France Unveils €109 Billion AI Investment Plan to Compete with US Stargate Initiative

French PM Emmanuel Macron Laughs at Deepfake Video, Promotes AI Summit and €109B AI Investment

He positioned the investment as France's answer to Stargate -- a $500 billion AI infrastructure venture announced by Donald Trump. On day one of the Paris AI summit, French President Emmanuel Macron revealed plans for 109 billion euros of private AI investment that he called France's equivalent to Stargate -- the $500 billion AI infrastructure plan announced by Donald Trump in January. The announcement sets the tone for the Paris summit, which is set to contrast with the focus on safety and risk that has characterized past summits. Bringing the point home, Macron shared a series of humorous deepfake clips to mark the event on social media. Macron Engages With Social Media Deepfake Trend In Macron's social media posts, which have been viewed millions of times on Instagram, X, and TikTok, the president's likeness is inserted into a 1980s music video, an influencer's hair tutorial, and the television series MacGyver. The post isn't the first time deepfakes featuring Macron have circulated online. During France's 2023 pension reform protests, AI-generated images depicting the president taking part in protests went viral . In his recent posts, Macron engaged with the technology in a more lighthearted way. "It's pretty well done, it made me laugh," he said. "But more seriously, with artificial intelligence, we can do some very big things [...] France and Europe must be at the heart of this revolution to seize every opportunity and also to promote our own principles." France's Answer to Stargate Macron's AI investment push positions France as a major player in global AI development. While significantly smaller than Trump's proposed $500 billion Stargate initiative, Macron said the sum is equivalent in scale given France's smaller population. Anticipating an AI Summit that is expected to focus on European competitiveness, he said: "I can tell you this evening, Europe is going to speed up, France is going to speed up."

France unveils 109-billion-euro AI investment as Europe looks to keep up with U.S.

French President Emmanuel Macron greets journalists after meetings with guests at the Elysee Palace before the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, France, July 26, 2024. REUTERS/Yara Nard France's artificial intelligence sector will receive 109 billion euros ($112.6 billion) of private investment in the "coming years," President Emmanuel Macron announced Sunday ahead of the country's global AI summit. Speaking with French broadcaster TF1, Macron described the multibillion-euro pledge as "the equivalent for France of what the United States announced with Stargate," referring to U.S. President Donald Trump's massive $500 billion private AI investment project. The U.S. joint venture, dubbed Stargate, will see OpenAI, Oracle and SoftBank spend up to $500 billion on AI infrastructure in America over the next four years. Meanwhile, the French financing will include commitments from the United Arab Emirates, American and Canadian investments funds and French companies like telecommunications firms Iliad and Orange, and aerospace and defense group Thales. A few days before France's AI Action Summit, which kicked off on Monday, the UAE said it would invest between 30 billion euros and 50 billion euros in the construction of a one-gigawatt AI data center in France as part of a campus focused on the technology's development.

France to invest €109bn investment in AI

France's investment is 'equivalent' to Stargate, Macron told journalists. French president Emmanuel Macron has announced €109bn in investments into artificial intelligence (AI) technology as the European country ramps up to match the US. The president made the announcement yesterday (9 February), a day ahead of the French AI Summit, a two-day gathering which will bring high profile names such as OpenAI's CEO Sam Altman, Google's Sundar Pichai, US vice president JD Vance, as well as academics, non-governmental organisations and artists under one roof to discuss the future of AI. The event will be co-chaired by India and is set to enable dialogue between the US, China and other emerging nations invested in AI. France's more than €100bn commitment into the technology over the next few years is "equivalent of what the US announced with Stargate," Macron told journalists on Sunday. Stargate is a $500bn private sector funding into OpenAI's infrastructure which was announced by US president Donald Trump earlier last month. "The first battle for us Europeans is to invest, invest and invest," Macron said. "The UAE [United Arab Emirates] is going to make these investments - they're going to create a huge data centre," he added. To promote the summit, Macron posted a series of AI-generated videos on his Instagram account, featuring him in various French pop culture roles. Quipping in between, Macron (not AI-generated), can be seen saying "it's pretty well done, it made me laugh". "More seriously, with artificial intelligence, we can do some very big things; Change healthcare, energy, life in our society. "France and Europe must be at the heart of this revolution to seize every opportunity and also to promote our principles," he added. France is leading the AI game in Europe. The country attracts 22pc of all venture capital investments into AI according to the French AI report, only trailing behind the UK, which leads AI investments at 33pc. Moreover, AI now accounts for around 20pc of all venture capital funding in Europe, or around $8bn in total inflow of investments. 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.

