The European Commission has launched a call for proposals to help finance up to seven AI gigafactories across the European Union, marking a major step in its effort to build independent computing infrastructure capable of training the next generation of artificial intelligence systems.
The initiative is part of the EU's broader strategy to reduce its dependence on foreign providers of cloud services and advanced semiconductor technology while strengthening Europe's position in the global AI race.
AI gigafactories are large-scale computing centers equipped with cutting-edge, specialized chips designed to train advanced AI models, including large language models that require enormous computing power to process trillions of data points.
The project comes as the United States and China continue investing heavily in massive AI data centers, raising concerns in Europe about digital sovereignty and long-term technological competitiveness.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen first announced the gigafactory initiative during the AI Action Summit in Paris in February 2025. She described the vision as creating a European AI ecosystem comparable to the role played by CERN in scientific research.
