EU plans to 'mobilize' €200B to invest in AI to catch up with US and China
(2025/02/12)
- Reference: 1739363527
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2025/02/12/eu_plans_to_mobilize_200b/
- Source link:
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen says the EU will top up a continental AI push to hit €200 billion ($207 billion).
The funding comes as Europe looks over its shoulder nervously at the US's [1]$500 billion Stargate Project and new Chinese AI contender [2]DeepSeek .
The €150 billion ($155 billion) in the [3]European AI Champions initiative pot so far was placed there by backers led by venture capitalist General Catalyst, and includes Dutch photolithography giant ASML, France's Airbus, Germany's Siemens, Infineon, Philips, Volkswagen and more. The EU budget will, among other things, serve to "derisk" the investment of the private firms. The new funding was announced at the AI Action Summit in Paris, France.
[4]
The EU's €200 billion is smaller than the amount of funding announced for America's Stargate project, which aims to build advanced AI infrastructure with an eventual $500 billion price tag. [5]OpenAI's Stargate was [6]billed by US pres Donald Trump as "the largest AI infrastructure project by far in history," though following this his right hand man and [7]would-be OpenAI owner Elon Musk claimed "They [8]don't actually have the money ." The project is backed by SoftBank, OpenAI, Oracle, and MGX.
[9]
[10]
Von der Leyen [11]said the EU's InvestAI fund would finance four future AI gigafactories across the region, specialized in training "the most complex, very large, AI models." She said the bloc wants AI "to be a force for good and for growth. We are doing this through our own European approach – based on openness, cooperation and excellent talent." The Commission had already announced an initial seven AI factories in December and said it would "soon announce the next five."
The Commish said the bloc's "approach still needs to be supercharged," claiming the move would "mobilize unprecedented capital..." in a "unique" public-private partnership she characterized as a "CERN for AI."
[12]
Von der Leyen, a second term commission president and famously a backer of Europe's data privacy game changer the General Data Protection Regulation (GPDR), as well as Big Tech antitrust law the Digital Services Act, was also keen to let the world know the EU would be reducing bureaucratic red tape. Like it or not, AI technology is perceived as business-critical, and this is not lost on the politicos.
The Commission yesterday decided to withdraw its long-stalled ePrivacy Regulation and the Artificial Intelligence Liability Directive (AILD), long [13]feared by the tech sector as it would have made it much easier for people to sue companies over damages caused by AI tech.
The Register understands an impact assessment of the directive is partly behind the decision.
[14]Europe just might make it easier for people to sue for damage caused by AI tech
[15]OpenAI wants to blow through $500B on AI infrastructure for itself, with help from pals
[16]UK government insiders say AI datacenters may be a pricey white elephant
[17]After Copilot trial, government staff rated Microsoft's AI less useful than expected
Senior Vice President and Head of CCIA Europe, Daniel Friedlaender said the commission's "willingness to review past work" was laudable. "Withdrawing legislation on a regular basis should become normal in a well functioning EU," Friedlaender added.
The world's richest economic and political bloc does have the first-to-legislate [18]EU AI Act under its belt. Enforcement of its provisions only begins in 2026.
[19]
The EU also signalled its commitment to AI that works in the public interest with a general declaration at the summit that it wanted things like a "diverse AI ecosystem", an energy sector that's not depleted by the technology, and a careful consideration of its impact on the job market. Signatories said they wanted an AI that was "open, inclusive, transparent, ethical, safe, secure and trustworthy."
Others who signed included China, Australia, Japan, Canada, Korea, and the African Union.
The UK and US refused to sign it, with the British government [20]saying its refusal was because it was too worried about "national security" and "global governance" while US Vice President JD Vance told Paris delegates that too much AI regulation could "kill a transformative industry just as it's taking off."
He also told attendees at the Grand Palais that the US was "troubled by reports that some foreign governments are considering tightening screws on US tech companies," likely referring to Europe's Digital Services Act.
