OpenAI pauses UK Stargate supercomputer project over costs and regulations
OpenAI has put its big UK Stargate project on hold, mainly because of soaring energy prices and tricky regulations.
The initiative, part of a £31 billion U.K.-US AI deal announced in 2025, was supposed to supercharge Britain's AI infrastructure, but a supercomputer site was still a scaffolding yard in March.
Nscale delays UK project until 2027
The company building the tech, Nscale, doesn't have much experience with projects this massive and now says things won't be ready until 2027.
Plus, with UK industrial electricity prices the highest in Europe before the war, making the project work just isn't realistic right now.
OpenAI still believes in the U.K.'s AI potential and says they'll jump back in once energy costs drop and rules are clearer.
The goal? To help the UK protect its own data and stay competitive in global AI.