SoftBank invests 75 billion euros in France for AI centers

SoftBank Bets on France for AI

SoftBank recently announced its intention to invest €75 billion in building data centers dedicated to artificial intelligence in France. This ambitious project aims to develop a total capacity of 5 gigawatts, making it SoftBank's most significant commitment to AI infrastructure on the European continent.

The first phase of this colossal investment plans to mobilize €45 billion for the creation of data centers with a capacity of 3.1 gigawatts in the Hauts-de-France region. The selected sites for these infrastructures are Dunkirk, Bosquel, and Bouchain, with a deadline set for 2031. This announcement was made during the "Choose France" summit, orchestrated by President Emmanuel Macron.

SoftBank's CEO, Masayoshi Son, expressed his belief that France has all the necessary assets to become a leading AI infrastructure hub in Europe. This investment is also expected to generate thousands of jobs, thereby strengthening the local and national economy.

A Strategic Partnership with Schneider Electric

As part of this project, SoftBank is partnering with Schneider Electric to establish a manufacturing cluster for data center components in Dunkirk. The Minister of Economy, Roland Lescure, highlighted France's competitive advantages, such as quick access to the European power grid, a robust technology ecosystem, and streamlined administrative procedures, which should facilitate the implementation of this project.

Moreover, at the Bosquel site, SoftBank is collaborating with the French startup Sesterce to build a large-scale "AI factory." This partnership is seen as a pivotal moment for the future of sovereign AI infrastructure in Europe, according to Youssef El Manssouri, CEO of Sesterce. France is also home to Mistral, the only EU AI startup with its own large-scale language models.

SoftBank and Its Global Projects

Globally, SoftBank is involved in several AI infrastructure projects. In Abu Dhabi, a data center called "Stargate UAE" is under construction with G42, although the exact capacity has not been specified. SoftBank promises $100 billion in investments in AI infrastructure.

In Japan, SoftBank is mobilizing the country's industrial elite, including NEC, Honda, Sony, and three major banks, to develop a national base model with one trillion parameters. Data processing is expected to remain on Japanese soil, partly in a former Sharp LCD factory in Sakai, near Osaka.

In the UK, SoftBank and OpenAI are considering the first international site for Stargate, although the expansion depends on the progress of the American project, which is currently on hold. In South Korea, Masayoshi Son met with President Lee Jae Myung in December 2025 to discuss partnerships in AI and semiconductors, including the establishment of a chip design facility.

SoftBank has also acquired the British AI chip company Graphcore and plans to invest an additional $457 million. In India, Graphcore is investing up to £1 billion in a new AI campus in Bengaluru. In May, Bloomberg reported that one of SoftBank's loans was reduced from $10 billion to as low as $6 billion due to lenders' doubts about OpenAI's actual valuation.