“We have to be in the race,” the French president says.
PARIS — French President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday announced a €109 billion plan to boost artificial intelligence in France « in the coming years. »
« We have to be in the race. We want to be part of it, we want to innovate. Otherwise, we’ll be dependent on others, » Macron told French broadcaster France 2 on Sunday evening.
Some of that money is expected to come from foreign and private investors.
The United Arab Emirates will spend more than €30 billion to build a data center in France, while Canadian investment firm Brookfield committed to a €20 billion investment. Both of those figures are part of the total €109 billion announced by Macron, the French president’s office told reporters.
Macron’s announcement came the evening before France kicked off a two-day AI summit in Paris.
Macron presented the French plan as a response to the €500 billion initiative announced by U.S. President Donald Trump last month dubbed « Stargate. » Macron argued that the French plan was as ambitious as the American one when considering investment per capita.
« It is the French equivalent of what the U.S. announced with Stargate. It is the same proportion, » Macron said.
Clea Caulcutt contributed to this report
