France Aims to Become Europe’s AI Hub with Big Push on Open-Source AI
With the goal of creating a domestic AI business and establishing itself as Europe’s AI centre, France is actively promoting open-source AI.
France is making a big push on open-source AI, intending to build a native AI industry and position itself as Europe’s hub for AI. In June, French President Emmanuel Macron announced that the country would invest €40 million in French-made generic AI projects and €500 million in AI research and development. The moves France is making are significant because they intersect with two of the biggest global stories in AI right now: Europe’s role as its hub and the rise of open-source AI. France is betting big on open-source AI, planning to create two or three “big global players” in the technology. Mistral AI, a Paris-based startup co-founded by alums from Google’s DeepMind and Meta, has picked up a $113 million round of seed funding to compete against OpenAI in the building, training, and application of large language models and generative AI.
Why does it matter? The French government is looking to position the country as a leader in AI regulation as the European Union and others push forward with global regulation by the end of the year. France’s bet on open-source AI has the potential to drive innovation, foster the growth of a domestic AI industry, attract or retain talent, and contribute to the global development and regulation of AI technologies.
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