Mistral CEO Arthur Mensch brought sales pitch to Mobile World Congress on Tuesday, urging representatives of the world’s largest telecom confab in Barcelona to invest in building data center infrastructure and “become a hyperscaler” to boost the region’s AI ecosystem.
“We welcome more domestic efforts to manufacture more data centers,” he said in an on-stage Q&A in response to questions about whether Europe is dictating sufficient investment in AI.
The foundation model manufacturer has invested in building its own data center in France, and Mensch said “we’re moving the stack slightly downwards so we can provide the data center.”
“For me, the AI revolution also offers opportunities to decentralize the cloud,” he said, proposing “more actors on the field” compared to the current cloud market, Amazon, Google and Microsoft, dominated by a trio of hyperschool giants.
Mensch also sought European players to reduce their dependence on US technology by purchasing homemade products wherever possible – he emphasized the need to be “practical” as he said there are no non-US alternatives in some major technological infrastructures.
Asked if European lawmakers should take inspiration from the Trump administration when cutting regulations, Mensch avoided the opportunity to make a full head-on attack on rules like the Bullock’s AI Act. Instead, he suggested that a greater headache for businesses is addressing fragmentation across 27 member states in the EU single market.
“We’re not too worried about regulations as a startup,” he said. “I think the hardest thing in Europe is the fragmentation of the market.”
Mensch continued to provide voice support for integration in communications spaces. “The integration of large tech players can be an asset,” he proposed to industry representatives. He said that fewer carriers per EU would reduce the number of discussions needed to ink into their partnership with Telcos.
What kind of business is an AI startup jockey to get from the telecommunications sector? According to Mensch, AI has many impacts on network operators. Infrastructure is in the frame that will need to be changed to accommodate streams of “personalized” data that AI enables, so ergo is working with carriers on network upgrades.
He also suggested that there would be an opportunity to “distribution partnership” with the industry on the part of AI consumer products “to ensure that everyone has access to powerful AI systems.”
In France, Mistral has already signed a distribution agreement with AI assistant Le Chat, Free For Le Chat. Free subscribers have free access to Le Chat Pro for a year, then pay the usual monthly subscription fee. It is worth noting that Free is owned by Iliad, a telecom company managed by French billionaire Xavier Niel, who is also an investor in Mistral.
Additionally, AI could help carriers reduce operating expenses, Mensch said.
“But in terms of AI regulation, we are in a viable state. That’s not ideal,” he added about the issue of deficits. He also welcomed a “change in perspective” among EU policymakers regarding the need to invest in AI.
“I think the EU AI Act was a bit too early and it’s so focused on the technology aspect that it’s difficult to find a technical way to implement it. So we’re working with regulators to make sure this is resolved,” he added.
Mensch answered a final question asking about the next high-tech development, predicting that AI models will become increasingly “specialized.”
Over the next few years, Mistral will focus on capturing data from any interaction between models and humans. This expertise is used to develop better models – as he said, “To create your own special AI system.”
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