Europe faces growing AI infrastructure Dependence on U.S. and Asia

Europe is in danger of falling into a “dependency trap” in the global AI trade, according to a new report by Allianz. The continent currently maintains a heavy reliance on the United States and Asia for AI infrastructure and manufacturing.

The international race for AI supremacy is heating up, and Europe is falling short, according to a new report by the insurance group Allianz. Technological industries like cloud computing, semiconductors, and data centers are primed to reorganize the entire world economy. The analysis by Allianz argues that the United States and Asia lead the market share in these sectors, giving them great economic leverage over Europe going forward.

The continent is in a precarious position where it has become increasingly reliant on foreign cloud providers, chip manufacturing, and computing power. Allianz warns that this could reduce the economic sovereignty of Europe in the future AI-driven economy. Europe is at great risk of becoming a consumer of AI technologies, as opposed to a dominant producer.

Where things stand today

As of today, American firms control around 80% of Europe’s cloud compute market, 60% of enterprise software revenue, and nearly 40% of its operational computing capability. Almost half of Europe’s upcoming data center projects are also controlled by American tech firms.

The United States has also tripled imports tied to AI infrastructure investment since 2023, while Europe’s AI-related imports have risen roughly 40%. This disparity highlights how quickly the U.S. is scaling AI infrastructure relative to Europe.

While U.S. firms are leading in AI infrastructure, Asia dominates much of the hardware, manufacturing, and AI-related exports. Asia currently controls around 65% of global AI-related exports and hosts 7 of the 10 top AI exporters globally. This imbalance exposes another weakness for Europe, where slower infrastructure expansion is compounded by heavy dependence on Asian manufacturing and supply chains.

The bigger picture

The global economy is quickly developing into a new era where AI is a foundational strategic component for world powers. The countries that control the underlying infrastructure and manufacturing capacity may gain long-term economic leverage. The broader concern for Europe is that if it cannot build the domestic capacity to compete in this environment, it may never be able to catch up.

It is increasingly facing the risk of being squeezed between U.S. infrastructure leadership and Asia’s manufacturing dominance. This dependence on foreign AI infrastructure and manufacturing could expose Europe to long-term economic and strategic vulnerabilities. These include supply chain disruptions, geopolitical tensions, and external economic pressure. The Allianz report ultimately argues that Europe may need to drastically accelerate domestic AI investment to avoid falling into long-term technological dependence on foreign powers.

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