#124 Data Centre Expansion: Can the EU Achieve AI Sovereignty?

Alongside the topics you already know, we're excited to add a new topic pillar to the podcast: AI and sustainability.

“Independence is our priority for Europe’s economy” says the European Commission in its Annual Work Programme according to a copy seen by Politico. In practice, as our guests explain, the plans for data centres and AI may deepen dependence on non-EU companies.

As sustainability professionals continue to grapple with all the ethical questions around artificial intelligence, we ask today who is really benefiting and what would be needed for Europe and European business to have genuine sovereignty over AI and its use. 

To discuss this, Richard Howitt welcomed Margarida Silva, Senior Researcher in Tech and Misa Norigami, Corporate Researcher for the Centre for Research on Multinational Corporations, SOMO. They co-authored a recent study on the EU’s data centre expansion and how it benefits US Big tech and investors. 

In this episode you will hear more about:

• The European Commission’s plan to triple the data centre capacity in the next 5-7 years
• Which companies are building - or plan to build - data centres in the European Union
• The corporate lobbying techniques used to target  the U.S Tech Regulation, the Digital Markets Act, and the Digital Service Act
• How AI developments are now seen as a geopolitical race between the EU, US and China
• What’s in the European Technological Sovereignty Package and in particular, how the EU Commission plans to request Member States to have a data centre acceleration zone (at the expense of environment and democratic participation)

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