Europe

Europe is taking its technological independence so seriously that it is aiming for the most ambitious goal: NVIDIA

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Europe cannot continue to be the technological vassal of the United States. With that powerful message, the CEO of Mistral presented a few days ago a roadmap with which he considers that Europe can take the pulse in the technological race of artificial intelligence. The warning came just when several companies are defining the future of European technological sovereigntyand one of those companies is Euclyd. It is seeking 100 million euros, is backed by one of the ASML bosses and has a clear objective: to stop depending on NVIDIA. And it’s not the only one. Euclyd. We have already talked at length about ASML. Although when we talk about the technology industry we have names like Intel, TSMC, NVIDIA or Qualcomm more present, ASML is the Dutch company that manufactures the most advanced machines for manufacturing semiconductors. Without it, the technology industry would not be what it is to the point that China is investing everything in having its own ASML. Well, Bernardo Kastrup is the former director of ASML and, in 2024, he founded Euclyd. This startup is backed by former ASML CEO Peter Wennink, and, according to CNBCis looking for financing to raise the necessary capital to start mass manufacturing chips. 100 times more efficient than NVIDIA. In this new round of financing, Euclyd is seeking $100 million and the goal is to create inference chips for AI. These chips are designed so that the models use what they learned in the training phase and are optimized for high speed, low latency and, above all, much lower energy consumption than the training ones. And that is where the ambitions are maximum. Euclyd, based in Eindhoven, claims that its ‘Craftwerk’ chip system is 100 times more energy efficient for AI inference than NVIDIA’s Vera Rubin chips. This is very good, but the comparison is a bit bulky because Vera Rubin, which is the new generation from NVIDIA, is not a pure training or inference platform: it is optimized to do both. European movement. But hey, Euclyd is currently raising the money with an eye toward delivering inference chips to its first two customers by 2027. And it’s not the only one. There are others such as the British Olix, Optalysys and Tactile, the French Lago or the Dutch Axelera that have raised more than 800 million euros to date. That is from the private sphere, since Europe has the FAMES pilot program which has 830 million euros to finance this type of projects. It is an extremely modest amount if we take into account what is moving on the other side of the pond, but between financing chip companies, renewables and European data centersis a sign that the feeling that Europe must fend for itself is there. world movement. The interesting thing is that this does not respond only to Europe’s feeling of technological sovereignty. It goes further, pointing to the great whale of AI: NVIDIA. Whatever company we think of, surely part of its hardware – or all – belongs to NVIDIA. own Mistral reached a very juicy agreement with the company led by Jensen Huang to be able to acquire thousands of GPUs, but the industry is already seeing what happens when all the eggs are in the same basket. That is why NVIDIA has its potential greatest rivals among its clients. Goal, tesla either amazon They buy from NVIDIA, but at the same time they are developing their own chips. The Chinese giants want NVIDIA chips, but they also develop their alternatives with local companies. All of this is creating more shadowy companies such as Texas Instruments, Marvell or Broadcom to do business, since they are the ones those who turn to They do not want to depend so much on NVIDIA. Google. In fact, just as startups developing AI chips are appearing in Europe, in the United States an ecosystem of companies is developing that are raising billions of dollars. Two examples They are Cerebras Systems, which is valued at 23 billion or MatXfounded by former engineers from Google’s TPU development team. Google itself, whose TPUs are manufactured by Broadcomthis searching an agreement with Marvell to diversify its inference chip business. NVIDIA responds. There is a phrase that has always made me laugh, that of “you think the police are stupid”, and applies perfectly here. NVIDIA has also been realizing for some time that it must diversify and has stopped injecting obscene amounts of money to only a few companies to go on to support other smaller onesbut promising. This way you get clients in the curious circular AI financingas well as continuing to be the one who leads the segment. But in addition to investing in others, she invests in herself. In March, he invested 4 billion a photonics company to make optical interconnection systems for next-generation data centers. They are also investing more than 18,000 million in R&D and winning juicy contracts with both TSMC as with Samsungwho make the chips for the company’s AI platforms. In the end, if all markets have something in common, it is unbridled spending. Europe, China and the United States have embarked on a race in which there is no end in sight and that will perhaps have its greatest test when Anthropic and OpenAI go public this year. In Xataka | Europe thinks that it is the one who wants to become independent from US technology companies. It’s actually the other way around.

