{"slug": "a-new-24-7-cafe-for-very-ambitious-people-has-landed-in-london-it-sounds", "title": "A new 24/7 cafe for ‘very ambitious people’ has landed in London — it sounds dystopian", "summary": "Corgi Cafe, a 24/7 coffee shop opened by AI-native insurance startup Corgi at 74 Great Eastern Street in Shoreditch on August 8, aims to serve 'very ambitious people' with free WiFi and no minimum spend, but critics call it dystopian. Corgi's head of underwriting Josh Shih told Metro that the cafe is designed for 'builders', 'overachievers', and 'hustlers', and that it's a personal choice to work late, with the menu featuring AI-inspired drinks like the Eleven Latte by ElevenLabs and the AI Gateway Drug sponsored by ngrok.", "body_md": "There are thousands of [coffee ](https://metro.co.uk/tag/coffee/)spots in [London](https://metro.co.uk/tag/london/), but it’s rare to find one open [24 hours a day,](https://metro.co.uk/2025/09/13/spent-24-hours-london-finally-answer-one-question-24119010/) seven days a week.\n\nBut a new spot in [Shoreditch](https://metro.co.uk/2026/05/28/two-former-tube-trains-turned-a-suntrap-rooftop-bar-this-summer-28552986/) is aiming to fill this void by staying open all hours, day and night.\n\nCorgi Cafe opened its doors at 74 Great Eastern Street on August 8, serving coffee and [cold bites](https://metro.co.uk/lifestyle/food/) 24/7, with free WiFi and no minimum spend required.\n\nBefore you get too excited, though, this isn’t a cafe full of adorable [corgis](https://metro.co.uk/tag/dogs/) you can cuddle (although you might see the odd one) — the reality is very different.\n\nThe space is the latest venture from Corgi, an [AI](https://metro.co.uk/tag/artificial-intelligence/)-native insurance startup for technology companies, founded by Emily Yuan and Nico Laqua in San Francisco.\n\n### Ask Metro\n\n*Use AI to go deeper into the stories you care about – powered by Metro and trusted publications.*\n\nCorgi has been described by some in the industry as having ‘the most intense workplace culture in America’, with employees working seven days a week and Nico known for keeping a mattress on the floor in his office and sleeping just three hours a night on it.\n\nAnd they’re encouraging this kind of work ethic in the cafes too, which are intended as spaces for ‘builders’, ‘overachievers’, and ‘hustlers’.\n\nJosh Shih, Corgi’s head of underwriting, who leads operations in the UK and Europe, tells **Metro**: ‘Emily and Nico always found it hard to find a space to work late at night, so we decided to create that space for very ambitious people who want to work hard, but didn’t know where to go.\n\n‘That’s enabled us to become the heart of the community in San Francisco, and the cafe there is generally filled at any time of the day; it doesn’t matter if it’s 2AM or 4AM, you still have people there working and grinding away.\n\n‘That’s the kind of thing we really want to encourage, and I think there aren’t many places like that in London that are open 24/7, especially not ones that are laptop-friendly.’\n\nSome people might view this as dystopian, and while Josh doesn’t think they’re necessarily wrong, he claims it all comes down to individual preferences.\n\n## Latest London news\n\n[Film poster banned from London Underground for ‘realistic depiction of dead child’](https://metro.co.uk/2026/08/05/film-poster-banned-london-underground-realistic-depiction-dead-child-29305211/)[London's worst station for toilets revealed](https://metro.co.uk/2026/08/05/london-euston-named-capitals-worst-station-toilets-29302252/)[Four people hurt after stabbing in London's Covent Garden](https://metro.co.uk/2026/08/05/four-people-seriously-hurt-stabbing-londons-covent-garden-29305936/)\n\n**To get the latest news from the capital, visit Metro's** [London news hub](https://metro.co.uk/tag/london/).\n\n‘It’s just a personal choice. Some people like to work hard, others prefer not to. No one is being forced to work in the cafe late at night,’ he clarifies.\n\n## What’s on the menu at Corgi cafe?\n\nJosh says the cafe is a ‘super welcoming’ space for all, not just those working, but because of the nature of the beast, it will naturally draw in the tech and startup community, and the menu reflects this.\n\nAs well as standard teas and coffee (which Josh claims is ‘pretty solid’), you’ll find exclusive AI-inspired beverages.\n\nCorgi has partnered with several tech companies that have sponsored their own [drinks](https://metro.co.uk/tag/drinks/). There’s the Eleven Latte by ElevenLabs, an AI research and product company best-known for its AI voice generator, as well as a drink called the AI Gateway Drug (ice, espresso, lime juice, tonic water) which is sponsored by ngrok, a globally distributed reverse proxy.\n\nBut the most unusual (and dystopian) feature of the cafe is still to come.\n\nThe brand is partnering with Lemon Slice AI, a company which makes interactive video avatars, to bring its Y Combinator Office Hours Simulator to Corgi Cafes.\n\nThe simulators are booths where people can talk to AI avatars of the partners of Y Combinator, including the managing director, Jared Friedman, who mentors founders and invests in early-stage companies.\n\nIn the booth, you get 10 minutes to discuss whatever startup-related idea or query is on your mind, and get feedback from the avatar.