Microsoft is to spend $10 billion on an artificial intelligence data center in Portugal as the battle to provide AI infrastructure in Europe heats up.
In the same week that Google announced a $6.4 billion investment in Germany, Microsoft disclosed its plans for a site in the coastal city of Sines, around 100 miles south of the capital Lisbon.
The company said the investment was its biggest in the country and also one of the largest to date in AI computing capacity in Europe.
The project, which is being undertaken in tandem with the U.K.’s Nscale, Nvidia and Portuguese developer Start Campus, will see 12,600 Nvidia GPUs deployed, which according to Microsoft will set a “new benchmark” for AI infrastructure in Europe.
It’s also a key pillar in Microsoft’s Digital Commitment to Europe initiative, which was announced in April and aims to more than double its date center capacity in 16 countries across the continent by 2027. The beefed-up architecture will support advanced AI workloads across multiple sectors.
The Start Campus site in Sines will eventually consist of six separate buildings with 1.2GW of capacity, although at this stage it is unclear how many of these Microsoft and Nscale will use.
“This partnership reflects our confidence in Portugal’s potential to lead the next wave of AI innovation,” said Microsoft Vice Chair and President Brad Smith, who was in Portugal attending the Web Summit. “We are helping to position Portugal as a benchmark for responsible and scalable AI development in Europe. It’s not just about technology — it’s about building capacity, trust, and opportunities for the future.”
Confirmation of the scale of Microsoft’s investment in Portugal follows several announcements in recent months regarding the company’s plans to deliver added AI architecture worldwide. It has already revealed deals with Nscale in Texas, the U.K. and Norway, plus on Nov. 3 it announced a $15 billion investment in the United Arab Emirates.
Alongside the huge spend at Sines, Microsoft is investing in other programs to assist Portugal in its digital transformation.
Its Skills for Jobs initiative, in tandem with LinkedIn, aims to prepare students and professionals for working in an AI-driven economy, while its participation in the AI Innovation Factory — in collaboration with Accenture, Avanade and Unicorn Factory Lisbon – is geared toward scaling AI solutions, building governance structures and promoting responsible AI practices.