The computers that run European AI mostly sit outside Europe. On July 30 the Commission admitted as much itself - with a tender for seven gigafactories.
Fact
The facts: On July 30, 2026, the European Commission announced a call for tenders to build up to seven AI gigafactories in Europe. Public participation is 10 billion euro from the EU and national budgets; expected private participation is at least 20 billion, bringing the total to over 30 billion euro. The initiative is described as industry-led and backed by public funds. Access to the infrastructure is promised to startups and scale-ups, small and medium enterprises, industry, academia and public institutions. Application deadlines and a project timeline are not given in the announcement itself. Source: European Commission, 30.07.2026.
What interests me is something else - not the billions, the door. We hear the promise that a small company will get access under every European infrastructure program. The difference only shows up in the conditions: what's the threshold to apply, how much paperwork does it want, is there a quota for the small players, or do they queue behind industry. The announcement doesn't say.
The power matters. The terms for reaching it matter more.
Good news if you're one of the ones who can wait. A gigafactory doesn't get built in one season. There are no deadlines yet. Until then, everyone building here runs their numbers through someone else's data centers and someone else's price list. We don't know the terms yet. The useful thing today is to watch for when they land - that's where we'll see whether the door is wide, or just for the record.
The visual is generated code-art, no third-party images.