Microsoft announces largest ever investment in France: 6 key things you need to know 

Redmond tech giant Microsoft, on Monday, announced its largest investment in France in its 41-year history in the country to accelerate the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) and cloud technologies.

With these investments, Microsoft is directly contributing to France’s National Strategy for AI and aligns with the recent recommendations of the French Commission for Artificial Intelligence.

“This major investment demonstrates a steadfast commitment to supporting digital innovation and economic growth in France,” says Vice Chair & President of Microsoft Brad Smith. “We are building state-of-the-art Cloud and AI infrastructure, training people with AI skills, and supporting French startups as they use our technology with confidence to grow fairly and responsibly.”

Microsoft investing in Cloud and AI infrastructure

Microsoft’s Cloud and AI infrastructure in France will adhere to the company’s AI Access Principles, promoting innovation and fair competition. The principles reflect Microsoft’s commitment to making AI technology accessible for the public good.

Microsoft is investing €4B to expand its next-generation Cloud and AI infrastructure in France, aiming to bring up to 25,000 advanced GPUs to the country by the end of 2025. 

This expansion will involve increasing the datacenter footprint across existing sites in the Paris and Marseille regions, as well as planning a new datacenter campus in the Grand Est Region, in Mulhouse Alsace Agglomération.

These investments aim to meet the increasing demand for efficient, scalable, and sustainable AI-specific compute power from both private and public organizations of all sizes. 

Microsoft’s advanced computational infrastructure and AI platform services will enable organisations to develop, deploy, and utilize proprietary and open-source AI models and applications. 

Additionally, this investment will make Microsoft’s AI-infused services, such as Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Dynamics, more broadly and locally accessible to French customers.

The company has adopted a Responsible AI Standard for its own AI platforms and services and has established an AI Assurance Program to share best practices and promote responsible AI practices more broadly. 

Investing in renewable energy

Moreover, Microsoft is investing in renewable energy, with plans to have approximately 100 MW of new renewable energy projects online in France by the end of 2024, as part of its goal to achieve 100 per cent renewable energy coverage for its operations, including data centers, by 2025.

In addition to these initiatives, the tech giant will provide local skilling and education opportunities in France, contribute to local environmental and social projects, and align with local needs and ambitions whenever possible.

Aims to upskill 1M French people

Microsoft aims to skill and train 1 million French people by the end of 2027. This effort will focus on job seekers, students, small and medium-sized businesses, and professional audiences. 

The initiative will involve collaboration with government institutions, training service partners, non-profit organisations, universities, and higher education organisations to launch new training programs. 

These programs will emphasise building AI fluency, developing AI technical skills, supporting AI business transformation, and promoting safe and responsible AI development.

Expanding “A Vous l’IA” initiative

Microsoft will expand its “A Vous l’IA” initiative to support French workers across the AI economy. 

The company will partner with France Travail to train job seekers in the skills needed to use AI technologies, both in their daily lives and for job opportunities. 

This program will be accessible through the Emploi Store, allowing job seekers to learn the core concepts of artificial intelligence and generative AI functionality. 

Also, the tech giant is collaborating with Kokoroe, a French Ed-Tech company, to create exclusive content based on short and easy-to-consume modules, with no technical background required. 

The course content will be platform agnostic and accessible on the “A Vous l’IA” platform as well as other mainstream learning platforms. As part of the initiative, Microsoft is also partnering with higher-education organizations such as Skema Business School, Rennes School of Business, EDHEC, and Efrei to provide students with the necessary skills.

Upskilling through Enterprise Skills Initiative

The tech giant is working to upskill professionals on AI through its Enterprise Skills Initiative program, which offers a variety of training courses on generative artificial intelligence for all profiles within organisations. 

The company is collaborating with selected Training Services partners in France, such as Cellenza Training, ENI, Fastlane, IB Cegos, and Skillsoft Global Knowledge, to accelerate the readiness of French organisations, especially small and medium businesses, through dedicated activations online and in Microsoft Experiences Labs in the regions. 

Additionally, Microsoft is launching a module with Simplon to train developers of all backgrounds to better use GenAI, select models, and deploy them with state-of-the-art tools.

The Redmond company will also extend its joint programs with Simplon over the next three years to provide equal job opportunities with AI. 

They will accelerate their “GenIAles” workshop, aimed at supporting women’s access to digital tech job roles, and continue to grow their network of Microsoft AI Schools by Simplon across the country.

Supporting the French startup ecosystem

Furthermore, Microsoft is announcing initiatives to support the French startup ecosystem and aims to engage over 2,500 startups by 2027 through its flagship program, Microsoft GenAI Studio. 

This program includes a tailored 4-month program at STATION F, which will run twice a year over three years, aiming to accelerate the adoption of AI by select French startups with technical workshops and access to AI experts at Microsoft and among the program’s partners. 

“We are thrilled to announce the launch of Microsoft’s Gen AI studio on campus, further strengthening our offering for AI companies. Microsoft will not only leverage its expertise but that of its extensive AI network for the studio. This is a huge milestone for our startups and our campus,” says Roxanne Varza, Director of STATION F.

Microsoft GenAI Studio will also expand with a nationwide tour and localized actions to foster connections with regional players, aiming to accelerate the understanding of GenAI technologies, support their integration by French startups, and identify innovative use cases.