EU pools up to €30 billion for AI gigafactories while US tech giants casually spend 20 times more

The European Commission has launched a call for proposals to build up to seven AI gigafactories across Europe.

The plan could mobilize as much as €30 billion, including about €10 billion from EU and national sources and at least €20 billion from private investors.

Eighteen member states are involved, and the Commission has signed letters of intent with AMD, Nvidia, and Qualcomm.

Applications are due on November 12, 2026, with construction of the first sites expected to begin in 2027.

The project is a major bet to narrow Europe’s AI compute gap and anchor the EU’s broader AI Continent strategy.