ChatGPT Creator OpenAI Looking for a New York Office
By David M. Levitt February 13, 2024 11:59 am
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OpenAI, the San Francisco-based company that has been leading the drive to spread artificial intelligence (AI) into wide use, is looking to lease about 60,000 square feet of office space in New York City, Commercial Observer has learned.
The company has hired Raise Commercial Real Estate, a fairly new name on the New York commercial property brokerage scene, to serve as its broker, according to one of two sources who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized by their firms to address the matter. OpenAI does not appear to have a New York office currently.
The individual broker leading the effort is Jamie Katcher, who is said by a source to have come over from Cushman & Wakefield (CWK) specifically to represent tech firms looking for offices in the New York area. A C&W spokeswoman confirmed that he once worked there. Calls to Katcher were not returned. An email submitted through Raise’s website to Justin Bedecarre, listed as the company’s CEO and co-founder, was also not returned. An email sent Monday to Lindsey Held Bolton, a spokeswoman for OpenAI, was also not returned.
OpenAI is the creator of ChatGPT, which is a chatbot designed to deliver sophisticated knowledge to internet users, including businesses. AI is said to be complex enough to at least challenge, if not exceed, human intelligence.
OpenAI’s chief executive is Sam Altman, who last week shocked the world when sources told the Wall Street Journal that he was seeking up to $7 trillion in investment in semiconductors to turn out chips sophisticated enough to run AI. He was said to be seeking funds from, among others, the United Arab Emirates.
In a Feb. 7 posting on X, formerly known as Twitter, Altman said that “building massive AI infrastructure, and a resilient supply chain, is crucial to economic competitiveness.”
Artificial intelligence is said to be the computer technology behind research into self-driving cars and trucks, vehicles thought to be intelligent enough to use existing roadways without a human driver.
According to a fourth-quarter office market report from brokerage Transwestern, there were some 39 million square feet of space available in Downtown San Francisco, a record high. OpenAI executed the market’s largest fourth-quarter lease there, per the report, taking 487,000 square feet in the Mission Bay/China Beach submarket.
Manhattan, America’s largest office market with 458 million square feet, reported some 25 million square feet available, according to Transwestern’s figures.