France announces €109B investment to boost AI ecosystem - SiliconANGLE

French President Emmanuel Macron today announced an investment initiative that will inject €109 billion, or $112 billion, into the country's artificial intelligence ecosystem. Marcon (pictured) detailed the plan on occasion of the AI Action Summit being held this week in Paris. The two-day artificial intelligence event is expected to draw hundreds of government officials, academics and private sector experts. Similar conferences were previously held in the UK and South Korea. According to TechCrunch, most of the €109 billion allocated to the initiative will be used to build AI-optimized data centers. Between €30 and €50 billion is set to be provided by the United Arab Emirates. UAE-based investment firm MGX is expected to provide the initial financing. MGX is also backing Project Stargate, a similar AI initiative that OpenAI launched in the U.S. last month. The latter project will see the ChatGPT developer team up with Oracle Corp. and SoftBank Group Corp. to build a network of AI-optimized data centers. The undertaking is expected to cost as much as $500 billion. "This is the equivalent for France of what the United States announced with Stargate -- $500 billion -- it's the same ratio," Macron said. Another €20 billion will be provided by Brookfield, a Toronto-based investment firm that is helping Intel Corp. upgrade its fab complex in Arizona. French investment bank Bpifrance is set to invest €10 billion while Iliad SA, one of the country's largest internet providers, is adding €3 billion. Macron said that Iliad rival Orange Group and aerospace company Thales SA will participate as well. Mistral is one of the AI providers that plan to build new AI infrastructure as part of the initiative. The company, which develops large language models and a consumer chatbot called Le Chat, today disclosed that it's constructing a multibillion-dollar AI data center south of Paris. The facility is expected to come online in the coming months. Mistral stated today that its data center will use the "latest chips" without elaborating. Last week, however, the company disclosed that it's using processors from Nvidia Corp. rival Cerebras Systems Inc. to power its Le Chat chatbot. Cerberus sells a wafer-sized AI chip that features 4 trillion transistors organized into nearly 1 million cores. The €109 billion plan to boost France's AI ecosystem is one of several initiatives announced at the AI Action Summit today. Another project, the EU AI Champions Initiative, is designed to support AI startups and infrastructure construction in the European Union. It's reportedly backed by General Catalyst, KKR, Blackstone, EQT and other institutional investors. More than 60 companies are participating as well. A third initiative announced at the event is known as ROOST, which is short for Robust Open Online Safety Tools. It's designed to encourage the development of AI safety tools. The initiative is reportedly supported by $27 million in funding from OpenAI, Google LLC and other backers. A second open-source initiative called Current AI likewise counts Google among its backers. Its goal is to make AI training datasets, development tools and infrastructure resources more accessible. Current AI has raised €400 million to date with the goal of securing another €2.1 billion over the next five years.

Macron unveils $179b AI investment to take on StarGate

Paris/New York | French President Emmanuel Macron has announced €109 billion ($179 billion) worth of investments in artificial intelligence in France over the coming years, as Europe seeks a greater foothold in the fast-growing industry dominated by the US and China. Mr Macron touted the new funding ahead of the AI summit in Paris which starts late on Monday (AEDT), featuring discussions between world leaders and AI executives such as OpenAI's Sam Altman.

Macron unveils a $112B AI investment package, France's answer to Stargate | TechCrunch

French President Emmanuel Macron announced a total of €109 billion in private investments in the AI ecosystem (around $112 billion at current exchange rates) on Sunday evening. This week, Paris is hosting the Artificial Intelligence Action Summit -- the third international summit focused on AI after the one in Bletchley Park in the U.K., and Seoul, South Korea. "I can tell you this evening, Europe is going to speed up, France is going to speed up. And for us, France, we're announcing at tomorrow's summit €109 billion of investment in artificial intelligence over the next few years," President Macron said in a TV interview on France 2 and India's First Post. "What's that? It's exactly the equivalent for France of what the United States announced with Stargate -- $500 billion -- it's the same ratio." With 68 million inhabitants, France has five times fewer people than the U.S. On Sunday, TechCrunch started counting all the investment pledges from foreign and local players that have been rolling in over the past few days. With €30 to €50 billion coming from the United Arab Emirates (and MGX), €20 billion coming from Canadian investment firm Brookfield, €10 billion coming from Bpifrance and €3 billion coming from French telecom company Iliad, we reached a total of up to €83 billion ($85 billion). So a few companies haven't announced their plans just yet. During the interview, Macron mentioned Orange and Thales as other investors in the program. Most of the investments will go toward new AI-focused data centers. Hence, the comparison with Stargate. Macron also shed a light on French AI startups, such as Mistral, Wandercraft and Owkin, which has moved its headquarters to the U.S. He believes Europe is still competitive when it comes to artificial intelligence startups and even said that DeepSeek represented an opportunity to catch up. "There was a race to scale up. Everybody thought you always had to be bigger and stronger. What did DeepSeek do with its open models? They have taken all accessible innovations from the latest OpenAI model and adapted them to their own model, using a more frugal approach," he said. "Everyone will continue to do this. And that's why you have to be in this race." Arthur Mensch, co-founder and CEO of Mistral, also announced plans to invest billions in an AI cluster. The Paris-based company is arguably the only European company working on foundation models that can compete with models from Meta, OpenAI, Anthropic, DeepSeek, Alibaba and others. "We're going to do our bit and invest several billion euros in a cluster, which will be set up in Essonne, so that we can train even more efficient systems in just a few months' time," Mensch said on French TV TF1. Those announcements could be considered as a reaction to the Stargate Project, a $500 billion investment program led by OpenAI and SoftBank to build multiple data centers for AI in the United States. As a reminder, the majority of France's electricity production comes from nuclear power plants. France also produces more electricity than it needs. As tech companies are looking at new locations for power-hungry data centers -- ideally powered by carbon-free electricity -- France appears as an ideal location in Europe for these new projects. "In France, we have an extraordinary lead. We produce some of the most decarbonized, controllable and safe electricity in the world. We have the safest and most stable grid. And we export this low-carbon electricity," Macron said. According to him, France exported 90TWh of electricity to neighbor countries in 2024. And France now plans to use that headroom to attract foreign investments.

