The United Kingdom's Artificial Intelligence Safety Institute is set to open a San Francisco office in the latest sign of the city’s emergence as a global AI hub.
The facility, slated to start operating this summer, marks the first U.S. center for AISI, established last summer by Britain's government to regulate artificial intelligence technologies and examine the risks and potential of AI "from a global lens," according to a statement from U.K. Technology Minister Michelle Donelan.
Officials plan to recruit research executives for the planned San Francisco office and establish a facility similar to its operations in London, where it has a team of 30 chaired by British tech entrepreneur and Songkick founder Ian Hogarth.
“The expansion marks a pivotal step that will allow the UK to tap into the wealth of tech talent available in the Bay Area, engage with the world’s largest AI labs headquartered in both London and San Francisco, and cement relationships with the United States to advance AI safety for the public interest,” according to a statement from the AISI.
The organization did not disclose the size or location of the planned office in San Francisco, and it did not respond to a request to comment from CoStar News.
National AI Center
San Francisco has emerged as a leading national hub for artificial intelligence companies in recent years, according to a study by JLL that said the city houses nearly half of such companies in the U.S.
This is in large part due to talent pool access; San Francisco is home to six major AI research institutions, while no other city counts more than three, according to the report. AI companies accounted for 25% of San Francisco office leases last year, and there are about 100 companies with up to 50 employees currently scouting office space in the city, according to JLL.
A top neighborhood in San Francisco attracting AI companies is South of Market, which boasts more affordable rents and higher availability, according to John Roskos, executive vice president at JLL.
Artificial intelligence has served as a bright spot for the city that is battling record high vacancy rates, with its downtown areas counting office vacancy of around 30%, according to CoStar data. This compares to the national vacancy rate of 13%.
Notable AI leases in the past year for San Francisco include ChatGPT maker OpenAI subleasing over 400,000 square feet of Uber’s former headquarters in Mission Rock; and Anthropic, a safety-focused AI firm, taking over Snap’s former headquarters at 500 Howard St. in a deal totaling 247,000 square feet.
OpenAI and Anthropic — founded by former OpenAI employees and siblings Dario and Daniela Amodei — agreed to open their models to the British government to help inform research. AISI was established after the government faced criticism for not regulating fast-growing AI technologies; similar critiques have been levied at other governments, according to reports.