UK courts Anthropic expansion in London as US defence clash creates opening for $380bn AI startup

UK courts Anthropic to expand in London after US defence clash

Keir Starmer's government is trying to tempt Anthropic to expand its presence in the UK, looking to capitalise on the $380bn start-up's fight with the US defence department to woo one of America's top AI groups. Staff at the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology have sketched out proposals for the San Francisco-headquartered company, spanning from an office expansion in London to a dual listing, according to multiple people with knowledge of the plans. Downing Street has been supportive of the work, which will be put to Anthropic chief executive Dario Amodei when he visits the UK in late May as part of a trip to meet European customers and policymakers, they added. Efforts to persuade the start-up to expand its presence in the UK beyond an existing office in London have stepped up in recent weeks after the US defence department labelled the start-up a supply-chain risk, said two of the people. US President Donald Trump lambasted the "leftwing nut jobs at Anthropic" after the company refused to budge on "red lines" about use of its technology in warfighting. "THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA WILL NEVER ALLOW A RADICAL LEFT, WOKE COMPANY TO DICTATE HOW OUR GREAT MILITARY FIGHTS AND WINS WARS!" Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social at the end of February. A week later, London mayor Sadiq Khan wrote to Amodei pitching the UK capital as a "steadfast" base for the company. "I believe that London can provide a stable, proportionate and pro-innovation environment in which this kind of AI can flourish," he wrote. The move to court Anthropic comes amid a broader push by governments around the world to build "sovereign" AI capabilities and reduce reliance on foreign AI companies. Last month, the UK announced plans to launch a £40mn state-backed research lab for "blue-sky" work in AI, leveraging Britain's research base and scientists to make breakthroughs in science, healthcare and transport. UK officials recognise they lack a homegrown competitor to top US labs and have sought partnerships with those groups. Anthropic currently employs about 200 people in the UK, 60 of them researchers, and last year appointed former prime minister Rishi Sunak as a senior adviser. Last month, rival OpenAI committed to significantly expanding in London, making the city its biggest research hub outside the US. Google has also built its presence in the UK capital since acquiring DeepMind, the AI research lab founded by Demis Hassabis, in 2014. The search giant is putting the finishing touches on a vast, roughly £1bn campus in King's Cross. The UK's efforts come as Anthropic prepares for an initial public offering as early as this year. One person familiar with the government's proposals said "the dream" would be to persuade Anthropic to dual list its shares in the UK and US, but added that was a highly unlikely scenario. "We are in regular dialogue with them as you'd expect," said another government figure. They added that dialogue was "building on" a memorandum of understanding signed last year with Anthropic to work together on boosting scientific progress and building a secure supply chain for AI. Peter Kyle, UK business secretary, told the FT that Anthropic was one of many fast-growing companies he wanted to encourage to invest more in the UK. "I set up the Global Talent Taskforce to assertively get out there and sell all the benefits of investing, innovating and scaling in the UK," he said. Kyle added: "We are in touch with a great many companies from a very wide range of high-growth sectors worldwide. It's wrong to say it's about listing, it's about talent."

Britain woos Anthropic expansion after US defence clash, FT says

April 5 (Reuters) - Britain is trying to tempt Anthropic to expand its presence in the country, as it seeks to capitalise on a fight between the maker of artificial intelligence app Claude and the U.S. Defense Department, the Financial Times said on Sunday. British government proposals ⁠for Anthropic range from an office expansion in London to a dual stock listing, the newspaper reported, citing people with knowledge of the plans. Anthropic and Britain's Department of Science, Innovation and Technology did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment. Prime Minister Keir Starmer's office has supported ⁠the department's work, which will be put to Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei when he visits in late May, the FT said. The U.S. government blacklisted Anthropic, designating ⁠the company a national-security supply-chain risk after it refused to allow the military to use AI chatbot Claude ⁠for U.S. surveillance or autonomous weapons. A U.S. judge temporarily blocked the blacklisting, and the AI ⁠startup has a second lawsuit pending over the supply-chain risk designation. Reporting by Chandni Shah in Bengaluru; Editing by Clarence Fernandez and William Mallard Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab

The UK government reportedly wants Anthropic to expand its presence in London

While the US and Anthropic are in the midst of a major dispute, the UK is trying to sway the San Francisco-based AI company to expand its presence on English soil. According to a report from The Financial Times, staffers at the UK's Department for Science, Innovation and Technology have worked on proposals that include expanding Anthropic's office in London, along with a potential dual stock listing. The UK's strategy follows a public fallout between Anthropic and the US Department of Defense earlier this year. After the AI company said it wouldn't budge on certain AI guardrails, the Department of Defense pulled its contract and eventually designated Anthropic a supply chain risk. While the designation is currently temporarily blocked by a court-ordered injunction, the feud is far from over. In the meantime, the UK's efforts to court Anthropic have ramped up in the recent weeks thanks to the company's disagreements with the US, according to FT's sources. With no end in sight for the debacle with the Department of Defense, Anthropic's CEO, Dario Amodei, is expected to visit the UK in May, according to FT. However, even in London, Anthropic will have to compete against OpenAI, which already committed to expanding its footprint in the English capital in February.

UK Woos Anthropic With Expansion, Listing Plans Amid US Tensions: Report - Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN), Alph

Britain's government is reportedly courting Anthropic, the $380 billion AI startup, with proposals ranging from a London office expansion to a dual listing, as the company faces U.S. political headwinds. According to the report, the UK's Department for Science, Innovation and Technology has circulated proposals for Anthropic, including an office expansion in London and a potential dual listing, with plans set to be presented to CEO Dario Amodei during his visit to the UK in late May. Pentagon Feud Creates An Opening President Donald Trump later escalated the dispute on Truth Social in late February, criticizing the parent company and creator of Claude as a "radical left, woke company." The UK government's move to court Anthropic comes amid the global race to build sovereign AI capabilities and reduce reliance on foreign AI companies. IPO Timing And A Dual-Listing 'Dream' Anthropic is preparing for a potential IPO as early as this year. One government official described a UK dual listing to the Financial Times as "the dream," though the same person called it a highly unlikely outcome. Photo courtesy: 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 To add Benzinga News as your preferred source on Google, click here.