SoftBank to Invest €75 Billion in French AI Data Centers

SoftBank Group has announced plans to invest up to €75 billion ($87 billion) to expand data center capacity in France, targeting 5 gigawatts of additional capacity. The first phase will build facilities in Dunkirk (Loon-Plage), Bosquel, and Bouchain, delivering 3.1 gigawatts to the Hauts-de-France region by 2031. SoftBank, an investor in and customer of OpenAI, says this is its largest AI infrastructure investment in Europe. French economic minister Roland Lescure called it a testament to President Emmanuel Macron's ambition to make France a leading AI destination. Meanwhile, in the US, opposition to data centers is growing over environmental and grid concerns, though SoftBank is also building a data center in Ohio powered by a 9.2 GW natural gas plant.