The Foundation of Innovation

Why infrastructure is vital for competitiveness and what impact AI has on Europe’s economy.

Why is infrastructure important when it comes to AI? 

AI’s potential to transform Europe’s economy and boost competitiveness is enormous, but it’s dependent on a robust foundation. Infrastructure is that foundation.

What does it consist of?

As AI and other technologies expand to unlock new economic and social benefits, the demand for digital services has grown rapidly. At Google, we take a full-stack approach to AI innovation, meaning we build and optimise every layer of the AI development process – from the physical infrastructure in our data centres and the design of our chips to the development of AI models and the products that use them.

Energy consumption is considered a concern regarding AI. How does Google contribute to sustainable infrastructures?

Running the global infrastructure behind our products and services, including AI, takes considerable energy. From the beginning, we’ve focused intensely on how we manage our energy use – and how we can accelerate the shift to cleaner sources. Our strategy focuses on what we can directly control, like improving energy efficiency and procuring clean energy for our data centres. In parallel, we invest in the breakthroughs needed for the future – including next-generation energy sources like enhanced geothermal and advanced nuclear, as well as grid-enhancing technologies. Our data centres deliver over six times more computing power per unit of electricity than they did just five years ago. Much of this improvement has come from deploying AI accelerators, such as our TPUs, the highly efficient computer chips we designed specifically for AI and machine-learning applications. An example of our focus on sustainability is our Swedish Cloud region, which opened in 2025. Current projections indicate this region will operate at or above 99% carbon-free energy (CFE) in its first full year of operation in 2026, due to the Swedish grid’s electricity mix.

How does Europe’s AI infrastructure currently compare to that of the U.S. and other global regions?

Infrastructure quality and availability vary significantly across Europe, often correlating with national digital strategies and historical investment levels. While Europe has made significant strides in AI research, substantial, ongoing investment in foundational AI infrastructure is crucial to keep pace with global leaders like the U.S. and China.

Google has invested significantly in infrastructure in Europe in recent years, and we will continue to help close the gap.

What exactly do these investments look like?

Google’s investments in Europe are substantial and growing, underpinning the continent’s digital transformation and AI ambition. We currently operate 7 data centres in Europe, located in Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, Denmark, Finland, and Belgium, and have development plans for sites in the UK and Norway. Google has invested in international subsea cables connecting Europe to the US, Africa, the Middle East and Asia, partnering with European carriers. This is vital for Europe’s global digital connectivity.

How would you describe Google’s role when it comes to AI infrastructure in Europe?

Google plays a crucial role regarding the infrastructure Europe needs for truly democratised AI. Through Google Cloud, European businesses, from startups to corporations, gain access to specialised hardware without the prohibitive cost of building their own. But AI infrastructure is just one part of what we call a full stack. This full stack has four layers: the AI infrastructure, so basically the hardware; the research that is done with it; the tooling; and the products and the agents. We are the only company that provides the full stack of AI.

How do Google’s investments and offerings contribute to enhancing European competitiveness?

Our cloud investments offer a scalable digital foundation, democratising access to advancements and enabling rapid innovation. The cloud is vital for AI workflows, allowing businesses to fine-tune AI models on their data while leveraging significant foundational model investments. This accelerates European innovation and global competitiveness. I’m confident that new industries and careers will be made possible by AI-powered breakthroughs. Studies show that widespread adoption of generative AI could boost the EU’s GDP by 8% over 10 years. This is a tremendous opportunity for Europe.

What role do partnerships play with regard to AI impact?

Partnerships are fundamental, especially in R&D, as impact begins with research. Google actively collaborates with leading European research institutions and universities, fostering European research and startup communities. A prime example is the 2024 announcement of a new AI research hub in Paris, set to host at least 300 researchers and bring together AI students, researchers, NGOs and startups. In the medical sphere, too, Google has many groundbreaking collaborations, such as our work with the European Bioinformatics Institute EMBL-EBI using AlphaFold to help researchers understand diseases and develop new medicines. Just in 2025, we started a partnership with Institut Curie and Université PSL applying AI to women’s cancer research.

Given your focus on collaboration, what are your thoughts on Europe’s pursuit of greater digital sovereignty?

