Arthur Mensch, CEO of AI company Mistral, calls for Europe to become less dependent on American infrastructure.
During the opening keynote at the MWC25 expo in Barcelona, Arthur Mensch, CEO of Mistral, emphasized the need for more local AI ecosystems in Europe due to recent developments in the United States. Europe’s dependence on American technology needs to be re-evaluated.
Telecom Companies as Hyperscalers
Mensch: “It seems that the conversation about AI is happening in the US and China, and that Europe is sometimes left out of that conversation.” However, he sees increasing momentum for AI projects in Europe, particularly for telecom companies that can invest in data centers and thus transform into a hyperscaler.
“For data centers, you need three things: electronics, fiber optics, and chips. Telecom companies already have the fibers,” he says. To stimulate the efforts of expanding data centers, Mistral wants to help set up those data centers in France. “France has an excellent energy grid, the prices are good, and the technical competencies are also strong.” AI can help telecom operators optimize the network and reduce costs. As an example, he mentioned the collaboration with operator Orange.
According to Mensch, market fragmentation would remain the biggest challenge in Europe, not overregulation. He suggests that it would be better to focus less on that regulation and more on stimulating AI. “Now that AI is increasingly integrated into consumer technology, there are opportunities to enter into distribution partnerships with the telecom industry. This way, everyone has access to AI systems.”