Europe has entered a pivotal moment in its effort to remain competitive in a global economy increasingly shaped by artificial intelligence. As geopolitical tensions rise, productivity gaps widen and technological leadership consolidates elsewhere, the central question is how the region can convert the momentum around AI into meaningful economic gains. The opportunity is significant, but capturing it will require European organisations to move beyond pilots and incremental gains, while preserving their competitive edge by writing their own AI playbook — underpinned by conditions that include coherent regulation, competitive energy costs and shared infrastructure to support long-term AI investment.

Businesses across the region are just starting to scale beyond experimentation and isolated use cases, constrained by fragmented data systems, slowness in adapting ways of working and limited ability to skill the workforce at scale. Europe has the industrial depth, sectoral diversity and market scale to succeed, but realising this potential will require both organisational commitment and a more enabling environment for scaling AI across sectors.

This Financial Times webinar, in partnership with Accenture, brought together senior leaders to examine how AI can deliver material economic value, in a context of increasing scepticism about the return on AI investment. The discussion considered how companies can prioritise investments and build the capabilities needed for the technology to deliver on its promise. It also explored how Europe can accelerate AI adoption with trust, as sovereignty concerns are on the rise. The session assessed how European companies can lead in AI deployment and turn it into a durable competitive edge.

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