SoftBank has committed up to €75 billion to build 5 gigawatts of nuclear-powered AI data center capacity across France by 2031.
Japanese technology investment titan SoftBank Group Corp. shattered European infrastructure records on May 30, 2026, by committing up to €75 billion (approximately $87 billion) to construct and operate a massive 5-gigawatt artificial intelligence data center network across France. Formalized by SoftBank Chairman and CEO Masayoshi Son alongside French President Emmanuel Macron at the annual Choose France summit in Paris, the monumental initiative marks the largest AI infrastructure investment in European history. According to TechCrunch, the primary driver behind this hyper-scale expansion is the severe shortage of specialized, high-density computing capacity across Europe as tech conglomerates aggressively race to build out power-intensive infrastructure for generative AI models and autonomous robotics. By establishing a vast network of optimized AI “factories,” SoftBank intends to secure a dominant, structural foothold at the epicenter of Europe’s sovereign cloud computing ecosystem.
The execution blueprint for this massive capital layout is structured into highly integrated, multi-phase operational cycles designed to mitigate grid development bottlenecks. The initial, firm phase involves a massive €45 billion spending program to deliver 3.1 gigawatts of dedicated compute capacity by 2031 across the northern Hauts-de-France region, with specific data center campuses slated for Dunkirk, Bosquel, and Bouchain. As part of this localized framework, SoftBank announced a dedicated joint venture with French data center specialist Sesterce to build out a 1-gigawatt campus in Bosquel, a project expected to mobilize regional contractors and establish 400 highly skilled operational roles. Furthermore, the state-owned nuclear energy monopoly Électricité de France (EDF) is directly contributing to the Bouchain deployment by surrendering a former regional power station for immediate, low-carbon digital conversion.
The geopolitical and environmental rationale behind selecting France over traditional European tech hubs like London, Frankfurt, or Amsterdam centers entirely on industrial infrastructure and regulatory speed. The modern generation of AI data center installations requires immense volumes of constant, highly reliable electrical current—5 gigawatts of infrastructure is roughly equivalent to the peak electricity demand of New York City or the entire output of five standard nuclear power reactors. While rigid planning frameworks and severe, fossil-fuel-dependent grid congestion are heavily delaying or canceling half of all data center builds in the United States and Northern Europe, France offers immediate access to a robust, highly stable nuclear power grid. According to analytical tracking from Tom’s Hardware, President Macron pitched this abundant low-carbon grid availability alongside fast-tracked, major national interest regulatory exemptions to bypass traditional bureaucratic planning barriers and secure SoftBank’s capital.
To streamline supply chains and accelerate on-site assembly, SoftBank is pairing the infrastructure project with a deep industrial manufacturing partnership with the French engineering giant Schneider Electric. Operating directly out of the strategic Port of Dunkirk, the two entities will establish a localized, advanced production cluster featuring a SoftBank-operated facility to construct specialized hardware enclosures and a companion Schneider facility to assemble prefabricated modular power systems. As documented by the Financial Times, this massive continental footprint directly supplements SoftBank’s broader, aggressive global AI deployment strategy, which includes a separate 10-gigawatt infrastructure plan in Ohio, a massive 5-gigawatt joint compute cluster in Abu Dhabi with G42, and an extensive multi-billion-dollar equity stake in OpenAI. By vertically integrating low-carbon energy grids, modular Schneider manufacturing units, and internal Arm-based chip innovations, SoftBank is building a highly optimized sovereign pipeline, cementing France as the definitive technological engine room for the next era of continental European artificial intelligence.
