According to President Emmanuel Macron, foreign and domestic companies in France have agreed to invest a total of €109 billion ($113 billion) in artificial intelligence projects in the country.
The investment is part of the European country’s plan to become a competitive hub for AI development, just as the US is currently. Macron announced the news during a two-day artificial intelligence summit which took place in Paris.
Key investors were from private and public sectors
The deal includes a mix of new and previously announced investments from Amazon.com Inc., Brookfield Asset Management, and Apollo Global Management Inc.
A significant portion of the funding also comes from the United Arab Emirates, which is committing €50 billion ($51 million), according to officials in Macron’s office.
Since ChatGPT’s launch over two years ago, countries have struggled to outdo each other as they race towards becoming AI superpowers. Tech firms have also invested billions in the various industries that make AI computing possible. These include computer chips, data centers, and energy projects that support building more advanced artificial intelligence systems.
However, while the rest of the world is embracing AI and making new waves, Macron and some others are worried Europe, which responded to the birth of AI with caution and regulation that stifled growth, is lagging behind the US and China on AI development.
More investment plans involving France
Macron’s latest announcement highlights France’s commitment to advancing AI technology. He likened the scale of the AI investment in France to Donald Trump’s Stargate announcement. The joint venture between OpenAI, SoftBank Group Corp. and Oracle Corp. will commit about $500 billion to AI infrastructure over the next four years. That amount is almost x5 the total investment touted by Macron.
Nearly half of the funds announced by Macron will come from the UAE, which previously had an agreement to invest between €30 billion and €50 billion, according to what the officials said.
Emirati ruler Mohamed bin Zayed reportedly promised Macron over dinner last week to spend €50 billion. Meanwhile Brookfield said Sunday that it also plans to invest €20 billion to develop data centers and AI infrastructure in France over the next five years.
Other investments include €5 billion from Apollo to boost energy connectivity, €5 billion from US-based Digital Realty to build data centers, and €10 billion for UK company Fluidstack to put together a supercomputer.
Amazon is also one of the companies investing in France’s AI pursuit. It plans to invest €6 billion to create a data center and work on cloud infrastructure, according to the officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
The e-commerce platform announced plans last year to invest more than €1.2 billion in the development of its cloud infrastructure services in France by 2031. This is part of the €6 billion from Amazon, the officials have said.
The AI projects mentioned above are expected to be developed over the next two to five years. If President Emmanuel Macron’s initiative works, in the coming years, France could emerge as a leading destination for AI development, fostering both domestic and international collaboration in the sector.