Europe has been committed to digitizing our identity and the first piece of the puzzle is provided by Spain: the driving license

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Europe wants gather all your documentation on your mobile. IDs, medical history, academic titles, bank card. A single digital wallet for any management in each of the member countries. From Brussels they want to standardize the use of their digital application for everyone and the first document that will officially cross borders will be the driver’s license. Something that in Spain, precisely, It doesn’t catch us by surprise. The European Union approved in May 2024 the eIDAS 2.0 regulationthe rule that obliges all member states to make a digital identity wallet available to their citizens before the end of 2026. The legal framework establishes that each country must have at least one digital wallet solution available before the end of that year. The long-term goal is that by 2030, around 80% of European citizens are expected to use the digital identity wallet. But what exactly is this wallet? Called EUDI Wallet, andIn practice, it is an application that we will have to install on the phone and where the citizen can store and share their credentials: from the DNI to the passport, driving license, medical prescriptions or university degrees. The idea is that we can do it in any EU country and without the need to create additional accounts or depend on private platforms. driving license, the first piece Of all the documents that will fit in this European wallet, driving license is the first to move. In the end, it is a document that tens of millions of people use every day, which is already digitized in several countries and which has an immediate practical application, beyond being able to identify ourselves. Several countries have announced that they will launch their version of the EUDI Wallet with limited functionalities, including digital driving license for use in face-to-face controls. The idea is to expand the system in layers: start with what already works, and build on that. From Biometric Update they point out that wallet interoperability between different countries is the most complex technical challenge, as it requires constant standardization and cross-testing between national systems. Surprisingly, Spain takes the lead While a good part of Europe is still studying how to articulate its solution, Spain is already underway myDGTthe app of the General Directorate of Traffic that has been operational since 2020. Spain was the first EU country to launch a digital card, and today the application serves six million users with 14 different procedures without having to go to any traffic headquarters. The miDGT digital driving license has full legal validity before any authority within the national territory. If you already use it, you will have noticed that the card incorporates a dynamic QR code that changes every few minutes to avoid impersonations and allows you to check in real time that the data is updated. The main limitation is that the miDGT digital permit It is only valid in Spain. If you travel abroad, it is still mandatory to carry a physical card, because other countries have not yet officially recognized this digital format. And that is precisely what the EUDI Wallet comes to solve. In addition to miDGT, Spain’s digital ecosystem goes further. Here we also have the app My Citizen Folderwhich helps us centralize a multitude of procedures with the public administration in a single point. And on the other hand, relatively recently we also have the app MIDNIwhich is simply a digital version of our identity document so that we can show it directly from our mobile phone. Germany accelerates from behind Each member state finds itself at a very different starting point. In the case of Germany, its government approved a legislative reform in November 2025 that lays the foundations for the digital driving license, and the Bundestag ratified the bill just last month. For the country, the goal is to have the national digital card available before the end of 2026. Thus, in Germany drivers can now carry their vehicle’s registration certificate in digital format. They do this through the i-Kfz app, developed by the German Federal Printing Office and the Federal Traffic Agency. The driving license itself is integrated into that same application. It will start as a volunteer One of the most relevant aspects of the EUDI Wallet design is that its use is voluntary. In principle no one is obliged to have it. But history repeats itself, and seeing what we have already experienced with the great digital transitions (online banking, contactless payments, making an appointment online…), it is possibly the first step so that something that begins as something optional ends up being the norm and whoever does not use it in the coming decades has the risk of being at a disadvantage for certain procedures. In Mexico they have a similar messalthough there they are going through a bigger problem that involves several fronts. On the other hand, it should be noted that the system also incorporates quite complete security and privacy measures. An example: if someone needs to prove that they are of legal age to buy alcohol, the wallet could confirm only that information without revealing name, address or any other personal information, something that in computing is known as Zero-Knowledge (an architecture to verify one piece of information without revealing other more sensitive ones). Bad business for a minor who wants to buy alcohol, but a return to ‘excuse me sir, could you buy me beer?’ The regulation establishes that citizens will have full control over what data they share with third parties, and that wallets will have to publish their code under an open source license to ensure transparency and independent audits. The outlook is green in several countries With the December 2026 deadline upon us, the reality is that not all countries will arrive at the same time or with the same level of functionality. Netherlands, for example, already has pointed out that will probably not meet the deadline, and several member states are starting from digital identity infrastructures that are still … Read more

Europe thinks that it is the one who wants to become independent from US technology companies. It’s actually the other way around.

