France Ramps Up AI Ambitions with Pledge for One Gigawatt of New Nuclear Power

France commits to developing a new gigawatt of nuclear energy capacity to fast-track the realization of its artificial intelligence ambitions.

A New Era for AI in France

Last Sunday, France marked its entry into the global AI boom. President Emmanuel Macron unveiled a massive €109 billion ($112.5 billion) in private investments aimed at bolstering the country’s AI ecosystem. This announcement came just before the AI Action Summit scheduled in Paris for Monday and Tuesday.

An Ambitious Investment

“Europe will accelerate, France will accelerate,” Macron stated in a televised interview on France 2 and India’s First Post. He explained that this investment is “the equivalent for France of what the United States has announced with Stargate – $500 billion – considering the much smaller population of France.”

Nuclear Energy Dedicated to AI

France is also set to allocate one gigawatt of its nuclear power to an AI computing project, according to the Wall Street Journal. The country, with its 57 reactors across 18 power plants, has abundant nuclear energy and exported about one-fifth of its electricity last year, despite using nuclear power for over two-thirds of its electricity needs.

The Future of AI in France

The project, led by FluidStack, is expected to kick off in the third quarter of 2024. The goal is to link 250 megawatts of power to AI computing chips by the end of 2026. Most of these chips are produced by Nvidia, which FluidStack claims it can supply on demand. There are even plans to expand to a 10 gigawatt facility by 2030.

This news follows the announcement on February 6 by Macron and UAE leader Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan of a joint investment of €30 to €50 million ($31 to $51.6 million) in a one-gigawatt AI center.