• Source:JND
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The European Union (EU) is in the process of introducing a new strategy to end dependence on foreign AI suppliers and ensure homegrown AI platforms are developed. The manoeuvre comes as worries about reliance on technology from the United States and China have been increasing. The European Commission’s Apply AI strategy, which is still in draft form but has been seen by the Financial Times, is designed to boost security, resilience and industrial competitiveness by boosting work on homegrown artificial intelligence technologies.

Reducing Dependence on External AI

The draft warns that “external dependencies of the AI stack” — the software and hardware required to develop, train and manage AI systems — “can be weaponised” by states or non-state actors with risky implications for Europe’s supply chains. The plan aims to increase EU AI sovereignty by promoting the uptake of European-based AI solutions, in particular in public administrations and key sectors.

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The EU tech supremo Henna Virkkunen is due to officially introduce the strategy on Tuesday. The project is intended to prevent Europe from becoming overly reliant on foreign technology and being left behind in the global race for AI.

Targeted Sectors for European AI

The Apply AI plan outlines focus areas for deploying AI, which include:

Health:Using AI solutions to enhance patient-care diagnostics and manage hospitals.

Defence: Focusing on European AI-driven command and control (C2) systems to improve battlefield operations.

Manufacturing: Boost industrial productivity by leveraging AI-powered automation and monitoring capabilities.

Space and Frontier Technologies: Providing assistance to develop sovereign AI models for space defense applications.

In order to help finance such initiatives, the Commission wants to mobilise €1 billion under existing funding programmes by attracting investment from public and private players in Europe into home-grown solutions for AI.

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EU Leadership Perspective

Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, underscored the need to speed up AI adoption in the European Union and identified the strategy as a means for Europe to maintain competitiveness, its technological infrastructure, and support sustainable innovation. 

The European Union seeks to reduce risks pathways relating to external dependence on AI by internet-based rollout of Euro-based funding diverse AI systems systems in order to create a culture of innovation in high risk areas including defence, health care, and robotics.

The Apply AI strategy is a major contribution to European technological sovereignty, that will guarantee the EU is not just an adopter of AI technology but a powerhouse on building reliable and secure AI tools.