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We are going to have to make a dictionary when we talk about artificial intelligence. Yes generative artificial intelligence, general artificial intelligence, AI agents and Google has its Personal Intelligence. This service has been available for a few months in the United States and is now expanding to the rest of the world for users of the company’s suite. To all? Well no, not everyone, and Google leaves out the entire European economic area, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. What does this do. First of all, Gemini Personal Intelligence is like an ‘entity’ that has an eye on all the Google applications that we use with our account. It is a connection between the entire ecosystem which has access to all the information from YouTube, Maps, Calendar, Drive, Gmail, Docs or Photos. The idea is that they know everything about you to help you with day-to-day requests. Google itself gives an example: Since I connected my apps through Personal Intelligence, my daily life has become easier. For example, two weeks ago we needed new tires for our 2019 Honda minivan. While waiting at the store, I realized I didn’t know the size of the tires, so I asked Gemini. Nowadays, any chatbot can find these tire specifications, but Gemini went further. He suggested two options: one for daily driving and one for all-weather conditions, with references to our family road trips to Oklahoma that I found on Google Photos. Then, he neatly extracted the ratings and prices of each one. When I got to the counter, they asked me for my license plate. Instead of looking for it or losing my spot in line to get back to the parking lot, I asked Gemini. It extracted the seven-digit number from an image in Photos and also helped me identify the specific model of the truck by searching Gmail. Just like that, we had everything ready. Everyone can appreciate how useful this is, of course. Because, furthermore, it is not free: you need to be on an AI Pro or Ultra payment plan. Europe, you are excluded, beautiful. But if you think that life can be solved for you like the person in the example and you live in Europe, you should know that you cannot access it. Google has made it very clear that the feature is not available in the European Union, the United Kingdom and Switzerland due to the strict privacy regulations that are found within the General Data Protection Regulation. It is one more service that does not reach European users due to these stricter privacy conditions and, in addition, they have not detailed any deadline so that we Europeans know more or less when it will be available in the region. If you read us from a Latin American country and you are interested in this software, good news, is available. Privacy. Regarding privacy, being something that we should take very seriously, it is curious how in the age of AI that privacy is eroded because the models have more and more data. We give a lot to this software and we don’t really know who’s watchingand Google wanted comment What is the privacy approach of your Personal Intelligence. According to the company, we can link and unlink applications from the ecosystem according to our preferences, but once we connect Photos, for example, you will have access to everything. They say that the photos in the gallery will not be used to train the model (here it is extremely sensitive because we each have personal photos on our mobile) and they take “measures to filter or hide personal data from the conversation.” They point out that “we do not train our systems to learn your license plate number, but to understand that, when you ask for it, we can find it.” Regarding health, a sensitive topic that is topical due to what El Salvador has done, they assure that “Gemini tries to avoid making proactive assumptions about sensitive data such as your health, although it will analyze that data if you ask it.” ¿Pressure? In any case, and what Google’s Personal Intelligence has to offer draws more or less attention, it is evident that carrying out a global launch of this magnitude without waiting to ‘sort the papers’ to launch it in Europe is also a declaration of intent. Europe is at a time when it is seeking its military sovereignty, aerospace and technologicalareas in which depends largely on the United States. We are building our infrastructure and systems, and not launching something like this in Europe is one more way of putting pressure on the organizations that, very actively, sand have positioned about the treatment of our data by these large companies. Image | Google (edited) In Xataka | Sometimes erotic AIs are AIs. And sometimes, they are a man from Kenya who charges two dollars an hour

There are drone factories in Europe, and Spain is on the list

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Possibly, the case of the oil tankers is one of the clearest examples of how wars work. In 2019, several were attacked in the Gulf of Oman hundreds of kilometers from any declared front, in an area where, on paper, there was no open war. That episode made it clear that modern conflicts no visible lines needed To expand: simply point to a point on the map to make it part of the board. A war that changes the map. Russia ends to take a step more in the Ukrainian war by moving the conflict from the front to a much broader map that includes directly European territory. It has done so through the Ministry of Defense, publishing detailed lists with names and addresses of companies linked to the production of drones for kyiv. Where? Cities appear on that map like London, Munich or Madridwhich transforms industrial infrastructures into possible military objectives in official Russian discourse. This movement is not only symbolic, but redefines the space of the war: it is no longer limited to Ukraine, but draws a network of nodes in Europe that Moscow presents as an active part of the conflict. Europe enters the military equation. Moscow’s message is clear: increase production and supply of drones to Ukraine is equivalent to getting directly involved in the war. From that perspective, countries like Germany, Belgium or Spain appear in this industrial ecosystem that combines local companies with Ukrainian technology, which reinforces the idea of ​​increasingly closer cooperation. This industrial network not only seeks to sustain the Ukrainian war effort, but also shows how Europe is going from being logistical support to becoming in structural piece of the conflict, something that Russia appears to be using as an argument to justify its rhetorical escalation. First six factories on Russia’s threat list From factories to potential objects. Plus: publishing specific brand addresses a turning point in the war conflict, because it turns civil spaces in the heart of Europe into potential targets within the Russian narrative. In fact, figures like Dmitry Medvedev have reinforced this idea by openly qualifying these lists as possible targets for the Russian armed forces, although without announcing imminent actions. If you like, this type of message, halfway between a warning and a threat, seems to point to generate pressure both on European governments and on their own societies, introducing the idea of ​​direct vulnerability within their borders. Spain inside the board. As we said, among the locations indicated by Moscow Madrid appearswhich places Spain within that expanded map of the conflict that Russia has decided to make public. This is not necessarily an immediate target, of course, but a significant inclusion in a list that redefines who is part of the war effort from the Russian perspective. This also reflects the extent to which war has evolved into a industrial and technological dimension in which the countries that participate in the supply chain, even indirectly, become considered relevant actors. More rhetorical than operational (for now). Be that as it may, and despite the threatening tonethese types of movements fit into a strategy that Russia has used on a recurring basis: public warnings or threats designed to deter without yet crossing the threshold of a direct attack against NATO territory. However, the context has changed, and the combination of greater European involvement, multi-billion dollar defense agreements and technological cooperation means that these warnings have a different weight. The key is that the conflict is no longer only fought with missiles and troops, but also with maps, lists and narratives that expand its borders without having to fire a single shot. Image | Sasha Maksymenko In Xataka | Russia is no longer surrendering to Ukrainian soldiers, but to machines: the rules of war are being redefined In Xataka | Europe has its particular “strait of Hormuz” and the war in Ukraine has put it at the center: the Gulf of Finland

