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Google’s huge London property empire is starting to take shape
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Google CEO Sundar Pichai.
Google is looking to expand its UK workforce from around 4,000 people today to 7,000 people by 2020.
The search giant currently has three main offices in London with one in King’s Cross, one on Tottenham Court Road, and another in Victoria. It also has a smaller startup space near Old Street known as Campus.
Over the next few years, Google is planning to make King’s Cross its main base in the city, opening a number of new buildings in the area.
Earlier this month, photos emerged of what will be Google’s only wholly owned building outside the US. It’s a huge “landscraper” with a basketball court and a rooftop walking trail.
Here’s a look at some of the properties that Google is planning in King’s Cross and some that it already has in the area and across the rest of London.
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The area behind King’s Cross has been significantly redeveloped over the last few years and Google is moving into a number of new properties in the area.
Google announced plans to build a new £1 billion HQ on the 300m green plot of land in 2013.
Architects AHMM drew up these plans for Google’s UK in September 2013.
At the time, The Guardian wrote: “On a long, thin sliver of land between the railway tracks in King’s Cross, where rusting gasometers and soot-caked sheds once stood, a multi-storey pleasure palace will soon rise out of the ground. Complete with climbing wall, indoor football pitch and a rooftop swimming pool, this is not a new leisure centre for the people of Camden, but Google’s spanking new £1bn London headquarters – designed to make going to work feel like an exciting day out.”
But ex-Google CEO Larry Page dismissed them in February 2015 for being “too boring,” according to The Daily Mail.
As Google stalled on its main HQ, it snapped up this huge building over the road which had already been built.
The office — over the road from University College London and the British Library — boasts roof terraces with great views over London.
It can be accessed through this funky tunnel which runs from King’s Cross station.
The 6 Pancras Square building also contains a “YouTube Space” on the ground floor which is kitted out with studios and meeting areas.
Staff began moving into 6 Pancras Square in June and up to 2,800 Googlers are expected to be in the building by the end of 2016, including Android engineers and AI researchers at DeepMind.
It has been designed to be more subtle and stylish than some of Google’s other buildings, which often have Google’s bold colours throughout.
A floating staircase links some of the upper floors in the 11-storey building.
Google CEO Sundar Pichai finally announced the new architect for the main HQ building in November.
British superstar architect Thomas Heatherwick, whose firm designed the Olympic Cauldron for London 2012, has been tasked with designing Google’s new UK HQ.
Plans for the new office were revealed in June 2017. The adventurous “landscraper” comes with a pool and a basketball court.
The office is designed to be low-energy and sustainable.
The building will occupy the majority of a 330 meter stretch of land that runs parallel with train tracks that feed into King’s Cross Train Station.
The plans show a 300 metre-long roof terrace contains wildflower gardens and areas that are being referred to a “fields.” A number of relaxation areas can also be found on the roof terrace.
The building has several floors containing floor-to-ceiling windows.
An indoor sports hall would provide Googlers with the opportunity to play basketball and other sports while enjoying views over London.
Canal boats will cruise past the Google office while engineers write code inside.
In addition to 6 Pancras Square and the Thomas Heatherwick building, Google is also planning to move into this yet-to-be-built property at King’s Cross. It is being built on a plot known simply as “S2”.
Outside King’s Cross, Google has offices in Tottenham Court Road and Victoria. It’s understood that these offices will eventually be closed as Google expands in King’s Cross.
Google also has a space for startups in East London known simply as Campus.
Inspirational quotes are scattered around Campus to motivate the startup entrepreneurs that work there.
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