Microsoft and Mistral AI expanded their artificial intelligence partnership on Tuesday, with a multibillion-dollar commitment from Microsoft to help the French AI company build data centers in Europe. The deal is the latest attempt by both companies to reach a greater number of European and enterprise AI clients, as the two go up against rival AI labs and other U.S. tech giants. “Distribution is king,” said Mistral Chief Executive and Co-founder Arthur Mensch, adding that Microsoft’s heft would facilitate the AI company’s expansion with businesses in Europe and across the world. Mistral has touted the importance of Europe’s independence from U.S. technology companies. At the same time, it has been ramping up its push for enterprise clients—an area where U.S. behemoth Microsoft offers immense reach.

Full report : Microsoft and Mistral sign a multibillion-dollar deal to build European data centers and integrate Mistral models into Foundry, Copilot Studio, and Azure Local.