European Union aims for seven AI gigafactories with €10 billion plan in race with US, China

The European Union ​will fund seven ​artificial intelligence gigafactories across the bloc with €10 ​billion ($11.5 billion), the European Commission said on Thursday, as the EU steps up efforts to close the technology gap ‌with the ⁠U.S. ⁠and China.

The Commission said it aims to attract at ​least €20 billion in private investments for the projects. The total ​was increased from five planned gigafactories to seven following strong interest from EU countries.

The facilities will combine ​advanced AI processors, software, cloud ⁠technology, high-speed ‌connectivity and data centres. They will ​come ​on top of the existing 19 ⁠AI factories in various EU countries.


"Access to the raw scale of computing power within AI Gigafactories is a strategic necessity for Europe as AI development accelerates," EU tech chief Henna Virkkunen said in a statement.

Consortia or special purpose vehicles made up of technology providers, cloud ‌service providers, public entities and investors can apply to take part in the gigafactories.

The ​tender ​process will close ⁠on November 12. The Commission expects to announce successful bidders in early 2027, with the facilities becoming operational ​within 18 months of contract signing.

AMD, Nvidia and Qualcomm have signed letters of intent with the Commission to provide chips to groups involved in the gigafactory projects.

($1 = 0.8715 euros)