The European Union has unveiled an ambitious new plan dubbed InvestAI, part of which includes the buildout of large-scale AI gigafactories
At the AI Action Summit in Paris, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen officially launched InvestAI, a €20 billion ($21.4 billion) initiative aimed at transforming Europe into a leading hub for AI innovation. A central part of this initiative is the creation of four large-scale AI gigafactories across the EU. These facilities will be capable of training some of the world’s most complex AI models, using around 100,000 next-generation AI chips each.
At the time of the launch, von der Leyen highlighted the importance of scaling Europe’s AI infrastructure. “AI will improve our healthcare, spur our research and innovation and boost our competitiveness. We want AI to be a force for good and for growth,” she said. “This is why, together with our Member States and with our partners, we will mobilize unprecedented capital through InvestAI for European AI gigafactories.”
A “CERN for AI”
The Commission describes the new gigafactories as a “CERN for AI” — a large-scale public-private partnership open to researchers, companies and governments. The goal is to ensure that AI development in Europe is not limited to tech giants, but accessible to a wide range of players, including start-ups and research institutions.
The gigafactories will serve industries working on mission-critical applications, such as healthcare, biotech, climate science and robotics. They are designed to support Europe’s cooperative innovation model, emphasizing transparency, security and equal access to technology.
Unprecedented investment model
The InvestAI initiative will use a layered fund structure, combining public and private capital with different risk and return levels. The EU budget will be used to reduce risk for other investors, making it more attractive for private partners to join.
Initial EU contributions will come from existing programs like Digital Europe, Horizon Europe and InvestEU. Member States are also encouraged to channel regional funds into the initiative. Henna Virkkunen, Executive Vice-President for Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy, added: “By putting together our resources, we will enable AI entrepreneurs to innovate and scale up in the most demanding fields of AI.”
The President of the European Investment Bank (EIB), Nadia Calviño, confirmed that the EIB Group is committed to supporting the initiative. “Together with the EU Commission, the EIB Group is stepping up support for Artificial Intelligence, a key driver of innovation and productivity in Europe,” she said.
Building on existing efforts
The InvestAI fund will complement the existing €10 billion AI Factories program launched in December, which has already funded the first seven AI facilities across Europe. These early investments aim to unlock ten times more in private capital, with the next five sites expected to be announced shortly.
The European Commission is also planning a range of additional initiatives to strengthen AI capabilities across the region. These include:
-The GenAI4EU program, which supports new applications of generative AI in areas such as manufacturing, health and public services.
-Common European Data Spaces, giving developers access to high-quality data for training AI models.
-Education and reskilling programs to grow Europe’s talent pool in AI.
-A new European AI Research Council to guide long-term strategic research efforts.
-An upcoming Apply AI initiative, which will encourage industry-wide adoption of AI in Europe.
President von der Leyen summarized the vision behind InvestAI: “This unique public-private partnership will enable all our scientists and companies — not just the biggest — to develop the most advanced very large models needed to make Europe an AI continent.”
With InvestAI, the EU aims not only to catch up with global AI leaders but to shape a future where AI innovation is open and widely accessible.
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