European Commission unveils AI Continent Action Plan

The European Commission today unveiled its ambitious initiative to secure Europe’s place as a global leader in artificial intelligence with the official launch of the AI Continent Action Plan. First outlined by President Ursula von der Leyen at the AI Action Summit in Paris in February, the plan promises to supercharge Europe’s AI capabilities across research, industry, and public services.

“The global race for AI is far from over. Time to act is now. This Action Plan outlines key areas where efforts need to intensify to make Europe a leading AI Continent. We are working towards a future where tech innovation drives industry and public services forward, bringing concrete benefits to our citizens and businesses through trustworthy AI. This means a stronger economy, breakthroughs in healthcare, new jobs, increased productivity, better transport and education, stronger protection against cyber threats, and support in tackling climate change.” 

The AI Continent Action Plan is built on five strategic pillars designed to transform Europe’s AI landscape:

1. Scaling infrastructure with AI factories and gigafactories

The Commission is ramping up investment in Europe’s supercomputing and AI infrastructure through a continent-wide network of AI Factories, 13 of which are already being deployed. These hubs will provide vital support for AI startups, researchers, and industry actors in developing next-generation models and applications.

Additionally, the launch of AI Gigafactories—massive facilities housing around 100,000 cutting-edge AI chips—marks a leap in computing power. These centres will drive the development of frontier AI models and aim to safeguard the EU’s strategic autonomy. A call for expressions of interest for Gigafactory consortia is now open, with up to €20 billion in private investment to be mobilised through the new InvestAI initiative.

A proposed Cloud and AI Development Act, now open for public consultation, aims to triple the EU’s data centre capacity over the next 5–7 years, with sustainability at its core.

2. Unlocking access to quality data

To fuel AI innovation, the Action Plan will establish Data Labs that curate large volumes of quality data from across Europe. This will be supported by a new Data Union Strategy, launching in 2025, to enable a seamless internal data market.

3. Driving AI adoption across key sectors

Despite the EU’s strong research base, only 13.5% of businesses have adopted AI. To address this, the Commission will roll out the Apply AI Strategy, promoting tailored solutions in critical sectors such as healthcare, transport, energy, and public services.

This effort will harness the existing European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIHs) and AI Factories to help bridge the innovation gap between research and real-world deployment.

4. Investing in skills and talent

A new AI Skills Academy, along with talent programmes like MSCA Choose Europe and the Talent Pool initiative, will support both domestic and international recruitment of top AI professionals. These measures will help upskill workers, support legal migration pathways for non-EU experts, and reverse Europe’s AI brain drain.

5. Regulatory clarity and simplification

To support trust and investment, the Commission will launch an AI Act Service Desk—a one-stop-shop for guidance on Europe’s landmark AI Act, which came into force in August 2024. The goal: make compliance clear, simple, and accessible, especially for startups and SMEs.

Public consultations and next steps

The Commission is inviting public input through two consultations open until 4 June 2025 on the Cloud and AI Development Act; and on the Apply AI Strategy, to help shape priorities and identify adoption challenges

A third consultation on the Data Union Strategy will launch in May, alongside industry and public sector dialogues to refine implementation efforts.

Today’s Action Plan builds on a series of foundational measures, including the enforcement of the AI Act, the rollout of the EuroHPC Joint Undertaking, and the announcement of InvestAI, which aims to mobilise €200 billion in AI investment across Europe.