Google has purchased the startup DeepMind Technologies, co-founded in 2011 in London by British born 37-year-old Greek Cypriot neuroscientist Demmis Hassabis.

Industry sources speculate that the corporation spent 400 to 500 million pounds on the artificial intelligence company, which was also looking for a buyer last year and was expected to be bought by Facebook.

Although information regarding DeepMind is scarce, it is estimated that the startup currently employs more than 50 people.

Experts in the artificial intelligence industry mention that DeepMind can compete with giants like Facebook or Google for talent and that it could be “the largest independent company” which focuses on artificial intelligence.

Google’s reported purchase of DeepMind comes after giant tech companies like Facebook and IBM became interested in deep learning.

A child prodigy in chess, Hassabis reached master standard at the age of 13. He studied Computer Science at Cambridge University and received a PhD in Cognitive Neuroscience from University College London.

Following his graduation Hassabis worked briefly as a lead Artificial Intelligence programmer and in 1998 he co-founded Elixir, a London-based video games development company.

Demmis Hassabis left the video game industry a few years ago in order to work as a neuroscientist. Working in the field of autobiographical memory and amnesia he authored several influential papers, arguing that patients with damage to their hippocampus, known to cause amnesia, were also unable to imagine themselves in new experiences. Recently some of Hassabis’ findings and interpretations have been challenged by other researchers.

Hassabis won the world games championship at the Mind Sports Olympiad a record five times, prior to his retirement in 2003, and at the time he was regarded as the best all-round games player in the world. He is an expert player of many board games including chess, Diplomacy, shogi and poker.
Sources: AP, latimes