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“France is uniquely positioned to become a leading AI infrastructure hub in Europe,” says SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son.
This week, SoftBank Group has announced plans to invest up to €75 billion to deploy 5 GW of AI-focused data centres in France.
Phase one of the project will see €45 billion building out 3.1 GW of AI data centre capacity at a variety of locations in northern France including Dunkirk, Bosquel, and Bouchain.
The first of these new locations is expected to be operational by 2031, with additional sites to be announced at a later date.
SoftBank Group will work with national energy company EDF and digital automation specialist Schneider Electric throughout the project.
“SoftBank is proud to make this major commitment to France,” said SoftBank Group CEO Masayoshi Son. “With its industrial capabilities, talent base and national ambition, France is uniquely positioned to become a leading AI infrastructure hub in Europe.”
The French government praised the decision, similarly highlighting the favourable environment for data centre deployments.
“SoftBank’s decision to invest massively in AI datacenters in France – a first for the group in Europe – is testament to President Emmanuel Macron’s ambition to position France as a leading destination all along the AI value chain,” said Roland Lescure, Minister of Economy, Finance, & Industrial, Energy, & Digital Sovereignty. “ It reflects our country’s substantial assets: fast access to the most reliable electrical grid in Europe, a strong digital and industrial ecosystem with a skilled workforce, and a government that works in unison with local authorities and stakeholders to fast track procedures for strategic projects.”
France is quickly becoming something of a European champion for AI data centres, with major tech and telco consortium AION pledging to build an ‘AI gigafactory’ in the country just last month.
For SoftBank, on the other hand, this announcement comes as an addendum to its Stargate Project, which pledges to deploy $500 billion-worth of AI infrastructure in partnership with Open AI over the next four years.
As well as expanding its AI capacity, SoftBank is also digging deeper into the AI value chain. Last month, the company announced plans to build its own batteries to support its own AI data centres, suggesting that these batteries could eventually be sold to others.
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