The European Union is mobilizing €200 billion ($206 billion) in AI investment through a new initiative called InvestAI. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced the plan at the AI Action Summit in Paris. It includes €20 billion for AI gigafactories—massive computing hubs designed to train advanced AI models—with the hope that it will position Europe to compete with the U.S. and China in AI infrastructure.
Key Takeaways:
- The EU is investing €200 billion in AI, with €50 billion from the Commission and €150 billion from private investors.
- AI gigafactories will be built to provide large-scale computing power for startups and researchers.
- The initiative aims to reduce Europe’s reliance on foreign AI infrastructure and support open, collaborative AI development.
- This move follows similar AI infrastructure investments by the U.S. (Stargate project, $500B) and France (€109B national AI investment).
Europe has lagged behind the US and China in AI development, often constrained by regulatory frameworks that prioritize safety over speed. With InvestAI, the EU is betting on a public-private partnership model to fund AI infrastructure and enable homegrown startups to scale. Von der Leyen framed the initiative as a “CERN for AI,” emphasizing open innovation and broad access to computing power rather than a monopoly by a few major tech firms.
The gigafactories—planned for four EU locations—will house around 100,000 next-generation AI chips, quadrupling the capacity of current AI factories. These hubs will focus on mission-critical applications like healthcare, biotech, and climate science, offering an alternative to proprietary AI systems built by U.S. firms like OpenAI and Google DeepMind.
This investment also highlights growing geopolitical tensions in AI. While the EU has positioned itself as a leader in AI regulation with the AI Act, critics—such as U.S. Vice President JD Vance—argue that excessive oversight stifles innovation. The U.S. and UK notably declined to sign a Paris Summit declaration promoting AI transparency and inclusivity.
With InvestAI, the EU is making a clear statement: it wants to be a serious player in the AI race, not just a regulator. The success of this initiative will depend on whether the bloc can attract enough private capital and execute its vision for open, scalable AI infrastructure.