Europe should set up a €100 billion fund to support the development of artificial intelligence, according to Maurice Lévy, chairman of the supervisory board of Publicis Groupe. Speaking at VivaTech in Paris, he called on France and Germany to take the lead in establishing a joint European funding mechanism for AI.
According to Lévy, European companies are currently too heavily reliant on US suppliers of AI models. As an example, he cited situations in which companies could suddenly lose access to advanced tools developed by firms outside Europe. In his view, such dependence poses a risk not only to competitiveness but, in extreme cases, also to the continued operation of certain businesses.
The head of Publicis compared the current situation to foreign suppliers holding an ‘on/off switch’ that could be activated at any time. Therefore, in his view, artificial intelligence should be recognised as a strategic area for Europe’s economic development.
This call forms part of a wider debate on so-called technological sovereignty. In recent months, European politicians and industry representatives have increasingly emphasised the need to build their own infrastructure, AI models and an investment ecosystem that will enable them to compete with the US and China.
Although the idea of a European fund is not new, Lévy believes that the current dynamics of the AI market lend it a new sense of urgency. The growing role of artificial intelligence in industry, services and public administration means that access to key technologies is becoming not only a matter of innovation, but also of the economic security of the entire region.
