French President Emmanuel Macron has announced a total of €109 billion in private investments in the artificial intelligence ecosystem, with France aiming to speed up its AI development and become more competitive globally. The investment is seen as a significant reaction to the $500 billion Stargate Project led by OpenAI and SoftBank.
Macron stated that this fund represents an equivalent investment for France compared to the US’s $500 billion announcement, highlighting the country’s commitment to speeding up its AI growth. TechCrunch has reported that foreign and local investors have pledged between €30B to €50B, with notable contributions from the UAE, Canada, and French companies like Orange, Thales, and Bpifrance.
Most of the investments will go towards new AI-focused data centers, a key area of focus for France’s AI ecosystem. Macron also discussed French AI startups that have relocated to the US, such as Mistral, Owkin, and Wandercraft, emphasizing Europe’s competitiveness in this field.
Mistral’s CEO Arthur Mensch announced plans to invest billions in an AI cluster, competing with global models from Alibaba, Anthropic, DeepSeek, Meta, OpenAI, and others. The French government has also pledged one gigawatt of nuclear power to AI training by the end of 2026, aiming to attract foreign investments.
France’s unique advantage lies in its decarbonized electricity production, making it an attractive location for data centers powered by carbon-free energy. Macron stated that France exports 90TWh of electricity to neighboring countries and plans to use this headroom to attract investors.
The announcement comes ahead of the Artificial Intelligence Action Summit in Paris, which will bring together international experts to discuss AI development and innovation.
Source: https://techcrunch.com/2025/02/10/macron-unveils-a-112b-ai-investment-package-as-frances-answer-to-stargate