OpenAI Never Visited Its Stargate UK Site, Guardian Finds
A Guardian investigation revealed that OpenAI apparently never visited a key site earmarked for its Stargate UK data centre project before its announcement. This raises questions about the due diligence behind the UK government’s flagship AI infrastructure programme.
Background
Stargate UK, a collaboration between OpenAI, Nvidia, and British cloud provider Nscale, was unveiled in September 2025 during former President Trump’s state visit to the UK. The project aimed to deploy up to 8,000 Nvidia GPUs at sites in north-east England by Q1 2026, with scalability to 31,000 over time.
Previous Findings
A previous Guardian investigation in March 2026 found that:
- The designated supercomputer site in Loughton, Essex, was a functioning scaffolding yard with no visible construction of the promised facility.
- Nscale had announced plans to deploy 23,400 Nvidia GPUs by early 2027 but land records did not show ownership of the site at that time.
- The UK government had issued a press release claiming a £1.9 billion investment contract with Nscale, but no such contract had been signed.
- The government’s AI infrastructure commitments relied on self-reporting by companies rather than audited disclosures, leading to phantom investments.
Project Pause
In April 2026, OpenAI formally paused Stargate UK, citing high industrial electricity costs in Britain and unresolved regulatory questions around AI and copyright. A spokesperson stated that the company would revisit the project when "regulation and the cost of energy enable long-term infrastructure investment."
Conclusion
The revelation underscores concerns about whether the UK government’s AI investments are based more on press releases than thorough investigation.