Dozens of European companies have joined forces to help in establishing Europe as a global leader in AI development and application, under a new plan announced as part of the AI Action Summit in Paris.

The ‘EU Champions Initiative’, which will be led by VC firm General Catalyst, will see firms from startups to established businesses aim to accelerate AI adoption and increase European companies’ competitiveness by mobilising talent and capital, with an overarching mission to foster partnership between policymakers and technology providers to unlock the continent’s AI.

Currently supporting the plans are household names like Airbus, Siemens, T-Mobile and Volkswagen, international financial institutions like Deutsche Bank, tech companies like Spotify and Philips, as well as AI firms gaining a foothold in the European tech market, including ElevenLabs and Mistral AI.  

Unveiled by French President Emmanuel Macron, the initiative has been designed to boost Europe’s AI sector in the face of rapid advancements in both the US and China, with the hope of integrating the emerging tech into Europe’s industrial base – especially in key sectors like manufacturing, energy, and defence – to increase productivity, resilience, and economic sovereignty.

To do that, the coalition wants to aid in the development of a targeted, competition-driven AI framework, arguing that it is essential to simplify regulations, remove barriers to AI scaling, and create a secure data-sharing environment. 

In a letter accompanying the announcement, Dr. Jeannette zu Fürstenberg, managing director of General Catalyst, said: “This groundbreaking effort brings together more than 60 European companies…committed to establishing Europe as a global leader in AI development and application.

“By seizing this moment, working with greater intent, and embracing radical collaboration, Europe can showcase its determination to transform ambition into tangible results, enhancing our global standing and shaping a future where technology fulfills the aspirations of our citizens.

“The EU AI Champions Initiative lays the groundwork to coordinate our efforts across technology, industry, and policy to accelerate AI adoption, modernize infrastructure, and foster a competitive technology ecosystem.”

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The venture capital firm has also released a report outlining the initiative’s vision for Europe’s AI reinvention, An Ambitious Agenda for European AI, which claims that the technology could help the bloc achieve an annual productivity growth rate of 3% by 2030, and add $575.1 billion (£464bn) to the European economy.

According to the research, meeting those goals would not only take a rapid programme of new policy initiatives spanning government and industry, but also a wide-scale education effort to close the gap around public trust and skills development currently holding some industries back from feeling the value of AI adoption.

Despite counting some of the world’s biggest companies among the plan, the Champions Initiative might still face an uphill battle following the European Union’s efforts to introduce voluntary guidelines for managing advanced artificial intelligence models, which have come under fire from major tech players, including Google and Meta.