Every country for itself then, eh? ®
Get our [21]Tech Resources
[1] https://www.theregister.com/2025/01/22/openai_stargate_ai_datacenter_company/
[2] https://www.theregister.com/2025/01/26/deepseek_r1_ai_cot/
[3] https://aichampions.eu/
[4] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/aiml&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2Z6zTstFJjItPH3TcefBJnAAAAMw&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[5] https://openai.com/index/announcing-the-stargate-project/
[6] https://www.theregister.com/2025/01/22/openai_stargate_ai_datacenter_company/
[7] https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cpdx75zgg88o
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2025/01/23/musk_altman_stargate_ai/
[9] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/aiml&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44Z6zTstFJjItPH3TcefBJnAAAAMw&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[10] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/aiml&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33Z6zTstFJjItPH3TcefBJnAAAAMw&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[11] https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_25_467
[12] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/aiml&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44Z6zTstFJjItPH3TcefBJnAAAAMw&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[13] https://www.theregister.com/2022/09/29/european_commission_ai_liability/
[14] https://www.theregister.com/2022/09/29/european_commission_ai_liability/
[15] https://www.theregister.com/2025/01/22/openai_stargate_ai_datacenter_company/
[16] https://www.theregister.com/2025/02/12/uk_gov_ai_datacenters/
[17] https://www.theregister.com/2025/02/12/australian_treasury_copilot_pilot_assessment/
[18] https://www.theregister.com/2024/07/31/eu_ai_act/
[19] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/aiml&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33Z6zTstFJjItPH3TcefBJnAAAAMw&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[20] https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c8edn0n58gwo
[21] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
The funding comes as Europe looks over its shoulder nervously at the US's [1]$500 billion Stargate Project and new Chinese AI contender [2]DeepSeek .
The €150 billion ($155 billion) in the [3]European AI Champions initiative pot so far was placed there by backers led by venture capitalist General Catalyst, and includes Dutch photolithography giant ASML, France's Airbus, Germany's Siemens, Infineon, Philips, Volkswagen and more. The EU budget will, among other things, serve to "derisk" the investment of the private firms. The new funding was announced at the AI Action Summit in Paris, France.
[4]
The EU's €200 billion is smaller than the amount of funding announced for America's Stargate project, which aims to build advanced AI infrastructure with an eventual $500 billion price tag. [5]OpenAI's Stargate was [6]billed by US pres Donald Trump as "the largest AI infrastructure project by far in history," though following this his right hand man and [7]would-be OpenAI owner Elon Musk claimed "They [8]don't actually have the money ." The project is backed by SoftBank, OpenAI, Oracle, and MGX.
[9]
[10]
Von der Leyen [11]said the EU's InvestAI fund would finance four future AI gigafactories across the region, specialized in training "the most complex, very large, AI models." She said the bloc wants AI "to be a force for good and for growth. We are doing this through our own European approach – based on openness, cooperation and excellent talent." The Commission had already announced an initial seven AI factories in December and said it would "soon announce the next five."
The Commish said the bloc's "approach still needs to be supercharged," claiming the move would "mobilize unprecedented capital..." in a "unique" public-private partnership she characterized as a "CERN for AI."
[12]
Von der Leyen, a second term commission president and famously a backer of Europe's data privacy game changer the General Data Protection Regulation (GPDR), as well as Big Tech antitrust law the Digital Services Act, was also keen to let the world know the EU would be reducing bureaucratic red tape. Like it or not, AI technology is perceived as business-critical, and this is not lost on the politicos.
The Commission yesterday decided to withdraw its long-stalled ePrivacy Regulation and the Artificial Intelligence Liability Directive (AILD), long [13]feared by the tech sector as it would have made it much easier for people to sue companies over damages caused by AI tech.
The Register understands an impact assessment of the directive is partly behind the decision.
[14]Europe just might make it easier for people to sue for damage caused by AI tech
[15]OpenAI wants to blow through $500B on AI infrastructure for itself, with help from pals
[16]UK government insiders say AI datacenters may be a pricey white elephant
[17]After Copilot trial, government staff rated Microsoft's AI less useful than expected
Senior Vice President and Head of CCIA Europe, Daniel Friedlaender said the commission's "willingness to review past work" was laudable. "Withdrawing legislation on a regular basis should become normal in a well functioning EU," Friedlaender added.
The world's richest economic and political bloc does have the first-to-legislate [18]EU AI Act under its belt. Enforcement of its provisions only begins in 2026.
