in round one before expanding. Osborne will begin the role in January 2026 to oversee the global expansion of the company's scheme, and he is expected to represent the ChatGPT-maker at the World Economic Forum in Davos next month (per Reuters reporting). Along from his six-year stint as Chancellor of the Exchequer between 2010 and 2016 (and a five-year stint as Shadow Chancellor before that), Osborne has also held roles at investment bank Evercore, the British Museum, and Coinbase. OpenAI's push to hire a notable political figure is a testament to the company's commitment to deepen its tied with government agencies as it looks to get AI into the hands of federal agencies globally. "In my conversations with Sam Altman, Brad Lightcap, and other senior colleagues, it's clear they are exceptionally impressive leaders and that they care very deeply about their mission to ensure the power of artificial intelligence is developed responsibly, and the benefits are felt by all," Osborne wrote in an X post.

OpenAI Taps Former UK Chancellor George Osborne To Lead Global Government AI Push Amid US-UK Tech Deal Freeze

Enter your email to get Benzinga's ultimate morning update: The PreMarket Activity Newsletter Sam Altman-led OpenAI is set to bring former UK Chancellor George Osborne into a senior global role, as shifting U.S.-UK tech relations and intensifying competition over AI infrastructure reshape the international landscape. Osborne to Head Global AI Initiative Osborne is set to lead the "OpenAI for Countries" initiative, which aims to assist governments in enhancing their AI capabilities. The former UK politician took to X on Tuesday to announce the move and described it as a "privilege" to join the AI company. OpenAI Chief Global Affairs Officer Chris Lehane said on LinkedIn that Osborne's move to the company underscores a shared view of AI as essential infrastructure, adding that choices made now around its development, governance, and deployment will have lasting impacts on global economic and geopolitical dynamics. Osborne will collaborate with governments to build AI infrastructure, boost AI literacy, and apply AI to improve public services. The move represents a notable career shift, as he steps away from his role at investment bank Evercore. Osborne Joins OpenAI Amid Global AI Shifts Earlier this week, the U.S. suspended a technology agreement with the UK over dissatisfaction with the pace of trade discussions. This move has raised questions about the future of AI collaboration between the two nations. Meanwhile, OpenAI is making strategic moves to strengthen its position in the AI market. The company recently appointed Denise Dresser as its Chief Revenue Officer to drive its enterprise expansion and revenue. However, some experts, including CNBC's Jim Cramer, have raised concerns about the sustainability of the current AI boom, warning that the rapid pace of data center and utility station construction may not be sustainable in the long run. READ NEXT: Sam Altman's OpenAI In Talks To Raise $10 Billion From Amazon And Use Its AI Chips: Report Image via Shutterstock Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors. Market News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs

US Tech Giants Seek Out Former British Ministers; OpenAI Signs up George Osborne

Recent developments at OpenAI seems to suggest a close similarity to the playbook employees by Meta Platforms years ago What could be the reason that US tech giants are suddenly making a beeline for former ministers in the British cabinet? Had this been the case 50-60 years ago, one could have assumed that these ministers held some authority over former colonies. We cannot imagine why the former Chancellor of the Exchequer in the UK George Osborne would be of any use to OpenAI. However, Sam Altman and his chief global affairs executive Chris Lehane seem to think that British political meritocracy could perhaps open more doors than the jeans-clad techies from the Western Coast of the United States. Hence we have Osborne taking over as Head of OpenAI for Countries - whatever that means. What's more, he can continue to stay put in London. For starters what could be the job description that an over-enthusiastic HR manager might write up for the position? Back in the days, we may describe it as a regional manager, but would the British accept such a title? Especially one who served as the second in command of the ruling government in Britain. However, Lehane adds some perspective by claiming that Osborne would be working with governments across the world to develop AI infrastructure that includes computing capacity (an euphemism for data centres) as well as pushing the case for ramping up usage of AI. In other words, he'd help open administrative doors and provide gravitas to an activity that could require a liaison officer and a sales representative. There were reports of US and UK governments not seeing eye-to-eye over a few tech deals, including a few in the AI domain. This is explained by Lehane who claims that Osborne and OpenAI shared beliefs around AI becoming critical infrastructure and how early decisions around how it is built, governed and deployed will impact future geopolitics." As part of his job, Osborne would also sell ideas related training resources on AI tools, using it to enhance public services, discussing the safety and cybersecurity standards among other things. In other words, he would be out in the open canvassing for OpenAI as the next best thing after sliced bread ever invented by humans. Which brings us to the important question. Would Osborne be able to crack it on his own? Maybe he would require a team, which we are sure Sam Altman would provide from his own resources. However, what should be of some concern to us is that OpenAI's moves are reminiscent of a similar hire by Meta Platforms. They got British Prime Minister Nick Clegg on board in 2018. More recently, there were reports of another British premier Rishi Sunak joining hands with Anthropic and Microsoft in part-time roles. Seven years ago, Clegg was overseeing policy and dealing with governments for what was then Facebook. It remains to be seen if Osborne's new role would have a larger scope than that of Clegg. For starters, it would be interesting to see how European regulators dealing with antitrust would find the new appointment and whether they will welcome him to any negotiating table while dealing with OpenAI in the future. And if he does make it to that table, would Osborne command the same respect he did once as the Chancellor of the Exchequer? Obviously not. So, once again it seem to be about opening doors and adding a tinge of gravitas. As to why OpenAI is doing this now, it is most definitely the result of the Meta effect. Remember, about a fifth of OpenAI workforce are former Meta employees and there were reports that the company even has a specific channel on its slack for this group of individuals. As Meta did years ago, OpenAI too has built apps that has witnessed a massive spike in usage, close to 800 million plus weekly active ones. The similarity doesn't end there. Like with Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, even OpenAI users hardly pay anything. Which is resulting in ads making a play sooner than later for free ChatGPT users. Readers would recall that Sam Altman had claimed two months ago that he hated ads, but found those on Instagram tasteful. So, one can safely say that the playbook being used by Altman and his folks has origins in the offices of Mark Zuckerberg and his team. And Osborne's hiring is just another step towards the process of creating a vertically integrated global giant in the shortest possible time.

OpenAI taps former UK finance minister Osborne to lead global Stargate expansion

Dec 16 (Reuters) - OpenAI has appointed former British finance minister George Osborne as managing director and head of its "OpenAI for Countries" initiative, the company said on Tuesday, as the ChatGPT maker ramps up efforts to work with governments on national AI strategies. Osborne, who served as chancellor of the exchequer from 2010 to 2016, will take up the role in January and will oversee the expansion of OpenAI for Countries, OpenAI said. OpenAI for Countries is an overseas expansion of the $500 billion 'Stargate' initiative to build data centres in the U.S. The company describes OpenAI for Countries as a way to ensure AI systems are built on democratic values while supporting local innovation ecosystems, education, and infrastructure. OpenAI said Osborne is expected to participate in its event at the World Economic Forum in Davos next month. Osborne's appointment underscores growing global interest in AI as core national infrastructure and the geopolitical stakes around how it is governed. (Reporting by Kritika Lamba in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber)