The “EU AI Champions Initiative” — a long-term effort uniting more than 60 leading European companies ranging from startups to established incumbents — has been launched at the AI Action Summit in Paris.
The initiative was unveiled by French President Emmanuel Macron, and discussed with the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen and the Heads of State and Government of Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Netherlands, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Sweden.
“This is the first time that European leaders from across countries, industry, technology, and policy unite to create a functional flywheel to accelerate Europe’s leadership in AI – by framing a positive, ambitious vision for Europe, mobilizing talent and capital and thereby accelerating AI adoption across the European industry,” said the Initiative.
“All participating companies are united by the conviction that presenting a cohesive market opportunity to the entrepreneurial ecosystem will create self-reinforcing mechanisms of building new technology companies and enhancing global leadership positions of Europe’s established industries, together driving economic growth and social prosperity in Europe.”
The Initiative said international investors have earmarked €150 billion for AI in Europe.
“When Europe succeeds in creating a transparent and targeted, competition-driven AI framework with viable investment opportunities, more than 20 international key capital allocators, including Balderton, Blackstone, CVC, DST Global, EQT, General Catalyst, Insight, KKR, Lightspeed, and Warburg Pincus, stand ready to spend €150 billion new capital and previously raised funds for AI-related opportunities in Europe over the next five years,” said the Initiative.
“These investments span a wide range of sectors, including AI technology companies, businesses applying AI to enhance their operations, and the critical infrastructure that supports AI, such as energy and data centers. The capital highlights the immense potential for AI transformation in the region and will attract even more talent and capital, accelerating AI adoption across European industries.”
In order to fully enable the creation and adoption of AI in Europe, the Initiative also is seeking to engage collaboratively and constructively with the European Commission and member state governments to create a “drastically simplified” AI regulatory framework that unlocks local innovation and global leadership, supporting existing efforts to launch a comprehensive AI Strategy for Europe.
“By seizing this moment, working with greater intention, and embracing deep collaboration, Europe can seize a generational opportunity by leading in applied AI, integrating it into our industrial base to boost productivity, resilience, and economic sovereignty, especially in key sectors like manufacturing, energy, healthcare and defence,” said Jeannette zu Fürstenberg, Head of Europe at General Catalyst, who will coordinate the groundwork for the EU AI Champions Initiative.
“Europe has all the essentials for a resilient and competitive AI infrastructure: talent, capital, and a strong industrial backbone with proprietary distribution and data. With the commitment of over 60 leading European companies, we must harness these resources to unlock a functional flywheel between technology, capital, and policy.”
Christophe Fouquet, President & CEO, ASML, said: “At ASML, we believe that cutting-edge AI, combined with Europe’s world-class innovation ecosystem, will drive the next era of technological progress.
“The EU AI Champions Initiative represents an important step in uniting industry leaders to ensure Europe remains at the forefront of AI-driven advancements. By fostering collaboration between technology, industry, and policymakers, we can unlock unprecedented opportunities for economic growth, competitiveness, and global leadership.”
Robin Rombach, Co-Founder, Black Forest Labs, said: “As a German-headquartered startup creating frontier AI foundation models, Black Forest Labs has demonstrated that Europe is a global leader in the development of frontier AI technology.
“We believe in Europe’s ability to continue to be a global leader in AI and support initiatives that accelerate European efforts in open innovation and cutting-edge technology.”
Stef van Grieken, Co-founder & CEO, Cradle, said: “The last major technological transitions such as mobile, social and cloud created completely novel markets. But AI represents something different – it’s transforming existing industries that are at the core of Europe’s prosperity. The pharmaceutical and biotech sectors, where Europe has historically been a global leader, are prime examples.
“At Cradle, we’re seeing AI dramatically reduce the cost and time of R&D for everything from new medicines, diagnostics to sustainable foods and chemicals. The EU AI Champions Initiative comes at a crucial moment – if we don’t act decisively now, we risk losing our competitive edge in these vital sectors that impact both human and planetary health.
“Europe has the scientific talent, the industrial base, and the regulatory experience to lead this transformation – but only if we move quickly and decisively to support innovation while maintaining appropriate safeguards.”
Pascal Daloz, CEO, Dassault Systèmes, said: “At Dassault Systèmes, we are proud to participate in the EU AI Champions Initiative, as we firmly believe that artificial intelligence represents a strategic lever to shape the future of industry and society.
“As pioneers in Virtual Worlds for Real Life, we are committed to working with European leaders to promote sustainable innovation contributing to the transition to a generative economy.”
Christian Sewing, CEO, Deutsche Bank, said: “As we stand on the brink of a technological revolution, the application of AI at scale in Europe’s world leading industries represents one of the greatest opportunities for Europe to live up to its potential.
“However, a fundamental and bold shift must occur now in how we collaborate and create a shared vision for what we want Europe to become – including setting the right investment environment by promoting the Savings and Investment Union.
“At Deutsche Bank, we believe this initiative can accelerate AI adoption in a responsible and secure way for the benefit of a competitive and resilient European economy.”
Gundbert Scherf, Co-Founder & Co-CEO, Helsing, said: “The AI race is far from being over, it has only just begun. We must urgently raise our ambition for AI and use Europe’s potential in technology and talent, capital and entrepreneurialism. We believe AI leadership is core to sovereignty and a strong Europe. We’ll work with Mistral to deliver that for Europe and its allies in defence.”
Arthur Mensch, Co-Founder & CEO, Mistral AI, said: “The EU AI Champions Initiative comes at a pivotal moment for corporate leaders to position Europe at the forefront of AI and transform our economy. The time for debate and small-scale pilots is over. It is now crucial for European policymakers, industry leaders, and startups to fully harness AI’s potential.”
Christel Heydemann, CEO, Orange Group, commented: “AI holds tremendous potential to foster innovation and growth across industries in Europe. By clarifying current AI regulations and simplifying our complex regulatory landscape, we can strengthen our roles as users, critical infrastructure providers, and data distributors.
“The EU AI Champion Initiative seeks to engage in constructive dialogue with the European Commission and other policymakers to create a clearer, more supportive AI framework that enables effective innovation. This collaboration will not only drive competitiveness but also enhance health outcomes and improve the everyday experiences of all citizens.
“A united effort from European businesses and policymakers will be crucial in harnessing AI for the benefit of everyone.”