What Samsung's investment in Euclyd says about Europe's dominance
Samsung and other investors are betting on European autonomy with their investment in Euclyd.
Published on September 15, 2026
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Samsung, along with other investors, is investing over 200 million euros in Euclyd, a Dutch startup that develops AI chips as an alternative to Nvidia. The investment by one of the world’s largest technology companies is a strong vote of confidence in a European company entering a market currently dominated by U.S. firms.
Peter Wennink, non-executive chairman of Euclyd and former president and CEO of ASML, also sees opportunities for Europe. In a press release, he says: “Europe possesses world-class capabilities in semiconductors, advanced manufacturing, and systems engineering. Euclyd is leveraging these unique advantages to establish a globally competitive AI infrastructure platform.”
U.S. companies dominate
Europe’s position is still limited at this time. U.S. companies dominate the market for AI chips, with Nvidia as the leading player in high-performance AI hardware. The difference in funding is also significant: U.S. AI chip startups raised $4.7 billion in 2026, compared to just $800 million for European players.
More and more alternatives to Nvidia
This dependence on American technology is now increasingly viewed as a strategic risk. It’s not just Europe looking for alternatives; major American tech companies also want to reduce their dependence on Nvidia.
Hyperscalers such as OpenAI, Google, AWS, and Meta are therefore developing their own AI chips. OpenAI announced its first AI chip, Jalapeño, in August 2026. Euclyd is also capitalizing on this trend.
Samsung sees strategic value
Samsung’s investment underscores that the development of alternative AI chips is no longer just a European pipe dream. Samsung is one of the world’s largest memory manufacturers and brings not only capital but also expertise in memory production, systems engineering, and supply chains.
That expertise could be crucial for Euclyd, which aims to bring its physical chip systems to market in 2028. The company also has the ambition to have thousands of businesses as customers by 2030.
For Europe, an investment like this is attractive. A stronger domestic AI chip industry can reduce dependence on American technology and give Europe more control over a technology that is becoming increasingly important for the economy and digital infrastructure.
European chip alternatives
A cautious number of European chip alternatives are emerging. Consider the British company Optalysys, which is working on photonics-based processors. Startups like Fractile and Arago are developing alternatives to traditional GPUs. The NATO Innovation Fund and investment firm Plural are among the entities investing in this new generation of AI chip companies.
The goal here extends beyond simply creating a faster chip. The startups are also trying to address the limitations of traditional GPUs, such as high energy consumption, heat generation, and scalability issues.
A sign
Samsung’s investment not only gives Euclyd greater financial clout. It also signals that the search for alternatives to Nvidia is becoming increasingly serious—and that Europe can play a role in this effort.