If you thought the crisis in Hormuz was enough, the war in Ukraine has triggered another maritime drama in Europe: the Gulf of Finland

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About five years ago, the container ship Ever Given became stuck in the Suez Canal for six daysblocking one of the most important commercial arteries in the world and leaving hundreds of ships trapped waiting. That incident, caused by a failed maneuver and adverse wind conditions, was enough to disrupt global supply chains in a matter of hours. A new seafront. As global attention focuses on the Strait of Hormuz, the war in Ukraine has opened another critical scenario much closer to Europe: the Gulf of Finlanda small but key space for Russian energy exports. There, far from spectacular drones or large fleets, the conflict manifests itself in a more silent way but just as revealingwith ships detained, routes blocked and growing tension between actors trying to avoid a direct escalation. This new focus demonstrates that the war is not only being fought on the land front, but also in the nerve centers of maritime trade. Ukraine attacks and a collapse. The situation has its origins in a clear kyiv strategy: to hit key russian ports to export oil, such as Ust-Luga and Primorsk, where it comes a fundamental part of the income that finances the war. The attacks have drastically reduced the operational capacity of these facilities, leaving dwhole days without activity and causing an immediate chain effect. The result: a unprecedented maritime traffic jamwith dozens of oil tankers (many of them linked to the so-called “floats in the shadows” Russian) accumulating waiting to be able to load. A system on the limit. They remembered this week in Political that this traffic jam in the Gulf of Finland is not just a striking image, but a symptom of something deeper: an energy and logistics system that begins to fracture under the pressure of war. Unlike conventional vessels, these tankers cannot be easily redirected to other ports due to the risk of being detained or sanctioned, which forced to remain anchored for days or weeks. As a result, there is an unusual concentration of aging and, in many cases, unsafe ships in European waters that were not prepared to absorb that volume. Europe trapped between control and escalation. Under this scenario, countries like Estonia and Finland They are in a particularly delicate position, since, despite being within the NATO framework, they have chosen not to intervene directly against these ships. The reason is clear: any attempt to stop or board an oil tanker could trigger a Russian military responseas already happened when a Russian fighter intervened to protect one of these ships. Since then, Moscow has reinforced its naval presence in the area, making it clear that it considers these strategic routes a red line. The Mirror of Hormuz. There is no doubt, what happens in the Gulf of Finland connects directly with the crisis in Hormuz: In both cases, the war moves towards maritime straits where traffic control becomes a strategic tool. The difference is that there is no formal block here, but an indirect disruption which generates similar effects, with stopped ships, tense routes and altered markets. In both scenarios, it is enough to interfere enough to collapse the system, and also without the need for a total shutdown. A war that spreads across the map. If you like, the result is a conflict that is no longer limited to Ukraine either to the Middle Eastbut it extends to the critical nodes of global trade, affecting Europe directly. The Gulf of Finland has thus become in another hot spot where energy, legal and military interests intersect, with an extremely fragile and volatile balance. And what seemed like a localized war is proving to have a much greater scope, generating new sources of tension that, like in Hormuz, can escalate quickly. without prior notice. Image | LAC, NormanEinstein In Xataka | If fog was deadly in Ukraine’s winter, spring is offering Russia a key advantage: greenery In Xataka | Ukraine is close to what no one has achieved in a war: shooting down missiles for less than a million dollars

