The European Commission has unveiled a plan to transform the continent into a hub for AI development, focusing on technology, infrastructure, people and new rules of the game.
The European Commission has unveiled a plan to transform the continent into a hub for AI development, focusing on technology, infrastructure, people and new rules of the game.
The European Commission's plan is to strengthen Europe's AI and supercomputing infrastructure through a network of AI factories. Currently, 13 such factories have been deployed around leading supercomputing centers.
The EU will also help create artificial intelligence gigafactories. These will be large-scale facilities equipped with around 100,000 state-of-the-art AI chips, four times the size of current AI factories. They will combine huge computing power and data centres to train and develop complex AI models. The AI gigafactories will support the EU's strategic autonomy in critical industrial sectors and science, which require public and private investment. The plan is to raise €20 billion through the InvestAI programme.
The Commission also plans to introduce the Cloud and Artificial Intelligence Act. The aim is to at least triple the capacity of data centres in the EU over the next five to seven years, with a priority on highly resilient data centres.
Although the European Commission has announced its “Napoleonic” plans, it still notes that only 13.5% of companies in the EU have implemented artificial intelligence in their activities. The European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIH) have been tasked with implementing the Apply AI strategy to increase the level of AI involvement in European companies.
The EU plans to attract talented AI professionals to Europe through scholarships, internship programs, and legal migration. This will in turn create a talent pool for AI specialists. New educational programs in generative AI are also being prepared to train young professionals and help existing staff retrain.
The European Commission will also launch an “Artificial Intelligence Act Helpdesk”. It will serve as a central contact and hub for information and advice on the Artificial Intelligence Act. According to the plans of European officials, this will help businesses and the public sector to be more open about the implementation of AI.
The European Commission's new plan is part of a comprehensive EU policy on AI, cybersecurity and the EU's commitment to invest €1.3 billion in strengthening the Union's digital infrastructure.
