Demis Hassabis was born in London to a Greek Cypriot father and Singaporean Chinese mother. Even from a young age, he displayed exceptional intellectual capabilities, setting the stage for his future endeavors in AI and related fields.

Hassabis's early aptitude for chess became evident when he began playing at the age of four. His prodigious talent led him to achieve a master standard rating at the age of 13, demonstrating an exceptional understanding of strategic thinking and pattern recognition - skills that would later prove invaluable in his AI research.

Even before attending university, Hassabis gained practical experience in the gaming industry. At Bullfrog Productions, he was a lead AI programmer on the classic strategy game 'Theme Park,' solidifying his understanding of how to create intelligent and engaging game experiences. This experience exposed him to the challenges and potential of programming intelligent agents.

Hassabis pursued a double first in Computer Science at Queens' College, Cambridge. This rigorous academic program provided him with a deep understanding of the theoretical foundations of computer science, including algorithms, data structures, and machine learning, forming a strong foundation for his future research.

Following his degree, Hassabis founded Elixir Studios, a game development company, at just 22 years old. As Chief Designer, he led the creation of the critically acclaimed game 'Republic: The Revolution'. This venture highlighted his entrepreneurial skills and ability to manage complex projects involving large teams.

Driven by his desire to understand human intelligence, Hassabis transitioned to neuroscience, earning a PhD in Cognitive Neuroscience from University College London (UCL). His research focused on the neural mechanisms of imagination, memory, and planning, providing valuable insights into how the human brain works and inspiring his approach to AI development.

Hassabis co-founded DeepMind Technologies, a groundbreaking AI company, with Shane Legg and Mustafa Suleyman. DeepMind's mission was to 'solve intelligence' and then use it to solve everything else. This bold ambition set the stage for DeepMind's subsequent advancements in AI research and applications.

Google acquired DeepMind for a reported £400 million. This acquisition provided DeepMind with the resources and infrastructure to scale its AI research and development efforts, leading to significant breakthroughs in areas like reinforcement learning and neural networks.

DeepMind's AlphaGo program achieved a historic milestone by defeating Lee Sedol, one of the world's top Go players, in a landmark match. This victory demonstrated the power of DeepMind's AI algorithms and their ability to master complex games that were previously considered beyond the reach of artificial intelligence. This event significantly boosted public awareness of AI's potential.

DeepMind's AlphaFold program achieved a significant breakthrough in the protein folding problem, a grand challenge in biology. AlphaFold's ability to accurately predict protein structures revolutionized the field, accelerating scientific discovery and offering the potential to develop new treatments for diseases. The system continues to be advanced, including predicting structures for nearly every protein known to science.

Demis Hassabis was knighted in the 2023 New Year Honours for services to artificial intelligence. This prestigious recognition acknowledged his profound impact on the field of AI and his contributions to scientific and technological advancement. It represents the high esteem in which his work is held.