Alibaba Group Chairman Joe Tsai stated that open-source AI is the most viable path for Europe to achieve technological independence from China and the United States. During the Wave by Vento conference in Turin, he emphasized that relying on foreign technology poses risks, as supply chains can be disrupted by political shifts.
Tsai urged European nations to prioritize the development of local computing infrastructure. He argued that training and running AI models on domestic hardware is essential for sovereignty. He highlighted that Europe should leverage its extensive industrial base and proprietary data to train specialized models, mirroring the strategy used by Chinese manufacturers.
The executive expressed support for emerging European cloud service providers that operate data centers equipped with AI chips. He contrasted this with the approach of major US firms like OpenAI and Anthropic, which favor proprietary, closed-source models. According to Tsai, these companies have stopped publishing research papers to maintain their competitive edge.
China, conversely, continues to focus on open-source models and public research to encourage global adoption. Tsai believes that by fostering an open ecosystem, Europe can better utilize its research talent and industrial expertise to build a sustainable AI sector that does not depend on external technology providers.
