US and China lead global AI race as Europe and Canada seek middle power status

The global race for artificial intelligence is characterized by the dominance of the United States and China, while Europe and Canada attempt to establish a 'middle power' front. The United States currently controls approximately 75 percent of the world's AI computing capacity, whereas Europe holds only about 5 percent. In terms of significant AI model production, the U.S. produced 59 models last year compared to 35 from China, while France and the United Kingdom produced only one each.

To bridge this gap, European and Canadian entities are pursuing strategic developments. France's Mistral recently secured a 3 billion euro investment round, reaching a valuation exceeding 21 billion euros. Additionally, a potential merger between Canada's Cohere and Germany's Aleph Alpha, valued at approximately 20 billion dollars, aims to strengthen AI model development for sectors such as healthcare, finance, and energy.