EU Unveils €1.5 Billion Investment in Seven AI Factories Across Europe

EU reveals sites for major AI factories across Europe

European Union will fund half of the projects together with nation-state funding The European Union has announced €750 million in investment to establish AI supercomputers across seven sites on the continent. The initiative forms part of a broader €1.5 billion joint project, with the other half of the funding set to come from EU member states, as part of an effort to take on US tech giants and become what EVP for Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy, Henna Virkkunen, envisions as an 'AI continent.' As part of the announcement, we now know the seven chosen locations for AI supercomputers in Europe - Barcelona, Spain; Bologna, Italy; Kajaani, Finland; Bissen, Luxembourg; Linköping, Sweden; Stuttgart, Germany and Athens, Greece. The supercomputers in Finland, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, and Sweden will be deployed as "brand-new world-class AI-optimised supercomputers," with the Spanish and Greek sites getting upgrades to raise their status. By deploying the seven new supercomputers, the Commission hopes to more than double its EuroHPC computing capacity, with rollout scheduled for 2025-2026. "Today we are one step closer to setting up AI Factories. Using European supercomputers, we will enable AI start-ups to innovate and scale up," Virkkunen added. "Now we are ready to lead with the right infrastructure in our ambition for the EU to become the AI continent. We are on track to make the AI factories initiative a reality in the first 100 days of the new European Commission." The AI Factories are part of a broader strategy in the European Union to encourage AI development and deployment across sectors where it can really make a difference, like healthcare, finance and manufacturing. Other member states have also been invited to submit proposals by February 2025.

Seven centres selected for AI Factories in Europe

The Commission's executive VP for tech expects more countries to join the consortium soon. The European Union has approved seven proposals to build and operate the first AI Factories in Europe planned to be deployed by 2026. Selected by the European High Performance Computing Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC), the factories will represent €1.5bn in combined investment from national and EU funding - with the EU's part coming from the Digital Europe Programme for AI infrastructure and Horizon Europe for alternative investment fund services. The seven AI Factories will be hosted across research and technology hubs in Spain, Italy, Finland, Luxembourg, Sweden, Germany and Greece with involvement from 15 EU member states along with two EuroHPC participating states. According to the Commission, Finland, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, and Sweden will deploy AI-optimised supercomputers, while the AI Factory in Spain will have an upgraded version of the existing EuroHPC system, the MareNostrum 5. Meanwhile in Greece, the AI Factory will be operated in association with the Daedalus supercomputer, a EuroHPC supercomputer already under deployment in Greece. Moreover, the AI Factories in Spain and Finland will feature an experimental platform, aimed at providing infrastructure for developing and testing of AI models and applications. Member states who are interested in joining the consortium of the newly approved factories or creating new AI Factories will be able to send their proposals by 1 February 2025, the Commission said. "Today we are one step closer to setting up AI Factories. Using European supercomputers, we will enable AI start-ups to innovate and scale up. Now we are ready to lead with the right infrastructure in our ambition for the EU to become the AI continent, said Henna Virkkunen, the EU executive vice-president for tech sovereignty, security and democracy. "We are on track to make the AI Factories initiative a reality in the first 100 days of the new European Commission. We expect a second wave of offers on 1 February." Earlier this year, the Commission introduced measures to support EU start-ups and SMEs developing AI. These measures included setting up AI Factories, which would give EU businesses access to AI-dedicated supercomputers to help them train their trustworthy AI models. The Commission said that this would also provide a "one-stop shop" to support the AI start-up and research ecosystem in the algorithmic development, testing and validation of large-scale AI models. Meanwhile, in 2020, the Irish Centre for High-End Computing launched Ireland's EuroHPC Competence Centre as part of the EuroHPC joint undertaking with the aim of accelerating the preparedness of researchers seeking access to the European supercomputing network. Don't miss out on the knowledge you need to succeed. Sign up for the Daily Brief, Silicon Republic's digest of need-to-know sci-tech news.

EU Selects Seven Sites for First AI Factories, Marking EUR 1.5 Billion Investment

Target Sectors: Healthcare, climate, cybersecurity, and manufacturing. The European High Performance Computing Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC) has selected seven proposals to establish and operate the first AI Factories across Europe, a key step in boosting the region's artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities. This initiative, backed by a EUR 1.5 billion investment, combines EU and national funding, with the aim to double Europe's AI computing capacity. Half of this amount will be funded by the EU through the Digital Europe Programme for AI infrastructure and Horizon Europe for AIF services. Also Read: AI Can Be a Game-Changer for Europe's Economic Growth: Report "The EU is now one step closer to realising President Ursula von der Leyen's commitment to setting up the first AI Factories," the European Commission said in a statement on December 10 (Tuesday). The selected AI Factories will be hosted at research and technology hubs across Europe. The locations include Barcelona (Spain) at the Barcelona Supercomputing Centre, Bologna (Italy) at CINECA, Kajaani (Finland) at CSC, Bissen (Luxembourg) at LuxProvide, Linkoping (Sweden) at the University of Linkoping, Stuttgart (Germany) at the University of Stuttgart, and Athens (Greece) at GRNET. Also Read: Denmark Launches Guidelines for AI Implementation in Europe with Microsoft The seven AI Factories involve 15 Member States and two EuroHPC participating States. Portugal, Romania and Turkiye have joined the BSC AIF; Austria and Slovenia have joined the ITA4LIA; and Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Norway and Poland have joined the LUMI AIF. EU said five of the selected hosting sites will deploy new AI-optimised supercomputers, namely in Finland, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, and Sweden. The AI Factory in Spain will result from the upgrade of the existing EuroHPC system, MareNostrum 5. In Greece, an AI Factory will be established and operated, associated with the DAEDALUS supercomputer, a EuroHPC supercomputer currently under deployment in Greece. The AI Factories in Spain and Finland will also feature an experimental platform, providing a cutting-edge infrastructure for developing and testing innovative AI models and applications, and fostering collaboration across Europe. These AI Factories will more than double EuroHPC computing capacity to drive AI research, innovation, and industrial applications, with a focus on sectors like healthcare, climate, cybersecurity, and manufacturing. Also Read: Microsoft AI Solutions Drive Transformation for Over 200 Businesses: December 2024 Edition Deployment is scheduled for 2025-2026, and additional Member States can propose new AI Factories by February 2025. EU believes these comprehensive open AI ecosystems centered around EuroHPC supercomputing facilities will support the growth of a highly competitive and innovative AI ecosystem in Europe.