\n\nAnd Josh confirmed one of these is going to be arriving at the London location soon.\n\n## Why is an insurance company opening cafes?\n\nWhile Corgi’s move into cafes might seem unexpected, Josh claims it was born out of necessity more than anything else.\n\nWhen Emily and Nico were leasing the company’s first office in San Francisco, it came with an unwanted retail space underneath. Initially unsure of what to do with it, they ultimately decided to turn it into somewhere ‘like-minded individuals’ could come and work on their own startup ideas.\n\n‘As Nico likes to put it, there are very few cafes in the world that you know every month there are probably at least 10 people sitting there coming up with the next billion-dollar idea,’ Josh explains.\n\nBut the cafes aren’t just in San Francisco and London; there are several more, with locations in Atlanta and [New York](https://metro.co.uk/tag/new-york/) too.\n\n### Will you be visiting Corgi Cafe?\n\n-\nYes\n-\nNo\n-\nUndecided\n\n## What have visitors said about the cafes?\n\nReviews for the cafes are mixed, with some people genuinely enjoying having access to a ‘rare’ space that’s open all hours and a place to network with people working in tech, while others think the concept feels ‘soulless’ and ‘AI-generated ’.\n\nOn Google, Dim Negai hailed the San Francisco cafe as an ‘engineers’ wet dream’, while Fabian Nobbir claimed it had a ‘tech bro atmosphere’.\n\nA few people have also critiqued the interior design of the San Francisco cafes, to which founder Nico responded on X that they were ‘missing the point’.\n\n**‘** Critiquing the aesthetics is missing the point; it’s like me saying YouTube isn’t good because the like button design isn’t very pretty. The Corgi cafe is a network effect product,’ he wrote.\n\nDespite this, the team *has* been working on the aesthetics, and the new London cafe is much more visually striking, with a vibrant orange exterior and Renaissance-inspired murals featuring corgis on the inside walls and ceilings. It’s a far cry from the original site opened in San Francisco.\n\nAnd there will occasionally be an actual Corgi inside too.\n\nMany people have complained that the name of the cafe is misleading, as there were no corgis inside during their visit, but they have since purchased one.\n\nJosh says the London team now owns a Welsh Corgi called Archibald Clifton (Archie, for short), who they each take turns looking after, and they’re working on ‘giving him more face time’ with customers at the cafe.\n\n‘He’s a sucker for a bit of attention,’ he says. ‘We’re trying to figure out the exact times he can go and meet people.’\n\nBut even without the dog around, the new London cafe is already garnering attention. More than 1,000 people signed up for its grand opening event on August 8, with customers filling up the cafe and spilling out into the street until the early hours of Sunday morning.\n\nHundreds of people have also signed up for networking events at the cafe, and LinkedIn has been flooded with posts about the space.\n\nAnd this is just the beginning, as Josh says the company is already thinking about expanding across the city.\n\n#### Deals of the Day\n\nParents can save up to 30% on Kickers school shoes ahead of the new term\n\nThe back-to-school hack that's helping parents avoid queues and sold-out sizes\n\nCould your hair be wavy rather than straight? This brand thinks so\n\nCould your star sign improve your skincare routine? This new beauty launch thinks so\n\nBest skincare for menopausal skin? This dermatologist-created treatment is tailored to you\n\n‘We’re going to bring the startup community together to begin with, then we can look at a few more locations very soon,’ he adds.\n\n**Do you have a story you’d like to share? Get in touch by emailing MetroLifestyleTeam@metro.co.uk**\n\nMORE: [One of London’s most famous ships is turning into a floating pub](https://metro.co.uk/2026/08/10/one-londons-famous-ships-turning-a-floating-pub-29340824/?ico=more_text_links)\n\nMORE: [DJ remixes cabin crew’s demand to ‘idiot’ passenger and invites her to gig](https://metro.co.uk/2026/08/10/dj-remixes-cabin-crews-demand-idiot-passenger-invites-gig-29341063/?ico=more_text_links)\n\nMORE: [Toblerone launches brand-new chocolate treat as part of iconic collab](https://metro.co.uk/2026/08/09/toblerone-launches-brand-new-chocolate-treat-part-iconic-collab-29334431/?ico=more_text_links)", "url": "https://wpnews.pro/news/a-new-24-7-cafe-for-very-ambitious-people-has-landed-in-london-it-sounds", "canonical_source": "https://metro.co.uk/2026/08/10/a-new-24-7-cafe-very-ambitious-people-landed-london-sounds-dystopian-29340717/", "published_at": "2026-08-10 11:14:43+00:00", "updated_at": "2026-08-10 11:15:06.126346+00:00", "lang": "en", "topics": ["artificial-intelligence", "ai-products"], "entities": ["Corgi", "Josh Shih", "Emily Yuan", "Nico Laqua", "ElevenLabs", "ngrok", "Shoreditch", "Metro"], "alternates": {"html": "https://wpnews.pro/news/a-new-24-7-cafe-for-very-ambitious-people-has-landed-in-london-it-sounds", "markdown": "https://wpnews.pro/news/a-new-24-7-cafe-for-very-ambitious-people-has-landed-in-london-it-sounds.md", "text": "https://wpnews.pro/news/a-new-24-7-cafe-for-very-ambitious-people-has-landed-in-london-it-sounds.txt", "jsonld": "https://wpnews.pro/news/a-new-24-7-cafe-for-very-ambitious-people-has-landed-in-london-it-sounds.jsonld"}}