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EuroHPC JU: New Artificial Intelligence Factories for an Innovative European Ecosystem

Key Points:

- Expanded mandate: With the introduction of EU Regulation 2024/1732, the EuroHPC JU is now also responsible for managing AI-optimized supercomputers.
- Support for SMEs and startups: AI Factories will provide access to advanced computing resources for startups, SMEs, academia, and the public sector.
- Significant investment: The EU plans to invest up to €800 million by 2027 to support these initiatives.
- International collaboration: Major collaborations with leading technology companies, such as Nvidia, to promote the development of AI Factories.

The board of the EuroHPC Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC JU) recently adopted a new strategy to develop and operate AI factories (AI Factories), with the goal of making the European AI ecosystem more competitive and innovative. This decision follows the entry into force of EU Regulation 2024/1732, which expands the mandate of the EuroHPC JU to include the acquisition and management of AI-optimized supercomputers.

The new AI Factories aim to become true innovation hubs, providing an advanced infrastructure for the development of generative AI models. The initiative targets a wide range of users, from startups to SMEs, from industry to academia and the public sector, offering access to high-performance computing resources and experimental supercomputing platforms.

The idea of AI Factories has been strongly supported by the European Commission, which has stressed the need for greater support for responsible AI research and innovation. Factories are envisioned as dynamic ecosystems that bring together computational power, data and talent, essential elements for the development of cutting-edge solutions in various fields, from health to energy, from manufacturing to meteorology.

To realize this vision, the EuroHPC JU has outlined a two-pronged approach. The first involves a call for new hosting agreements to acquire or upgrade AI supercomputers. This will enable the deployment of supercomputers with advanced AI capabilities,supporting research and development activities across Europe. The second part of the approach targets entities that already host EuroHPC supercomputers, offering grants to support the activities of AI Factories and the training of large-scale AI models.

The grants provided will cover the operational costs of supercomputers and support the activities of AI Factories. The European Commission has estimated a financial contribution of €400 million for 2024, with a total commitment of up to €800 million through 2027, subject to the availability of the Digital Europe program budget.

Nvidia, a leader in the GPU industry, has also expressed enthusiasm for the concept of AI Factories. During Computex in Taipei, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang described these factories as data centers specializing in the most intensive AI processing tasks, emphasizing the importance of these infrastructures for the future of modern industry and economies.

The AI Factories initiative is a significant step toward creating a robust and innovative AI ecosystem in Europe, fostering public-private collaboration and promoting technology development globally.