The Coca-Cola recipe seemed untouchable. Until Europe first and Mexico later have decided to touch it

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For decades, the Coca-Cola recipe has been treated almost like a state secret, guarded in a vault in Atlanta and protected by an aura of mystery. However, in the real world, governments have discovered that they do not need to infiltrate that vault to alter the world’s most famous drink, but can do so through legislative texts. Modifying, for example, the fiscal or regulatory framework can push any company to change its composition, its prices or its supply. The case of Mexico. Without a doubt, it is one of the most solid in the world to understand how large-scale industrial change can be forced. And it is no wonder, because the driving force behind this change was not a direct order to rewrite the formula, but rather the entry into force of a new tax on sugary drinks. in 2014. Here the effect it had was commented on by different studies which showed that, one year after the tax, purchases of sugary drinks fell by 6%, while purchases of water they rose 4%. He had an answer. The fiscal scenario and the drop in sales logically generated strong pressure for the company to change its ingredients, causing great pressure on the mix of the company’s sweeteners. This opened an intense debate about the use of cane sugar versus high fructose corn syrup, and now the national government has put on the table the possibility of forcing Coca-Cola to stop using imported corn syrup and transition towards national cane sugar by selling it much cheaper. In Europe. While Mexico uses fiscal pressure on consumption, the European Union is the perfect example of structural market regulation. And for those who have traveled to North America, you will have realized that the taste of Coca-Cola is different from what is drunk here in Europe. And a very important bureaucratic tangle is also to blame. The culprit was none other than the strong intervention that the sugar market had in the European Union for 50 years through a complex quota system that came to an end on September 30, 2017. Its consequences. Here European regulations historically limited the production of isoglucose, which is the European equivalent of American corn syrup, through strict quotas. This structural restriction forced its use in the soft drink industry to be much more contained than in the United States. Although the European Commission continued to manage certain quantitative limits in the final phase of this legal regime, the regulation acted as a containment dam. Furthermore, several Member States have implemented their own taxes on soft drinks, separating the strategy of “market regulation” from “public health” policies against sugar consumption. In India. To understand how far the fight between a State and the Atlanta giant can go, you have to travel to India in 1977. Here, unlike Mexico or Europe, the debate was not about cane sugar or sweeteners, but about sovereignty and corporate control due to the ‘fault’ of a currency control law that forced multinationals to dilute and reduce their foreign participation. Here Coca-Cola reacted quickly to prevent any government from controlling its operations and therefore sharing its secret formula, and that is why it decided to leave the country in 1977 before submitting and revealing the secrets it had. Images | Unsplash In Xataka | Researchers have analyzed the impact of sugary drinks on global health. They have put their hands on their heads

Europe has grown tired of being NASA’s “supporting actor.” And that is why it is starting to work with China