Macron Touts €109 Billion of Investments in Bid to Become AI Hub

President Emmanuel Macron said foreign and domestic companies will invest a total of €109 billion ($113 billion) in artificial intelligence projects in France, marking a push to position the country as a competitive hub for AI development. The AI spending, unveiled during a two-day artificial intelligence summit taking place in Paris, includes a mix of new and previously announced investments from Amazon.com Inc., Brookfield Asset Management and Apollo Global Management Inc. Much of it comes from the United Arab Emirates, which is committing €50 billion, according to officials in Macron's office.

France Attracts More Than $100 Billion in Future AI Investments, Macron Says

France has attracted in excess of $100 billion in future investments for artificial intelligence projects, President Emmanuel Macron said as the country hosts the AI Action Summit this week. President Macron said in an interview with France 2 that in the coming years, 109 billion euros ($112.59 billion) would be invested in the sector in France by both domestic and foreign investors. The statement came ahead of the Paris summit starting Monday, bringing together politicians, industry leaders, policymakers and academics. Macron said Sunday that the amount was France's equivalent of the U.S. unveiling of the $500 billion Stargate AI infrastructure project led by OpenAI. The investments include an agreement between France and the United Arab Emirates to build a dedicated artificial intelligence campus, the French government said last week. French telecommunications company Iliad Group said Friday that it was investing 3 billion euros into research and into AI infrastructure including in data centers and in computing power. Investment firm Brookfield is also among the investors, reportedly planning to spend 20 billion euros in the country, according to local French and international media. Write to Pierre Bertrand at pierre.bertrand@wsj.com

France has its own 'Stargate.'

President Emmanuel Macron announced that €109 billion (around $112 billion) in private sector investments will be put into AI in France over the coming years. Macron said the move is "equivalent" to the $500 billion AI data center project announced by President Trump last month ($100 billion of which is being deployed immediately), and that "Europe and France must accelerate their investments" to secure a foothold against the US and China in the global AI industry.

France to Announce €109 Billion in AI Investments, Macron Says

France is set to announce a total of €109 billion ($113 billion) in investment in artificial intelligence projects in the country by companies, funds and other sources over coming years, President Emmanuel Macron said. Speaking in an interview on France 2 TV on Sunday, Macron referenced a previously announced investment of between €30 billion and €50 billion on a new campus for data centers in France by a fund from the United Arab Emirates.

France to invest 109 billion euros in AI, Macron announces

PARIS, Feb 9 (Reuters) - President Emmanuel Macron said on Sunday that France will announce investments amounting to 109 billion euros ($112.5 billion) in artificial intelligence over the coming years during the Paris AI summit opening Monday. ($1 = 0.9688 euros) Reporting by Benoit Van Overstraeten; Editing by Lisa Shumaker Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab Suggested Topics:Artificial Intelligence

French President Macron Wants to Use AI as Accelerator of Innovation

President Emmanuel Macron says foreign companies will invest a total of €109 billion in artificial intelligence projects in France. Some investments will come from Amazon, Brookfield Asset Management and Apollo Global Management. Macron made the announcement at the AI Action Summit in Paris. (Source: Bloomberg)

