KPMG Ireland opens new Dublin AI hub with plans to create 200 jobs

Professional services giant KPMG has opened a European artificial intelligence (AI) hub in Dublin, with plans to create 200 jobs over the next three years to support clients looking to implement the technology in line with new European Union rules.

The Big Four accountancy and consulting firm said on Friday it plans to hire across regulatory, risk and cyber security functions at the unit, working out of its innovation hub at the Irish Financial Services Centre in Dublin 1.

The new unit will help clients looking to navigate the impending EU AI Act, KPMG Ireland said, a new regulation seeking to establish a common legal framework for the technology across the bloc. The proposed regulation was adopted by the European Parliament in March and is awaiting approval from the EU Council.

KPMG said the hub will provide for the gathering of information about current AI capacities as well as the creation of new tools to help developers and businesses implement the technology reliably.

Speaking at the opening of the hub, Minister of State with responsibility for Financial Services Neale Richmond said the hub will help Irish businesses navigate the complexities of the increasingly disruptive technology. It will also lead to the creation of 200 jobs over the next three years, he said, “underpinning both KPMG’s commitment to Ireland but also the role that AI will have for Irish businesses in the coming years”.

Sean Redmond, KPMG Ireland director, said the hub, operated in collaboration with Microsoft and AI firm Cranium, will bring together “top minds and cutting-edge technology”.

He said: “Understanding that responsible AI is not only a business challenge but also a regulatory and technical challenge, we are committed to helping clients put into practice end-to-end responsible AI programs. It is also important that organisations don’t see the impending EU AI Act as a blocker to innovation and ideation, but instead provides the guardrails that enables organisations to experiment with AI and deliver value to their businesses and customers.”

The AI centre is located at the firm’s Platform X global innovation hub in Dublin, which it set up in 2021 in response to increasing client demand to help them deal with new and emerging technologies.

Gillian Kelly, partner and head of consulting at KPMG Ireland, said the investment “underscores” the firm’s belief that Dublin can become a continent-wide centre for innovation, technology and collaboration.

The announcement comes in the same week in which IBM announced plans to create 800 jobs in the Republic over the next three years to support the development of new software products underpinned by its investment in AI.

In a statement on Thursday, the New York-headquartered hybrid cloud computing giant said it will invest in its operations in the Republic, creating hundreds of roles in research and development as well as sales and consulting jobs across its two main campuses here, in Dublin and Cork, and at its subsidiary Red Hat in Waterford.