French Billionaire Xavier Niel Invests €200 Million to Battle OpenAI for AI Markets

French billionaire Xavier Niel has announced a €200 million ($212 million) investment in theartificial intelligence (AI)The main plans for the development of the field include the creation of a future research laboratory in Paris, the provision of cloud supercomputing capabilities using hardware from Nvidia, and the provision of financial support for start-ups.

In an interview, Xavier Niel said the goal of the initiative is to attract top French AI engineers who have worked at large tech companies and come back to France to build AI products together with theOpenAIand others to compete.

Global competition for the AI market is becoming increasingly intense, with geopolitical rivalries escalating as countries look to capitalize on the potential of the field to boost economic growth and expand international influence.

Niel notes, "To make an impact in the AI market, you need powerful computing power. To get computing power, you need supercomputers. In order to have supercomputers, we have to make massive investments." He also mentioned that his telecom group Iliad, through its cloud computing subsidiary Scaleway, has been working on developing a European cloud system as an alternative to the ones offered by large US tech companies. He said, "By deploying supercomputers, we hope to also create a European leader in artificial intelligence. There is a sovereignty issue at stake: in order to protect our data, we need to build the appropriate infrastructure on our own territory."

Xavier Niel's investment program will help drive French competitiveness in artificial intelligence and strengthen Europe's position in the global AI market. It is also a clear signal that AI has become one of the key areas of international competition, with countries investing more to compete for market share and technological leadership.