Artificial intelligence is transforming datacentres from collections of processors into vast communication systems. As copper approaches its practical limits, integrated photonics may become the next infrastructure layer enabling the continued scaling of AI.
Tungsten prices have surged by more than 550%, exposing a hidden vulnerability at the heart of the AI economy. As China tightens control over critical minerals, the race for artificial intelligence is increasingly becoming a race for the materials beneath modern technology.
Artificial intelligence may not be running out of ideas, but it may be approaching the practical limits of electrons. As communication becomes increasingly expensive, the future of computing may depend less on processing information and more on moving it efficiently.
As artificial intelligence pushes computation towards new physical limits, the future of digital infrastructure may depend less on moving electrons and increasingly on guiding light.
Artificial intelligence is increasingly associated with massive data centres and cloud infrastructure. Yet a new generation of AI chips may begin moving intelligence closer to where people actually live, work and make decisions. The rise of the AI PC could offer an early glimpse of a more distributed future for computing.
Europe’s new technology strategy is not about decoupling from the United States. It is about becoming indispensable within the infrastructures, supply chains and innovation ecosystems that underpin the digital economy, reshaping the future of transatlantic technological cooperation and resilience.
Nvidia’s five-trillion-dollar valuation raises a question that extends far beyond technology. Are financial markets measuring real economic value, or are they increasingly pricing collective expectations about a future that has not yet arrived?
Europe’s semiconductor strategy is increasingly shifting from manufacturing scale toward strategic infrastructure. This illustration highlights the interconnected ecosystems — from lithography and materials to photonics, automotive systems and research — that together form Europe’s emerging technology stack.
As Chips Act 2.0 begins to reshape Europe’s semiconductor ambitions, a broader strategic shift is emerging — one focused less on full technological autonomy and more on controlling the infrastructure layers underpinning the global AI economy.
Artificial intelligence is no longer scaling like software. As compute demand explodes, the real bottleneck is shifting toward electricity, grids, and physical infrastructure. The AI economy is becoming increasingly industrial — governed not only by algorithms, but by energy availability itself.
