France Eyes €109 billion in AI Investment
Can France rise to become a global AI hub, alongside the US and China, or will regulatory hurdles hold it back?
As the two-day Paris AI Summit, co-hosted by India and France, kicks off today, February 10, in Paris, world leaders including U.S. Vice President JD Vance, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Guoqing, and French President Macron are joined by tech industry giants like OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Google’s Sundar Pichai, among several others. France is using this global stage to demonstrate its ambition to compete at the forefront of artificial intelligence (AI) and technological innovation. But more than that, France is aggressively courting investment to outpace the U.S. and China, aiming to position itself as a global AI tech hub.
On February 9, French President Emmanuel Macron announced that France is set to attract €109 billion in investments to enhance its technological infrastructure, with a strategic focus on advancing AI and data capabilities. This ambitious initiative will be supported by both domestic and international investors. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has committed up to €50 billion for a large-scale data center project in France, while Canadian company Brookfield Corporation has pledged €20 billion for AI infrastructure, including €15 billion specifically for data center construction. Major French companies like Iliad, Orange, and Thales are also contributing substantial investments.
But with the overregulation of the AI space in France and, more broadly, the EU, how realistic is France’s ambition?
Investment Overview
Total Investment: €109 billion (approximately $112 billion USD)
Key Stakeholders: