News item | 27-06-2025 | 10:49 AM
Artificial intelligence (AI) is the technology that will determine the economy, safety and way of life in the coming years. But at the moment the most important innovations come from the United States and China. That makes Europe, and therefore also the Netherlands, too dependent on others. That is why the cabinet is investing € 70 million in an AI factory in Groningen. The Ministries of Economic Affairs (EZ) and Van Defense make the greatest contributions.
The House of Representatives was informed of this this morning by Minister Vincent Karremans (Economic Affairs) and State Secretary Gijs Tuinman (Defense) by letter about.
The AI factory is a powerful innovation hub where entrepreneurs, researchers and governments together build the techniques of tomorrow and share knowledge. Experimenting companies with AI applications, storing data safely and use a supercomputer with enormous computing power. It will be a breeding ground for innovation. And that is desperately needed. AI can help Defense in the future to map out faster and more accurate risks. Think of cyber attacks.
Broad cooperation
The investment stems from a powerful cooperation between the government, the Groningen/Northern Drenthe region and European partners. In addition to the € 70 million of EZ and Defense, another € 60 million is ready. It comes from the ‘Nij Begun’ resources of Groningen/Northern Drenthe. Moreover, with a consortium of SURF, AIC4NL, TNO and cooperation Noord, the cabinet has submitted a European co -financing application of another € 70 million. This allows the total investment to reach € 200 million.
Groningen has the room for the factory, the technical knowledge and the network of educational institutions and innovative companies. Moreover, as one of the few locations in the Netherlands, there is room on the electricity grid to connect an AI facility.
From fire and steel to bits and bytes
If the application goes according to plan, the expertise center starts at the beginning of 2026 and the supercomputer runs at full force at the end of 2026.
An important step for defense and the dual use-Industry, according to State Secretary Tuinman. “AI is already changing warfare forever. If the word Game Changer Somewhere in place, then it’s here. We make a fundamental shift: from fire and steel to bits and bytes. AI touches our entire way of working, from planning maintenance on everything that runs, flies or speeds. This to collect, process and analyze information and make operational decisions. Thanks to our hefty effort, including a substantial contribution from Defense, we make this step possible. With that we not only build military innovation, but also on Dutch digital and strategic autonomy. The AI factory becomes the center for the development of advanced AI applications on home soil, with computing power and capacity that we co-design and use ourselves. ”