The European Union has announced a landmark €200 billion ($208bn) investment fund, with €20bn earmarked for AI gigafactories, or “gigaAI factories”, as part of a bid to establish itself as a global leader in artificial intelligence. The initiative, revealed at the AI Action Summit in Paris, aims to enhance Europe’s AI infrastructure while balancing innovation […]
The European Union has announced a landmark €200 billion ($208bn) investment fund, with €20bn earmarked for AI gigafactories, or “gigaAI factories”, as part of a bid to establish itself as a global leader in artificial intelligence.
The initiative, revealed at the AI Action Summit in Paris, aims to enhance Europe’s AI infrastructure while balancing innovation with governance.
InvestAI: EU’s €200bn push for AI leadership
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen introduced InvestAI, a public-private partnership designed to mobilise AI investment and build large-scale computing hubs.
“The AI race is just beginning. And Europe will become an AI continent,” von der Leyen stated on LinkedIn.
“To lead this race, we need massive investments. This is why today, I am glad to announce InvestAI, a public-private partnership that aims to mobilise €200 billion in AI investments in Europe. We will build European GigaAI factories.
“These massive computing hubs will be accessible to everyone — researchers and entrepreneurs — to push the innovation frontiers of AI.”
This move follows France’s €109 billion AI investment pledge and a €150 billion private sector commitment from major European firms.
The EU’s ambitious strategy highlights its intent to compete with the US and China in AI development, especially since the US and the UK rejected signing a global AI ethics declaration.
Why did the UK and US reject the global AI Ethics Declaration?
Despite Europe’s regulatory push, global AI governance remains contentious. At the summit, the UK and US refused to sign an international agreement on AI ethics and safety.
The declaration, endorsed by 60 nations, including France, China, and India, calls for transparency, inclusivity, and sustainability in AI development.
The UK cited concerns over national security and governance frameworks as reasons for opting out.
“We felt the declaration didn’t provide enough practical clarity on global governance, nor sufficiently address harder questions around national security and the challenge AI poses to it,” a government spokesperson stated.
US Vice President JD Vance reinforced the US position, advocating for a “pro-growth AI policy” and warning that excessive regulation could stifle innovation.
French President Emmanuel Macron countered this stance, emphasising the need for structured AI oversight: “We need these rules for AI to move forward,” he said.
https://techinformed.com/ai-action-summit-vance-opposes-over-regulation/
AI’s growing carbon footprint: Can Europe’s power grid handle gigafactories?
A report released at the summit by the non-profit Beyond Fossil Fuels warned that AI-driven data centres could significantly strain Europe’s power supply.
It estimates that the demand for electricity from AI infrastructure could increase by up to 160% by 2030, exceeding Spain’s current total electricity consumption.
“If the data centre growth relies on fossil gas, it will fuel the climate crisis,” said Jill McArdle, international corporate campaigner for Beyond Fossil Fuels. “Expansion must go hand in hand with the buildout of additional renewable energy.”
The EU has already implemented measures such as the updated Energy Efficiency Directive, which requires data centre operators to report emissions and energy usage.
However, experts argue that further transparency and sustainability commitments are needed to ensure that AI expansion does not exacerbate climate concerns.
Balancing AI investment with sustainability: the ‘Frugal AI’ debate
While Europe is investing billions in AI, industry experts are debating the merits of “frugal AI innovation.” Syed Quiser Ahmed, head of Infosys’ Responsible AI Office, highlighted the growing discussion about cost-effective AI development.
“With Europe’s €200bn AI initiative and France committing €109bn, conversations have intensified around balancing large-scale investments with frugal innovation,” Ahmed said in a post on LinkedIn.
“Advances in computational efficiency, hardware optimisation, and energy-conscious AI models demonstrate that high-performing AI systems don’t always require massive financial resources.”
The divide between regulatory-heavy and market-driven AI strategies underscores the complexity of global AI governance. As Europe accelerates investment in gigafactories and InvestAI, the US maintains its light-touch approach, and China continues its state-led AI expansion, the future of AI leadership remains uncertain.
