Applications open for EU AI gigafactories
The European Commission is calling for tenders to establish up to seven AI gigafactories across the EU, as part of its efforts to secure European tech sovereignty.
The initiative will be supported by up to €10 billion in EU and national funding, making it the largest public-private partnership in the world for the development of trustworthy AI.
It’s aimed at giving businesses of all sizes, academia, and public authorities access to infrastructure for training, inference, and fine-tuning advanced frontier AI models.
It’s hoped that the facilities will also act as a catalyst for the European semiconductor ecosystem and stimulate domestic design of processors by providing a predictable, large-scale demand for high-end computing. It’s also hoped that, over time, this will evolve into the manufacture of European-designed AI processors in the EU.
The gigafactories, said the Commission, will combine advanced AI processors, software and cloud technology stacks, high-speed connectivity and energy-efficient data centers, dedicated secure cloud user access environments, and specialized secure AI-oriented support services.
The supporting infrastructure will be environmentally sustainable, particularly in terms of energy and water supply.
The plan was first revealed in February 2025 and an informal call for expression of interest drew 77 proposals, with potential sites in Germany, Italy, France, Poland, Czechia, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Portugal and Spain.
“The opening of the AI gigafactories call represents a milestone in our AI Continent ambitions,” said Henna Virkkunen, EVP for tech sovereignty, security, and democracy at the European Commission.
“Access to the raw scale of computing power within AI gigafactories is a strategic necessity for Europe as AI development accelerates. I am pleased to see member states, industry and the Commission coming together to work on these facilities that are key to our technological sovereignty,” she added.
The plan will involve two consecutive development phases and two lots, with participating member states matching EU funding.
The first lot will support up to four projects, each eligible for up to €100 million in EU funding in phase one and up to an additional €400 million per project in phase two. Successful projects will have to deploy at least as many of the most advanced AI processors as are currently installed in Europe’s most powerful AI factory.
In phase two capacity must triple, with the second lot supporting up to three projects, each eligible for up to €200 million of EU funding in phase one and up to an additional €800 million per project in phase two.
To qualify, projects must feature up to twice as many of the most advanced AI processors as are currently installed in Europe’s most powerful AI factory; in phase two, capacity must increase to at least four times that level.
The AI gigafactories can be set up on one site or across several locations in a single member state, but can also include cross-border developments through distributed AI computing facilities.
The call closes on 12 November 2026, and consortia or Special Purpose Vehicles bringing together companies, public entities, investors and other partners can apply.
Decisions are expected by early 2027, with construction starting later that year, and operations expected to start within 18 months.