Details of 110 billion euros in investment pledges at France's AI summit

PARIS, Feb 10 (Reuters) - French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday announced investment pledges to bolster France's artificial intelligence sector totalling 109 billion euros ($112 billion)over the coming years. The financing, unveiled during the Paris AI summit, includes plans by Canadian investment firm Brookfield to invest 20 billion euros in AI projects in France and financing from the United Arab Emirates which could hit 50 billion euros in the years ahead. Below is a list of some of those investment pledges, according to the Élysée and the companies: AMAZON: The U.S. retail giant (AMZN.O), opens new tab pledged more than 1.2 billion euros at last May's Choose France summit, part of a 6 billion euro investment to develop cloud infrastructure in France by 2031. APOLLO: Alternative asset manager Apollo Global Management (APO.N), opens new tab has put up an initial tranche of funding for AI energy-related investments totalling $5 billion. DIGITAL REALTY: Digital Realty (DLR.N), opens new tab, a real estate investment trust which leases out managed data centres, plans to deepen investments in data centres around Paris, and in Marseille, with a total pledge that could reach 6 billions euros. EQUINIX: Data centre firm Equinix plans to invest 630 million euros as part of a 750 million euro pledge that will lead to 10 data centres around Paris and one in Bordeaux. FLUIDSTACK: The AI cloud platform firm has signed a memorandum of understanding with the French government to build one of the world's biggest AI supercomputers, powered by French nuclear energy. An initial phase would see 10 billion euros invested, with the project operational by 2026, the company says. MISTRAL: Nvidia-backed French startup Mistral AI, whose recently launched Le Chat assistant is touted as Eurpoe's response to OpenAI's popular ChatGPT, plans to launch the largest supercomputer in Europe, while also deepening partnerships with French companies including Veolia and software developer Dassault Systemes. ($1 = 0.9698 euros) Reporting by Gabriel Stargardter; Editing by Toby Chopra Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab Suggested Topics:Artificial Intelligence

Factbox-Details of 110 Billion Euros in Investment Pledges at France's AI Summit

PARIS (Reuters) - French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday announced investment pledges to bolster France's artificial intelligence sector totalling 109 billion euros ($112 billion)over the coming years. The financing, unveiled during the Paris AI summit, includes plans by Canadian investment firm Brookfield to invest 20 billion euros in AI projects in France and financing from the United Arab Emirates which could hit 50 billion euros in the years ahead. Below is a list of some of those investment pledges, according to the Élysée and the companies: AMAZON: The U.S. retail giant pledged more than 1.2 billion euros at last May's Choose France summit, part of a 6 billion euro investment to develop cloud infrastructure in France by 2031. APOLLO: Alternative asset manager Apollo Global Management has put up an initial tranche of funding for AI energy-related investments totalling $5 billion. DIGITAL REALTY: Digital Realty, a real estate investment trust which leases out managed data centres, plans to deepen investments in data centres around Paris, and in Marseille, with a total pledge that could reach 6 billions euros. EQUINIX: Data centre firm Equinix plans to invest 630 million euros as part of a 750 million euro pledge that will lead to 10 data centres around Paris and one in Bordeaux. FLUIDSTACK: The AI cloud platform firm has signed a memorandum of understanding with the French government to build one of the world's biggest AI supercomputers, powered by French nuclear energy. An initial phase would see 10 billion euros invested, with the project operational by 2026, the company says. MISTRAL: Nvidia-backed French startup Mistral AI, whose recently launched Le Chat assistant is touted as Eurpoe's response to OpenAI's popular ChatGPT, plans to launch the largest supercomputer in Europe, while also deepening partnerships with French companies including Veolia and software developer Dassault Systemes. ($1 = 0.9698 euros) (Reporting by Gabriel Stargardter; Editing by Toby Chopra)

French public investment bank says to pump EUR10B into AI by 2029

PARIS (AFP) - French public lender Bpifrance will invest EUR10 billion (USD10.4 billion) in artificial intelligence (AI)-related projects by 2029, the bank said as Paris hosts a global summit on the technology. Bpifrance said in a statement that it will invest directly into startups developing AI models, related infrastructure and hardware such as chips, as well as into funds backing the sector and advising the companies it chooses for cash infusions. The announcement follows weeks after the Trump administration trailed a USD500-billion plan for investment into AI infrastructure led by OpenAI and its backer SoftBank. Other AI developers like Facebook parent Meta, Google and Amazon have announced their own plans in the tens of billions of dollars. Bpifrance in its statement acknowledged a "context of acceleration in global competition with growing numbers of investment announcements". France nevertheless boasts "a very dynamic ecosystem of startups with many promising companies" that could "reinforce (France's) position, sovereignty and competitiveness". President Emmanuel Macron and Indian Prime Minster Narendra Modi are to co-host a gathering of government and tech business leaders in Paris tomorrow and on Tuesday, part of a wider summit programme also drawing in campaign groups, cultural and media institutions and scientists.