JetBrains – a well-known developer of tools for developers, responsible for IntelliJ IDEA and PyCharm, among others – is strengthening its presence in Central Europe. The company has officially announced the establishment of a global research and development centre in Poland, which is expected to be in full swing by 2027. It’s a move that not only confirms the stature of Polish engineers on the global IT map, but also fits in with the growing competition for AI and software specialists in the region.
JetBrains’ strategy is to grow organically – without external funding – and build the company’s culture around team autonomy. In Poland, the company already employs around 60 people, with plans to reach 80 by the end of the year. The real recruitment offensive, however, is set to kick off in 2025, when the number of employees in the country is expected to reach 200. Hires will include not only developers, but also specialists in machine learning, QA, designers and business and operations roles.
It is no coincidence that Poland has just become the next stop in JetBrains’ global expansion. The country is one of the largest technology hubs in Europe – every year over 8,000 graduates of computer science leave technical universities, and Polish programmers are among the world leaders in the rankings of platforms such as HackerRank or TopCoder. The company has been cooperating with universities in Warsaw and Krakow for years, but now declares to deepen its academic partnerships and participate in talent training.
The Polish centre is to participate in the creation of JetBrains’ key products, including AI solutions, which are currently the company’s most important field of innovation. This is a signal that Poland is ceasing to be merely a service base for global players and is becoming a place where core technologies are being developed.
JetBrains thus joins the group of technology companies that have located their R&D in Poland in recent years – alongside Google, NVIDIA and Samsung. The move may intensify competition for specialists, but at the same time raises the bar for the quality of projects available on the local labour market.
More than 15 million users worldwide and 88 out of 100 Fortune Global companies use JetBrains tools. Now, part of this global innovation infrastructure will be built in Poland. If the company maintains its recruitment pace and autonomous working model, the Polish centre could become one of the most interesting places for engineers who want to create technologies, not just implement them.
