The Schwarz Group, the parent company of Lidl, is reportedly bidding to spearhead the development of a major data centre in Europe, positioning it as a central hub for artificial intelligence development. This initiative aligns with the EU's broader strategy to bolster its AI capabilities and reduce reliance on US and Chinese infrastructure. The proposed data centre, dubbed an 'AI gigafactory', is part of the European Commission's plan to establish several major AI infrastructure sites. Each facility is expected to house around 100,000 advanced AI chips, focusing on training models for technical scientific fields, like medicine.
The EU is proposing a public-private partnership model, with public funding potentially covering up to 35% of each gigafactory project. The German government has expressed support for hosting one of these EU-backed centres, recognising the project as a national priority. The initiative aims to enhance Europe's ability to develop and train its own AI models independently.
However, challenges remain, including securing the necessary AI chips. Deutsche Telekom, Ionos and the Schwarz Group's IT subsidiary are submitting competing applications to the EU for an AI gigafactory after the German firms could not agree on a common concept.