I believe Europe has a clear path forward, as it did with data privacy. So, of course, we respect this path forward, but we are also very much engaged in the dialogue on how the tech ecosystem can evolve in Europe. The Draghi report says very clearly that sovereignty should not be done in economic isolation. It needs partnerships and collaboration. EU enterprises are not simply consumers of U.S. technology. They are innovators in their own right, leveraging our AI and cloud infrastructure to create new solutions. And in an era of escalating cyber threats, it is more critical than ever for EU companies and institutions to be able to access best-in-class cybersecurity tools to protect themselves.

How does Google combine sovereignty and access to the best technology?

We see digital sovereignty not as a barrier, but as an opportunity for innovation and trust-building within the European market. It drives us to develop solutions that meet the highest standards of security, transparency and local control. Our approach is based on choice, partnership and security. We have forged key local partnerships in Europe to help deliver our sovereign solutions, including Minsait (Spain), Telecom Italia (Italy), Clarence (Belgium and Luxembourg), Schwarz Group and T-Systems (Germany), S3NS (France).

How does Google ensure that sovereign solutions address European needs?

Sovereignty is not a one-size-fits-all solution, so Google Cloud offers a portfolio of Sovereign Cloud solutions that provide trust, assurance and a choice to meet different sovereignty needs. Google Cloud Data Boundary gives customers the ability to control where their data is stored and processed and who has access to this data. Google Workspace uses these capabilities to offer controls to users. Google Dedicated Cloud is designed to meet local sovereignty requirements, enabled by independent local and regional partners. S3NS, a stand-alone French entity, currently offers this to European customers. Thirdly, Google Cloud Air-Gapped offers a fully standalone solution that does not require connectivity to an external network. This solution is tailored for customers in the intelligence, defence and other sectors with strict data security and residency requirements, such as the German army.

You’ve talked a lot about investments and partnerships. Why is Google actually committed to driving European innovation?

We see ourselves as a global company. We’re building on 25 years of investment and partnership in Europe, which is both an important market and a very important talent hub for us.

AI is redefining innovation across industries — from premium mobility experiences to protein science.

Cradle

Cradle’s AI platform revolutionizes protein engineering across industries like pharma, agriculture and food. Proteins, “nature’s machines”, offer efficient, sustainable solutions. CEO Stef van Grieken emphasizes AI’s role in accelerating design, creating safer, more effective proteins faster and cheaper.

Security is paramount. Cradle chose Google Cloud for its robust, engineering-driven security, protecting confidential R&D data. Its defense-in-depth strategy, including BeyondCorp and unphishable MFA, ensures data integrity, allowing Cradle to focus on AI innovation.

With clients like Novo Nordisk and Johnson & Johnson Innovative Medicines, Cradle is democratising protein design, enabling organisations to tackle global challenges like climate change and disease more cost-effectively, ushering in a new era of AI-supported biological research.

Mercedes-Benz

From enhancing the driving experience to optimizing production and programming, the premium manufacturer is driving transformation forward by integrating AI across its operations.

“Hey Mercedes, we’re looking for a romantic restaurant for our anniversary tonight.” A sentence like this could form the basis for a successful outing in the new Mercedes-Benz CLA. Passengers can talk to a virtual assistant as if they were a well-informed restaurant expert and respond to answers with questions: “Does the restaurant have good reviews?” This is made possible by a new AI feature based on Google's Automotive AI Agent platform. “Our partnership with Google helps us to remain an innovation leader and offer our customers exceptional digital experiences,” says Ola Källenius, CEO of Mercedes-Benz Group AG.

While AI creates a new driving experience in the car, its impact extends across other areas of the Group, driving gains in efficiency and productivity. Over 5,000 software developers, for instance, save 30 minutes of working time every day thanks to AI support in programming. AI also assists the sales department in optimizing pricing for used cars, and in production halls, the company is piloting AI solutions to reduce employee workload. “AI is a key lever for overcoming the many challenges facing the automotive industry — from the digital transformation to the shortage of skilled workers and increased global competition,” says Källenius.

Passengers in the CLA are already benefiting from the advances in AI. The new conversational search draws on information on 250 million places and points of interest in the Google Places platform. And thanks to the memory function, the assistant knows what the conversation is about when it is continued later in the car: “Tell me, what is the chef's specialty in this restaurant for tonight?”

Photos: Joel Hunn, Cradle (1); Mercedes-Benz (1)