The European Commission has unveiled its ambitious initiative to secure Europe’s place as a global leader in artificial intelligence with the official launch of the AI Continent Action Plan. As set out by President von der Leyen at the AI Action Summit in February 2025 in Paris, this initiative is set to transform Europe's traditional industries and its talent pool into powerful engines of AI innovation and acceleration.
“Artificial intelligence is at the heart of making Europe more competitive, secure, and technologically sovereign,” said Henna Virkkunen, Executive Vice-President for Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy.
“The global race for AI is far from over. The time to act is now. This Action Plan outlines key areas where efforts need to intensify to make Europe a leading AI Continent. We are working towards a future where tech innovation drives industry and public services forward, bringing concrete benefits to our citizens and businesses through trustworthy AI. This means a stronger economy, breakthroughs in healthcare, new jobs, increased productivity, better transport and education, stronger protection against cyber threats, and support in tackling climate change.”
The AI Continent Action Plan will boost the European Union's AI innovation capabilities through actions and policies around five key pillars:
1. Scaling infrastructure with AI factories and gigafactories
The Commission is ramping up investment in Europe’s supercomputing and AI infrastructure through a continent-wide network of AI Factories, 13 of which are already being deployed. These hubs will provide vital support for AI startups, researchers, and industry actors in developing next-generation models and applications.
As announced in the Competitive Compass, the EU will also help set up AI Gigafactories. These will be large-scale facilities equipped with approximately 100,000 state-of-the-art AI chips, four times more than current AI factories. They will integrate massive computing power and data centres to train and develop complex AI models at unprecedented scale. Private investment in Gigafactories will be further stimulated through the InvestAI, which will mobilise €20 billion investment for up to five AI Gigafactories across the Union.
To stimulate private sector investment in cloud capacity and data centres, the Commission will also propose a Cloud and AI Development Act. The goal is to at least triple the EU's data centre capacity in the next five to seven years, prioritising highly sustainable data centres.
2. Unlocking access to quality data
The Action Plan will establish Data Labs that bring together and curate large, high-quality data volumes from different sources in AI Factories. A comprehensive Data Union Strategy will be launched in 2025 to create a true internal market for data that can scale up AI solutions.
3. Driving AI adoption across key sectors
Although the EU has a strong research foundation, only 13.5% of companies have adopted AI. To bridge this gap, the Apply AI Strategy will support targeted adoption in critical areas such as healthcare, transport, energy, and public services, promoting tailored solutions in critical sectors such as healthcare, transport, energy, and public services.
4. Investing in skills and talent
To strengthen the EU’s AI workforce, the Commission will launch a new AI Skills Academy, supported by talent initiatives such as MSCA Choose Europe and the Talent Pool programme. These actions will help upskill the workforce, attract global talent, and reverse the trend of AI brain drain by supporting legal migration pathways and recruitment of top international experts.
5. Regulatory simplification
The AI Act provides the legal clarity and safeguards needed for businesses and citizens to trust and embrace AI. To facilitate compliance, the Commission will establish an AI Act Service Desk, a central contact point offering guidance and support for navigating AI regulations.
The Commission will also open two public consultations, running until 4 June 2025, to further shape these AI Continent Action Plan initiatives. One of them invites all interested parties to share their views on the Cloud and AI Development Act. Another consultation will be held on the Apply AI Strategy, to identify sectoral priorities, adoption challenges, and suggestions for policy refinement. In addition, the Commission will organise dialogues with industry representatives and the public sector to help shape the Apply AI Strategy.
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