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The European Space Agency (ESA) and the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) have teamed up to launch an ambitious mission, aimed at studying the mechanisms used by the Earth to protect itself from solar inclement weather. The SMILE mission was scheduled to launch this April 9, but a small technical problem has forced it to be postponed until a date that is still unclear. In any case, it is just a small stone on the road for a mission that reinforces Europe’s intention to join forces with the Today it is considered the direct competition of NASA on many space issues. Given the ups and downs that the United States faces in scientific matters, it could be an interesting idea. The terrestrial sunscreen under a magnifying glass. The SMILE (Solar wind Magnetosphere Ionosphere Link Explorer) mission has four instruments aimed at analyzing the interaction of solar winds with the magnetosphere that acts as the Earth’s shield. It is a necessary mission for many reasons. On the one hand, because many of the mechanisms used by the Earth to protect itself from solar radiation remain partly a mystery. And, on the other hand, because data analysis could help predict solar storms more accurately. Currently it is possible to know with high probability whether they will occur, but the situation is far from being exact. Since these types of events affect terrestrial communications systems, forecasting would be a key point. Four instruments. The instruments that SMILE has They are the Soft X-ray Imager (SXI), the Light Ion Analyzer (LIA), the Detector Plane Assembly (DPA) and the Ultraviolet Imager (UVI). The SXI is responsible for taking X-ray images to study the boundaries of the magnetosphere, while the DPA provides mechanical and thermal support. That is, it helps keep the imaging systems at a stable temperature, something essential given the proximity to the Sun. As for LIA, its function is to analyze ionized particles. Solar winds consist of a flow of ionized particles that form in the Sun’s corona and are released into space. They are directly related to the harmful effects of solar storms, so it is important to analyze them. For its part, UVI is responsible for taking images in the ultraviolet range of the spectrum. Above all, they will take images of auroras, closely linked to peaks in solar activity. European and Chinese contribution. The European Union has provided the SXI and DPA instruments, in addition to the Vega rocket that will propel the satellite and all its instruments into space. For its part, China has developed the UVI and LIA instruments, as well as the SMILE suite satellite platform. Spain is not missing either. One of SMILE’s instruments, the DPA, It has been developed at the Spanish National Institute of Aerospace Technology (INTA). Little recognition. NASA has given Canada a seat on the Orion capsule to travel to the Moon. Canadian Jeremy Hansen is one of the crew members of Artemis II, despite having never traveled to space. Canada has not participated in the technological development of the mission. Europe, on the other hand, has provided the engine system that has propelled the four astronauts towards our satellite. Even so, little mention has been made of ESA’s important contribution during the development of Artemis II. Why China. A long time ago, China stopped being an emerging space power and became one of the most consolidated on the current scene. With its Tiangong Space Station Located in low orbit, it is the only facility of its kind besides the International Space Station. Its lunar mission has great relevance thanks to the exploration of the Chang’e unmanned missions. Besides, hopes to take its own taikonauts (as Chinese astronauts are known) to the satellite in 2030. Its exploration on Mars is also important thanks to rovers like Zhurong. Tiangong Low hours for NASA? Donald Trump’s government wants to make drastic cuts to science with public investment in the United States and possibly NASA will not escape. Therefore, it may be a good time to seek other support in the space race, as ESA is already doing with SMILE. That does not mean that it will stop collaborating with NASA, but it is true that it is open to exploring new partners. If there is one thing that history has taught us, it is that the best way to advance in the space race is to put egos aside and move forward as a team. Closing yourself off only to a traveling companion can end up being counterproductive. Images | ESA | Shujianyang In Xataka | Astronauts’ food is not appetizing at first, especially in China

to be the first city in Europe with an “astroport”

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In a matter of months (if the deadlines) Europe will premiere a shiny new starporta facility designed to accommodate stratospheric flight aircraft. The curious thing is not the complex itself, which can be used to work with airships capable of flying at 20,000 m altitude. It’s not even the enormous size of his hangar and ship. What is striking is that this starport It will not be in any of the metropolises or industrial centers of Europe, but in Teruel. And it is already taking shape. From Teruel to the stratosphere. Although half the planet is awaiting the mission Artemis II and his pioneering flight over the hidden side of the moonin Aragon the NASA program is sharing headlines with another major aerospace adventure: the construction of the starport of Teruel, a complex designed for operations with the stratosphere. Their works started a little over a year ago, in March 2025but the installation has been in the news again these days for a visit of the acting Minister of Development of Aragon, Octavio López. Clearing the calendar. López’s was not just a formal act. During the meeting, the project schedule was cleared: the idea is that the work will be ready before the end of this year and the installation can be launched (after some procedures still pending). throughout 2027. “The works are going smoothly and on schedule, as can be seen. Everything suggests that in the last quarter of 2026 the tender can be launched so that the aerospace complex can be operational and active in the first quarter of 2027”, celebrated the Aragonese counselor. And as a picture always says more than a thousand words, the ad was accompanied by photographs in which you can see how the metal skeleton of the complex is already silhouetted on the horizon. “Singular and unique”. There are many aeronautical facilities, but from the Aragonese Government it is insisted that this one in particular will be “singular and unique in Europe”. The complex will provide the Teruel airport with capacity for stratospheric aircraft flights with dirigibles HAPS typeships designed to operate at 20,000 meters of altitude. Hence the word ‘astropuerto’ (or ‘stratoport’). “Teruel is going to be the center of construction, commissioning and assembly, recycling and maintenance of those units that are going to be the reference in Europe,” stands out López, who during his visit to the works was accompanied, among others, by the mayor of Teruel, Emma Buj, and the director of the airport. Why is it important? Basically because of its scope, pioneering nature and what it means for the entire region. “It will allow the airport to be provided with capacity for stratospheric flight aircraft, obtaining the characteristics of starport for the launch, landing, control, manufacturing and maintenance of spacecraft”, precise the communication portal of the Junta de Aragón. It is estimated that in its hangar some 35 airships stratospheric every year. Its use is interesting both for scientific research and for atmospheric observation, monitoring and communications tasks. And what will it be like? starport? Its measurements are certainly surprising. The hangar and the airship production hall will occupy a total of about 2.66 hectares. Its shape is rectangular and its plan dimensions are around 376.2 x 70.8 m. On the sides it will include offices and assembly and maintenance workshops. “In front of the east façade of the hangar, a platform for an airship is designed with dimensions of 330 x 220 m, another 6.6 ha more,” precise the Government. Shaping such a titan will require mobilizing tons and tons of materials. Teruel Diary assures that 2,266 tons of steel and 12,000 bars and balls will be used in the metal structure alone. One of the most impressive pieces will be the hangar doorwhich will measure 60 x 52 m and will be handled with a folding system. Only that piece will require a millionaire investment. Thinking about the future. The first stone of the complex was laid on March 11, 2025, after the works were awarded by 39.8 million (without VAT) to a UTE formed by Aldesa and Ideconsa. The execution period is 20 months, which would be completed at the end of this year. The Government wants to launch the tender to operate the facilities, thinking as early as 2027. The idea, remember The Aragon Newspaperis to transfer them for 40 years to the successful bidder, who will have to pay a fee. “Between October or November we will be able to issue the specifications to coincide the end of the construction of the warehouse with the start of the corresponding activity,” recognize the counselor. The aerospace company Sceye has shown your interest to be installed at the Teruel airport, but the Aragonese Executive wants the tender to be opena, so that any interested company in the world can opt. Images | Teruel airport and Government of Aragon In Xataka | Qatar Airways flight to Teruel: the Aragonese airport has become a refuge from the war in Iran

