Can Europe build AI datacenters though?

Europe has no wafer production and no companies that produce GPUs.

That means it is dependent on Taiwan for wafers and the USA for GPU design.

Then there is the question wether there is a will to invest. Gemini gives me this list of publicly traded companies in the US and what they invested in AI infrastructure in 2025:

    Amazon: $100B
    Alphabet: $90B
    Microsoft: $80B
    Meta: $70B
    Tesla: $20B

    Deutsche Telekom: $1B

How much of the stuff that is under control of the US cloud companies has any need for being in an ‘AI’ datacentre?

Does a store of healthcare records need AI? The state portal for renewing passports? The tax administration?

I seemed to be able to use all of these things online before the latest boom in AI came along.

Isn't every AI datacenter chip manufacturer critically dependent on EU (ASML)?

Is there a use case for AI that open models can't solve ?

Are there really any customers who are demanding AI and threatening to leave if those AI features are missing in every tech adjacent product ?

I think the make or break situation of integrating cutting edge AI for any business is just the hype and fomo at leadership level.

> That means it is dependent on Taiwan for wafers and the USA for GPU design.

Both being dependant on ASML, that we're crippling to please our bully, the USA. We probably have more leverage that we want to admit, but that requires a lot of politic will and... planning the economy.

Well it is like Thiel said in a recent interview - European companies and investors are very risk-averse and will never be a vanguard like the ones in the US.

You'll never get here that kind of cash for any risky project, it usually is low risk + low margin.

Do Europe need AI datacenters to survive? AI is immature technology that is not yet critical to anything.

People tend to fixate about cutting edge technology, but my naïve intuition says the problem in Europe is not in lack of some secret sauce: it is hidden in plain sight lack of energy to run the DC - and worse - lack of long term desire to make the tough choices to get that energy

ASML & IMEC are European.

I mean, if after three years all we got is Mistral, it's obvious that EU is out of the current round of AI race.

It might even be a positive thing. If the AI 'bubble' bursts they might end up saving tons of money and can buy idle GPUs at a discount.

Aren't Mali GPUs designed in Europe?

Wow you're so right, you did such a good job asking computer mommy to confirm your priors!

But actually, that's not the goal here. AI, at least the kind of products that need dedicated datacenters ie. generative, isn't critical infrastructure. The focus is on documents, collaboration tools, file servers, single-sign on, databases etc. that are seemingly monopolized by US providers.