The government of the Czech Republic has officially approved support for the intention to build a so-called European AI gigafactory on Czech territory. This is a strategic data center equipped with high computing power, primarily intended for artificial intelligence operations. With this step, Czechia can join an international tender for one of five planned infrastructures that the European Commission intends to co-finance.
The project anticipates the creation of an extensive center equipped with top-of-the-line graphics processors, such as models from Nvidia. The main candidate for implementation and operator is České Radiokomunikace (ČRA), which has already begun preparing a site in Prague's Zbraslav district. Should it succeed in the European tender, the existing construction of the data center there would be significantly expanded. The total cost of building the Czech gigafactory is estimated at tens of billions of crowns.
“The project is to be implemented and financed by a private investor who will bear the financial risks. The role of the state is to support the project and commit to using part of the computing capacity if the Czech project is selected,” stated the Ministry of Industry and Trade.
The financial model anticipates multi-source funding. Czechia has committed in the first phase to an investment of 2.5 billion crowns, which the European Union should entirely match. These funds would be released by the state gradually between 2028 and 2032 in the form of payments for consumed capacity. The remaining part of the investment will be covered by České Radiokomunikace from private sources.
Government envoys and ministry representatives emphasize the strategic importance of the project. Its own massive computing power would enable the state, for example, to train sovereign language models independent of external powers, securely process sensitive public administration data, or provide infrastructure for domestic academic institutions and technology startups. The goal is to create an open ecosystem that will support the digitalization of industry, healthcare, and cybersecurity.
Further progress will now be decided by the European Commission and the EuroHPC JU organization, which manages the European supercomputer network. Although the Commission has announced an ambitious plan to build centers worth 20 billion euros, official parameters and the call for proposals are still awaited. If the Czech project is submitted and succeeds, the results of the competition are expected to be known by the end of 2026.