[19]
The EU also signalled its commitment to AI that works in the public interest with a general declaration at the summit that it wanted things like a "diverse AI ecosystem", an energy sector that's not depleted by the technology, and a careful consideration of its impact on the job market. Signatories said they wanted an AI that was "open, inclusive, transparent, ethical, safe, secure and trustworthy."
Others who signed included China, Australia, Japan, Canada, Korea, and the African Union.
The UK and US refused to sign it, with the British government [20]saying its refusal was because it was too worried about "national security" and "global governance" while US Vice President JD Vance told Paris delegates that too much AI regulation could "kill a transformative industry just as it's taking off."
He also told attendees at the Grand Palais that the US was "troubled by reports that some foreign governments are considering tightening screws on US tech companies," likely referring to Europe's Digital Services Act.
Every country for itself then, eh? ®
Get our [21]Tech Resources
[1] https://www.theregister.com/2025/01/22/openai_stargate_ai_datacenter_company/
[2] https://www.theregister.com/2025/01/26/deepseek_r1_ai_cot/
[3] https://aichampions.eu/
[4] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/aiml&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2Z6zTstFJjItPH3TcefBJnAAAAMw&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[5] https://openai.com/index/announcing-the-stargate-project/
[6] https://www.theregister.com/2025/01/22/openai_stargate_ai_datacenter_company/
[7] https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cpdx75zgg88o
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2025/01/23/musk_altman_stargate_ai/
[9] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/aiml&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44Z6zTstFJjItPH3TcefBJnAAAAMw&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[10] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/aiml&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33Z6zTstFJjItPH3TcefBJnAAAAMw&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[11] https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_25_467
[12] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/aiml&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44Z6zTstFJjItPH3TcefBJnAAAAMw&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[13] https://www.theregister.com/2022/09/29/european_commission_ai_liability/
[14] https://www.theregister.com/2022/09/29/european_commission_ai_liability/
[15] https://www.theregister.com/2025/01/22/openai_stargate_ai_datacenter_company/
[16] https://www.theregister.com/2025/02/12/uk_gov_ai_datacenters/
[17] https://www.theregister.com/2025/02/12/australian_treasury_copilot_pilot_assessment/
[18] https://www.theregister.com/2024/07/31/eu_ai_act/
[19] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/aiml&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33Z6zTstFJjItPH3TcefBJnAAAAMw&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[20] https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c8edn0n58gwo
[21] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Chalk up another one
codejunky
I assume pro-EU but anti-AI spending commenters will be accepting this as a brexit benefit? I will watch the downvotes roll in
Re: Chalk up another one
Anonymous Coward
Yippie.
Add it to the list!
Cake Eating & Having.
Blue Passports.
Free Tampax.
Sovereignty.
More Red Tape.
Control of Borders.
Dover Traffic Jams.
Less Immigrants.
Re: Chalk up another one
ChrisElvidge
That should be "fewer" - immigrants can be counted.
But why is there a competition between EU/US/China to get best AI (for some unknown value of best)? And it's not really AI. As has been said many times before the 'large language model', currently marketed as AI, is just a statistical engine working on already known (plundered) data - an inference (deduction) engine if you like. The induction side of inference is marked by what are colloquially known as hallucinations.
Re: Chalk up another one
elsergiovolador
immigrants can be counted.
Not really, Home Office has lost count long time ago. Figures are only approximate.
Central planning
elsergiovolador
They take money from businesses and then are surprised no one can come up with £166bn.
What cut the corrupt bureaucrats are going to get and for how many years nothing will be delivered until it gets kicked in the long grass?
Nationalist pissing competitions.
Tron
Used to be battleships and aircraft carriers, then nuclear power, then nuclear weapons, now it is data centres.
Governments wasting our money when they should be spending it on schools, hospitals, reservoirs, sewage systems, and prisons.
Re: Nationalist pissing competitions.
elsergiovolador
and police, anti-corruption units, security services, so they could all track down corrupt politicians robbing us from our hard earned money.
Can't have the peasants complaining when they get run over by a rampaging Tesla
Dan 55
The Commission yesterday decided to withdraw its long-stalled ePrivacy Regulation and the Artificial Intelligence Liability Directive (AILD), long feared by the tech sector as it would have made it much easier for people to sue companies over damages caused by AI tech.
"Captain's Log". Oh, that explains everything. I've spent many years wondering where Captain Slog came into the stories.