# EU leaders gather for first AI summit in Dublin

> European Union leaders meet to debate how the bloc can compete with the United States and China on artificial intelligence.
- Title: EU leaders gather for first AI summit in Dublin · The Next Web
- Summary: European Union leaders meet to debate how the bloc can compete with the United States and China on artificial intelligence.
- Keywords: european union, artificial intelligence, dublin, competitiveness, ai gigafactories, arthur mensch, geoffrey hinton, investai programme, ukraine, volodymyr zelenskiy, The Next Web
- Source: The Next Web — https://thenextweb.com/news/eu-ai-summit-dublin-first-leaders-meeting
- Author: Ana-Maria Stanciuc
- Published: 2026-11-13T07:41:33+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: european union, artificial intelligence, dublin, competitiveness, ai gigafactories, arthur mensch, geoffrey hinton, investai programme, ukraine, volodymyr zelenskiy, technology, startups
## EU's first AI summit convenes
European Union leaders gathered in Dublin on Friday for their first-ever summit devoted to artificial intelligence, debating how the bloc can catch up with the United States and China.
## Two outside experts brief leaders
Mistral chief executive Arthur Mensch, the standard-bearer for European AI sovereignty, and Nobel laureate Geoffrey Hinton, the field's most prominent worrier, will brief the twenty-seven member states.
## Gigafactories plan stalled by budget fight
The bloc's plan to build seven AI gigafactories, data centres housing advanced processors, cloud and connectivity under one roof, has yet to fully take off, snagged on member state fights over competitiveness spending in the…
## Ukraine added to agenda after US envoys visit
Ukraine was added to the programme after US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner flew into Dublin to meet President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.
## Key takeaway

EU leaders held their first dedicated AI summit in Dublin on November twelfth, twenty twenty-six, to address competitiveness, funding and how Europe can catch up with the US and China.