Europe cannot be a “technological vassal of the United States”, and the CEO of Mistral is clear about the path

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Mistral is emerging as the pillar of European artificial intelligence. A few weeks ago we said that the French startup had raised another 830 million dollars to create AI data centers in Europe. Arthur Mensch is the CEO of the company and, for some time now, he is establishing himself as one of the powerful voices within the initiative of European technological sovereignty. His new warning is that Europe cannot be a “vassal state” of the United States and he has published a roadmap so that Europe leads AI. It won’t be easy. European swerve. There are those who complain that everything cannot be politics, but really politics is something that permeates many layers and the European turn in search of technological sovereignty has a lot to do with this. It is something that has coincided with the return of Donald Trump because Europe has realized that, between threats and the “I invaded Greenland”, can’t trust his ally. With American technology companies very involved in the ideology set by their Government, there is a demand for sovereign European alternatives that do not depend on American Big Tech nor how they may process your sensitive data. What happens with rockets, satellites, chips and even with Microsoft Office. And AI is no exception. Measures. That’s right where it comes into play. Mistral. As the greatest exponent of European AI (within the Generative AIsince we also have the suite from the Spanish Freepik as one of the most important companies in this field), Mistral and its CEO are voices with a certain weight when it comes to talking about what seems to be the only topic of conversation in recent months. And Mensch has clear that Europe cannot be a “vassal” of US technology companies. For this reason, they have published “European AI: a roadmap to lead it”, a long document in which it urges the institutions of the European Union to speed up procedures and permits to take advantage of its single market position of more than 450 million people and combine the talent of different countries at the service of AI. From European AI, of course. The premises are clear: Attract and retain talent. Unlock the full potential of the single market. Embrace European AI on all economic fronts. Empower Europe with critical infrastructure for AI. 80%. Each of the measures has a series of points that detail what the optimal way to proceed would be (according to Mistral) to achieve European leadership and stop depending on foreign technology. And one of the points to keep in mind is that Europe has the possibility of commanding, but it faces a devastating fact: 80% of the digital infrastructure continues to depend on non-EU providers. To put it down: if a ministry needs an office suite, turn to Google or Microsoft. If a hospital needs an AI, goes to ChatGPT or Huawei. If we limit ourselves to AI, Mistral estimates that only 20% of EU companies have adopted AI and that only 11% of SMEs take advantage of its potential. slap on the wrist to regulatory Europe. What they point out is that this situation makes us vulnerable to extraterritorial controls that put the strategic autonomy of the member countries in check. They defend that this roadmap is not a theoretical exercise, but rather something practical that is based on three key principles: Action over theory. Unity against the fragmentation of each of the governments. And the most important: the speed is questionable. We must find quick ways to attract talent and capital so that the most innovative in Europe are not left behind, trapped in regulations that take time. Ambition. They warn that it is something with potential not only for Mistral, but for the entire ecosystem, an ecosystem in which Mistral is already very, very well positioned. Part of the 830 million they have raised will go to their facilities near Paris where there will be 13,800 NVIDIA GB3000 chips (You can’t become independent from NVIDIA…), but it won’t be the only one. By 2027 they hope to have a €1.2 billion facility in Sweden with 23 MW of computing capacity. In total, they hope to achieve 200 MW of capacity by the end of next year. It is very, very far from China and, above all, from the United States, but although the distance is enormous, it is an important step. The B side of the matter. Now, everything has a twist, and the twist of this enormous amount of money is that this round is not venture capital, but debt financing. The main French banks have lent this money to create data centers and, while the risk capital is not returned, the debt is, and with interest. It doesn’t matter if Mistral’s move turns out well or not, even if the AI ​​bubble bursts: the banks that have lent the money expect to receive it with the aforementioned interest regardless of how business goes. It is an added pressure for the company, but also a sign that they trust in what they are building. In Xataka | ChatGPT’s milestone is not being a good AI: it is having become one of the biggest attention grabbers in history

