---
type: entity
entity_type: lab
name: "Google DeepMind"
domain: ai-alignment
secondary_domains: [internet-finance]
handles: ["@GoogleDeepMind"]
website: https://deepmind.google
status: active
founded: 2010-01-01
founders: ["Demis Hassabis", "Shane Legg", "Mustafa Suleyman"]
category: "Frontier AI research laboratory (Google division)"
stage: mature
funding: "Google subsidiary — $175-185B capex allocated 2026"
key_metrics:
  enterprise_share: "21% of enterprise LLM spending"
  consumer_share: "18.2% via Gemini app"
  capex_2026: "$175-185B"
  models: "Gemini 3 Deep Think, Gemini 3.1 Pro, Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite"
competitors: ["OpenAI", "Anthropic", "xAI"]
tracked_by: theseus
created: 2026-03-16
last_updated: 2026-03-16
related:
  - "OpenAI"
  - "xAI"
reweave_edges:
  - "OpenAI|related|2026-03-28"
  - "xAI|related|2026-03-28"
---

# Google DeepMind

## Overview
Google's combined AI research division, formed from the merger of Google Brain and DeepMind. Led by Demis Hassabis (2024 Nobel laureate). The most conservative AGI timeline among major lab heads (2030-2035), with the deepest scientific AI research program and the largest distribution advantage (Search, Chrome, Workspace, Android — 2B+ devices).

## Current State
- Gemini 3 Deep Think achieves gold-medal Olympiad results in Physics, Chemistry, Math
- 21% enterprise LLM, 18.2% consumer — third place in both
- Massive capex: $175-185B in 2026
- Partnerships: SAP, Salesforce, Atlassian via Google Cloud

## Timeline
- **2010** — DeepMind founded in London by Hassabis, Legg, Suleyman
- **2014** — Acquired by Google for $500M
- **2023** — Google Brain and DeepMind merged into Google DeepMind
- **2024** — Hassabis awarded Nobel Prize in Chemistry (AlphaFold)
- **2025-11** — Gemini 3 Deep Think released
- **2026-02** — Gemini 3.1 Pro released

## Key Figure: Demis Hassabis
Most conservative frontier lab leader: expects AGI by 2030-2035, believes 1-2 major breakthroughs beyond transformers are needed. This contrasts sharply with Altman (2026-2027) and Musk (2026).

## Competitive Position
Dominant distribution (2B+ devices) but trailing in enterprise and consumer share. The distribution moat means Google DeepMind doesn't need to win on model quality — they need to be good enough for their models to be the default on billions of devices. This is the Apple strategy applied to AI: if models commoditize, distribution wins.

## Alignment Significance
Co-founder Shane Legg coined the term "artificial general intelligence." DeepMind has the longest-running AI safety research program of any frontier lab. Hassabis's conservative timelines may reflect deeper technical understanding or institutional caution — the alignment community values this conservatism but worries it won't survive Google's commercial pressure.

Mustafa Suleyman (co-founder) now leads Microsoft's consumer AI, creating a unique dynamic where two DeepMind co-founders lead competing AI efforts.

## Relationship to KB
- [[adaptive governance outperforms rigid alignment blueprints because superintelligence development has too many unknowns for fixed plans]] — Hassabis's conservative approach aligns with adaptive governance
- [[the alignment tax creates a structural race to the bottom because safety training costs capability and rational competitors skip it]] — Google's capex suggests they can afford the tax longer than smaller labs

Topics:
- [[_map]]
