French Minister warns against over-reliance on Mistral AI

French Economy Minister Roland Lescure has warned that European technological sovereignty in artificial intelligence cannot rely solely on a single company, even the prominent French firm Mistral AI. Speaking to journalists in San Francisco during a visit to Silicon Valley, Lescure stated, “If European artificial intelligence is reduced to Mistral, then we are lost.”

Lescure emphasized the necessity of developing a complete ecosystem rather than “putting all our eggs in one basket.” While describing Mistral AI—valued at approximately 11.7 to 12 billion euros—as a source of pride, he noted that the most advanced models currently remain American, with Chinese competitors following closely behind. He expressed optimism that European developments could lead to new breakthroughs.

During his visit, the minister met with various industry leaders and investors, including representatives from OpenAI and Stripe. The warning comes as the European Union accelerates investments in its own AI models, supercomputers, and infrastructure to mitigate dependency on foreign technologies.