The opening of a new office space is not always particularly remarkable, but at the launch of Synthesia\u2019s new London headquarters, the rising AI star made quite the splash.<\/p>\n
On the third floor of Regent\u2019s Place bordering Fitzrovia and Camden, Synthesia\u2019s co-founder and chief executive Victor Riparbelli was joined by Technology Secretary Peter Kyle, Mayor of London Sadiq Khan and legendary AI pioneer Fei-Fei Li to cut the ribbon, officially opening the 20,000 sq ft workspace.<\/p>\n
For some time now Synthesia has been one of the biggest names in British AI, having secured an impressive valuation of $2.1bn<\/a> (\u00a31.55bn) in January and surpassing an annual recurring revenue of $100m<\/a> (\u00a373.7m) in April.<\/p>\n But even for a company so accomplished, the opening of its new office on Wednesday felt like a turning point.<\/p>\n \u201cSynthesia\u2019s expansion isn\u2019t just great news for London \u2013 it\u2019s further evidence of the strength of Britain\u2019s tech sector and the environment we are building to support more and more home-grown companies to thrive,\u201d Kyle said, addressing the cheering crowd.<\/p>\n \u201cTheir move to a bigger, brighter headquarters in the capital\u2019s Knowledge Quarter further cements Synthesia\u2019s reputation as a global leader in AI and London\u2019s reputation as a place for businesses to thrive,\u201d added Khan, who as Mayor oversaw an early investment in the company by the Greater London Investment Fund.<\/p>\n Synthesia\u2019s financial metrics are enviable on their own, but as Riparbelli told UKTN, the political seal of approval from Kyle and Khan \u201cmatters more than people think\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cTo see that they care [\u2026] for a very long time it wasn\u2019t obvious that people actually cared about building a tech company, I can see that it\u2019s important to them now.<\/p>\n \u201cYears ago, they would have been arm\u2019s length towards private companies, and I think it\u2019s good that that\u2019s changing.\u201d<\/p>\n For the Synthesia boss, it isn\u2019t just about receiving support for his own company, it marks a major step towards competing with the US, which he said had never struggled to celebrate the successes of its tech firms.<\/p>\n Riparbelli told UKTN that he wants to make his mark on European AI, building its community to the level seen in Silicon Valley, a task the Denmark-native feels for now can best be done in the UK.<\/p>\n