According to Ifo President Clemens Fuest, Europe faces an “existential threat”: Europe uses AI but has virtually no infrastructure. About 75 percent of the world’s high-performance computing capacity for modern AI is located in the U.S., with China accounting for about 15 percent and the EU for less than five percent.
He is therefore calling for an emergency program that includes more data centers, chip factories, energy infrastructure, faster approvals, and, if necessary, special economic zones. Energy is becoming a strategic issue, as AI data centers require enormous amounts of reliable electricity.
A study by the American investment bank Goldman Sachs titled “The Post-Modern Cycle” describes a new investment supercycle: AI, data centers, electricity, chips, defense, and infrastructure. The digital world suddenly needs concrete, cables, transformers, and power plants.
Goldman has created a corresponding portfolio called EU AI Capex.
It comprises 64 components. It is Europe’s publicly traded bet on AI infrastructure. Over the past five years, the index has gained 124 percent including dividends, which translates to an annualized return of 17.5 percent. The Stoxx Europe 600 has only managed 64 percent over the same period—an annualized rate of 10.3 percent.
The largest holdings show what this is all about: Infineon
$IFX (+1,2%) has a weighting of 7.1 percent, ASML
$ASML (+4,03%) stands at 6.8 percent, Siemens $SIE (+0,9%) accounts for 6 percent, Rolls-Royce $RR. (+1,39%) , Enel $ENEL (-0,63%) and Schneider Electric
$SU (+1,91%) at 5.4 percent. ABB $ABBN (+2,18%) has a weighting of five percent, Iberdrola
$IBE (+0,49%) at 4.9 percent, Siemens Energy
$ENR (+1,13%) at 4.7 percent, ASM International
$ASM (+3,07%) at 3.7 percent, Prysmian $PRY (+1,32%) at 3.6 percent, and BE Semiconductor
$BESI (+2,62%) at 3.2 percent.
This means the index is not purely a tech index, but rather reflects Europe’s physical AI value chain: semiconductors, machinery, electricity, networks, cables, energy, and automation. ASML is Europe’s strategic crown jewel. Fuest even says that ASML is so far Europe’s only truly strategic asset in this sector, because the U.S. also depends on it.
The risk: Europe talks, but doesn’t build. Energy remains expensive, permits take a long time, regulation slows down projects—and in the end, we remain customers of American models.
The opportunity: Europe is waking up. Then digital sovereignty will trigger a capex boom, and stocks will get a new boost. Anyone who wants European AI must definitely buy European infrastructure.
Source: “Welt” (excerpt), June 17, 2026
