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European startup set to reach $14 billion valuation, underscoring rising investor confidence in regional AI innovation
French startup Mistral AI is preparing to close a €2 billion funding round that would lift its valuation to $14 billion, according to people familiar with the matter. The deal, first reported by Bloomberg, would mark one of the largest investments ever secured by a European artificial intelligence company and position Mistral among the continent’s most valuable technology startups.
Founded in 2023 by former DeepMind and Meta researchers, Mistral has grown rapidly by developing open-source language models and a chatbot called Le Chat, designed specifically with European users in mind. The company has not commented on the reported funding, but the scale of the round signals strong investor appetite for AI projects outside Silicon Valley.
From €5.8 Billion to $14 Billion in Just Over a Year
If confirmed, the raise would represent a dramatic jump from June 2024, when Mistral closed a Series B round at a €5.8 billion valuation. That earlier funding attracted high-profile backers such as Andreessen Horowitz and General Catalyst, cementing Mistral’s reputation as one of the few European challengers to U.S. leaders like OpenAI.
The speed of Mistral’s ascent highlights the growing momentum behind European AI ventures. Dealroom data shows funding for AI startups across the region climbed 55 percent year over year in the first quarter of 2025, with a dozen new unicorns emerging in just the first half of the year. Sweden’s Lovable, an AI coding platform, reached a $1.8 billion valuation in July only eight months after launch.
Infrastructure and Sovereignty as Strategic Goals
Sources close to Mistral suggest that much of the fresh capital will be directed toward infrastructure expansion. Plans reportedly include building a large-scale data center in France equipped with 18,000 NVIDIA GPUs, a move that would provide the computing power needed to train and deploy its advanced models at scale.
At the same time, the company has made sovereignty a central part of its message. By offering European governments and businesses an alternative to U.S.-based providers, Mistral hopes to capture a market increasingly attentive to issues of data control and digital independence.
Analysts say this positioning could give the Paris-based startup a strategic advantage at a time when policymakers are pressing for greater autonomy in critical technologies.
Expansion Beyond Europe
While Mistral emphasizes its role as a European player, its ambitions extend well beyond the region. Executives are laying the groundwork for entry into North America and the Asia-Pacific, where its open-source models could help attract adoption among developers and institutions seeking customizable tools.
Such plans reflect a broader strategy to ensure Mistral competes not only on technical merit but also on distribution, an area where U.S. incumbents enjoy a head start.
A Defining Moment for European AI
For Europe’s technology sector, the outcome of this fundraising will be closely watched. A successful close at the reported $14 billion valuation would be a bellwether for whether investors believe the region can produce AI champions capable of challenging American dominance.
The surge of capital flowing into Mistral and peers reflects shifting dynamics in global technology. With artificial intelligence increasingly viewed as critical infrastructure, Europe’s ability to build and fund its own players could prove decisive in the years ahead.
