Google plans to open centre in London’s Tech City
28 Sep 2011
Google is betting big on Tech City, East London's fast-growing hub for internet companies, with its signing of a lease for a seven-floor building that would serve as a launch-pad for new start-ups and developers.
The centre, which would open in 2012, will house advisers from Google and other organisations that support technology entrepreneurs, Google said today.
The location would be close to Old Street roundabout, known as "Silicon Roundabout," in an area of London that had already attracted hundreds of new internet start-ups.
The move would support British prime minister David Cameron's development plans mooted in November 2010 for London's East End to become a technology centre to rival California's Silicon Valley.
The plan received enthusiastic support of technology companies, including Google, Vodafone, Facebook and Intel.
According to Google, which would retain its central London offices, the centre would be the first initiative of its kind for the company anywhere in the world.
