Demis Hassabis is a British AI researcher, neuroscientist, and entrepreneur. He is best known as the co-founder and CEO of Google DeepMind and Isomorphic Labs. Born on July 27, 1976, in London, he is 49 years old as of 2025.
A chess prodigy and game developer in his teens, Hassabis later became a global leader in artificial intelligence. His company DeepMind, bought by Google in 2014, created AlphaGo and AlphaFold — two major breakthroughs in AI. In 2024, he won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for AlphaFold, an AI that predicts protein structures. In 2025, he shared that his company’s AI-designed drugs were entering clinical trials. He also warned that AI development might slow down due to lack of high-quality data.
Demis Hassabis Wiki/Bio
| Key Info | Details |
| Full Name | Demis Hassabis |
| Date of Birth | July 27, 1976 |
| Age | 49 years (as of 2025) |
| Profession | AI Researcher, Neuroscientist, Entrepreneur |
| Hometown | London, United Kingdom |
| Current Residence | North London, United Kingdom |
| Nationality | British |
| Social Media | Twitter: @demishassabis |
Demis Hassabis Early Life
Demis Hassabis was born and raised in North London. His father, Costas, is Greek Cypriot, and his mother, Angela, is Singaporean. Both were teachers. Demis started playing chess at age four and became a chess master by 13 with an Elo rating of 2300. He also taught himself programming on a ZX Spectrum computer he bought using chess winnings.
He studied at Queen Elizabeth’s School in Barnet, and later taught himself advanced computing. His love for games and chess sparked his interest in artificial intelligence.
Education
| Level | Institution |
| School | Queen Elizabeth’s School, Barnet |
| Bachelor’s | University of Cambridge (Computer Science, Double First, 1997) |
| Doctorate | University College London (PhD, Cognitive Neuroscience, 2009) |
He later did research at MIT and Harvard, where he focused on how memory and imagination work. These studies inspired many of his AI projects.
Family Details
| Relation | Details |
| Parents | Costas and Angela Hassabis |
| Siblings | Two younger siblings (names not public) |
| Spouse | Dr. Teresa Niccoli (Molecular Biologist) |
| Children | Two sons |
Demis is married to Dr. Teresa Niccoli, an Italian molecular biologist. They live in North London with their two sons.
Career Highlights
Demis began working in video games at a young age. At 17, he co-created the game Theme Park. He worked at Bullfrog Productions and Lionhead Studios, helping design games like Black & White. In 1998, he launched Elixir Studios and made award-nominated games.
In 2010, he co-founded DeepMind, a research company focused on AI. Google bought DeepMind in 2014 for $500 million. In 2016, their AI program AlphaGo beat world champion Lee Sedol in the board game Go.
In 2020, DeepMind launched AlphaFold, which solved a major biology problem — predicting protein structures. In 2024, Hassabis and John Jumper received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for this achievement.
He is also the founder of Isomorphic Labs, which uses AI to help discover new medicines. In 2025, they announced the first AI-designed drugs going into clinical trials.
Net Worth
| Detail | Value |
| Estimated Net Worth | $500–650 million |
| Main Income Sources | DeepMind sale, CEO roles at Google DeepMind and Isomorphic Labs |
Demis Hassabis made most of his wealth through the sale of DeepMind to Google and his ongoing roles as CEO of DeepMind and Isomorphic Labs.
Controversies
- NHS Data Issue (2016): DeepMind’s deal with the UK’s National Health Service caused privacy concerns because of unclear patient consent.
- AGI Safety Warning (2025): He raised alarms about society not being ready for Artificial General Intelligence and called for a global safety group.
