SoftBank Announces €75 Billion Bet on French AI Infrastructure with Giant Data Center Buildout
The Japanese investment conglomerate SoftBank Group has unveiled a massive €75 billion investment plan to expand artificial intelligence infrastructure in France. The firm disclosed that its objective is to develop and operate up to 5 gigawatts of additional data center capacity, marking one of the largest single-country AI infrastructure commitments to date.
Investment Scale and Capacity Targets
SoftBank’s pledge represents a significant escalation in European data center investment, with the €75 billion allocation dedicated specifically to French AI infrastructure. The company aims to bring online up to 5 gigawatts of new capacity, a figure that would substantially increase France’s current data center footprint. This capacity is intended to support the growing computational demands of training and running large-scale AI models.
Strategic Focus on France
France has emerged as a key European hub for data center development, driven by its relatively low-carbon nuclear power grid and government incentives for tech infrastructure. SoftBank’s decision to concentrate this buildout in France aligns with the country’s push to attract foreign investment in digital infrastructure. The firm has not specified the timeline for reaching the 5-gigawatt target but described the initiative as a long-term development and operational effort.
Industry Context
The announcement comes amid a global race among tech giants and investment firms to secure data center capacity for AI workloads. SoftBank’s commitment in France follows similar large-scale announcements in the United States, Japan, and Southeast Asia. The 5-gigawatt figure would make this one of the largest single-company data center buildouts in Europe, comparable to projects from major cloud providers.
Market Context
As of May 30, 2026, cryptocurrency markets showed modest movements. Bitcoin traded at $73,802, up 0.6% over the past 24 hours. Ethereum was priced at $2,022.54, also gaining 0.6% in the same period.