The European Commission and European Investment Fund (EIF) are launching a €2bn fund to invest in fundamental technologies amid fears that the US and China are pulling ahead in areas such as artificial intelligence (AI) and blockchain. The fund is expected to invest around €300-€400m in these areas in 2020, with €100m of that money coming from the EU and EIF and the rest from independent venture capital funds. From 2021 the plan is to scale up the fund to €1bn to €2bn under the InvestEU Programme. This is an attempt to help Europe catch up with investment in the US and China. The EU pulled in a record $34bn in venture capital funding this year, but this is still only half the amount invested in Asian companies and a third of US investment.

The European Commission and European Investment Fund (EIF) are launching a €2bn fund to invest in fundamental technologies amid fears that the US and China are pulling ahead in areas such as artificial intelligence (AI) and blockchain. The fund is expected to invest around €300-€400m in these areas in 2020, with €100m of that money coming from the EU and EIF and the rest from independent venture capital funds. From 2021 the plan is to scale up the fund to €1bn to €2bn under the InvestEU Programme. This is an attempt to help Europe catch up with investment in the US and China. The EU pulled in a record $34bn in venture capital funding this year, but this is still only half the amount invested in Asian companies and a third of US investment.