Europe seeks to become independent from Microsoft Office. Your alternative is already here, but not without controversy

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For a few months now, and seeing how the situation is, in Europe a feeling of change has awakened about the technology we consume. Movements have appeared among users to abandon software and hardware from American companiesbut that is something that is also impacting governments and among own European companies. And something that seems minor, but is not at all, is the European software A-Team that has come together to create Euro-Office, the alternative to Microsoft Office. And it hasn’t started off on the best foot. Euro-Office. The name couldn’t be more apt, but something must be said: it doesn’t come out of nowhere. This is an initiative that was born as a fork direct from OnlyOffice. Android users Do you know what a fork is? and, basically, it is taking another software… copying it. The desired changes are made and it is launched independently. Since it is usually free or open source software, there are no problems creating a new version. The software will not be a standalone thing, but rather a package consisting of a text editor, spreadsheet, PDF editor and a presentation tool. Support includes formats such as DOCX, XLSX, PPTX and ODF versions. Come on, it wants to be an alternative to Office, but also to Docs and any other suite. Where does it come from?. Perhaps the most interesting thing about the project is that it is not an initiative of a university, a startup or a specific country. The project was made public a few days ago and has nsuch powerful ombres behind such as IONOS, Nextcloud, Eurostack, XWiki, BTactic, Soverin and OpenProject, among others. In fact, it seems that Proton is also out there (which apart from its own suite, has cloud storage systems, email and VPNbeing one of the strongest alternatives to the Google suite). And the common narrative is that it is a European ‘front’ to reduce dependence on American suites in sensitive environments. Because yes, when a Government, for example, saves documents in the cloud of Google or any other foreign company, who is to say that there is no access. This is what the text editor looks like Digital sovereignty. As I said at the beginning of the article, Europe seeks sovereignty in different areas. In technology, they want to become a power in chip manufacturing (they already have part of the way done by having ASMLthe company more cutting-edge when it comes to creating machines that allow advanced chips to be manufactured). They also want to stop depending on NASA or SpaceX for space exploration, so we have gotten into that race. And in the digital sovereignty becomes independent from American and Russian services. For this reason, Euro-Office is considered from the beginning as a service integrated into the GDPR that is not subject to external jurisdictions such as the US CLOUD Act and that is integrated into public administration, education, government-regulated companies, critical infrastructure, health or education. For everyone. And since changing so much is complicated, the intention is to make the transition as simple as possible for users. This is where maximum compatibility with Microsoft formats comes into play, but also a familiar interface so as not to generate friction. And, above all, it was born with the desire to focus that independence on software. Because until now we had LibreOffice and OnlyOffice, but what is sought is to stop waging war on their own and for all European organizations to go in unison The controversy. Here may be the question, and also the controversy. If there was already something, why spend time developing something else and not use that already existing alternative as the “official” one? Well, according to the promoters of Euro-Office, because collaboration with OnlyOffice was not viable. They quote the Russian roots of the project (although the headquarters are in Latvia) and decisions such as the withdrawal of functions in the mobile app as some of the reasons why the fork was the last, but necessary, resort. From OnlyOffice hold that Euro-Office violates certain terms of its license, citing intellectual property theft and copyright infringement. And it has not stopped at “well I’m angry”, but something more: OnlyOffice has accused Nextcloud of trying to sign its staff to take them to the EuroOffice project. Next steps. The commotion goes further because it has been pointed out that, if it is a fork of an app of Russian origin, they do not know to what extent Euro-Office can introduce yourself as something “purely European.” But, in any case, it is evident that there is a growing interest in becoming independent from non-European technology and this suite has a version 1.0 planned for this summer. The preliminary version It’s already on Github. The most complicated thing remains: moving the very heavy transatlantic that is the public organizations of the different European countries that want to join this. Also see how they convince those who already use European suites such as those from The Document Foundation -LibreOffice- or the British Collabora to switch back to Euro-Office. In Xataka | Schrödinger’s Office: at this point it is impossible to know if Microsoft keeps it alive or if everything is AI and Copilot

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