Databricks opens new European hub in central London

Databricks has announced the opening of its new European hub in central London, marking a significant expansion in the company's presence in the UK.

Situated in the Fitzrovia neighbourhood, the seven-story, 29,885-square-foot office is intended to serve as a central point for the Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) region. According to a statement from the company, this expansion reflects Databricks' focus on fostering innovation, enhancing customer collaboration, and promoting employee engagement as the demand for data and artificial intelligence solutions grows in the UK.

Databricks currently employs over 400 people in the UK. Its UK business has experienced more than 60% annualised growth over the past three years. This growth is driven by the Databricks Data Intelligence Platform, which is used by organisations such as Gousto, Heathrow, Rolls Royce, SEGA Europe, Shell, and Virgin Atlantic. The platform, based on an open lakehouse architecture, offers a unified foundation for data and governance along with AI models tailored to individual organisational needs.

"The Databricks Data Intelligence Platform has been pivotal in transforming the customer experience at Virgin Atlantic," said Richard Masters, Vice President of Data and AI, Virgin Atlantic. "Nowadays customers expect more tailored incentives and rewards, and having a consistent view of the customer across all touchpoints requires joining up data sources and breaking down silos. This is where the Databricks Data Intelligence Platform has come into its own. We enjoy working with the Databricks team in the UK and tapping into local expertise to help make Virgin Atlantic a truly data-driven company."

Felix Baker, Head of Data Services at SEGA Europe, stated, "At SEGA Europe, we generate over 50,000 data events on players' behaviour and in-game interactions every second. As such, it's vital that we have the right tools in place to maximise the value of our data and deliver more impactful, personalised gaming experiences. The Databricks Data Intelligence Platform has empowered us to do just that, by democratising our data for analytics and machine learning."

Databricks is also focusing on education in the UK, forming partnerships with over 35 universities as part of its global University Alliance Program. This initiative aims to equip data science students with skills in big data programming and analytics. Partner institutions include BPP University, London School of Economics, Newcastle University, University of Edinburgh, University of Oxford, and Queen Mary University.

"The UK is an incredibly important market for Databricks and this office in the heart of London reflects our ambitions to support even more local businesses to innovate with data and AI," said Michael Green, VP Northern Europe, Databricks. "We want this new space to be a true destination for our team, customers, partners and the data and AI community to come together to solve some of the toughest challenges with data intelligence."

The new headquarters is designed to support both customer success and data analysis, featuring a live demo area where clients and prospects can experience real-time data visualisation - a first for Databricks globally.

Samuel Bonamigo, SVP and GM, EMEA, Databricks, remarked, "I am always impressed at the pace of innovation coming out of Databricks in the UK and throughout EMEA, and the strong ecosystem of local partners and customers who recognise the tangible business outcomes that come from scaling data intelligence initiatives. I hope that our vibrant new hub will only serve to inspire more collaboration, innovation and skills development as the data and AI market grows."

The announcement of the EMEA hub coincides with Databricks' Data + AI World Tour in London, where the company hosted over 2,000 participants interested in data and AI. This is part of a series of events in EMEA cities designed for professionals in the field to connect and exchange best practices.