Poland and Czechia Sign Memorandum on Joint AI Gigafactory

Poland and Czechia signed a memorandum in Prague on Thursday on cooperation in developing AI gigafactories financed under the EU's EuroHPC program. The document, signed during the CEE AI Summit, is meant to show the European Commission that both countries speak with one voice on the matter, ahead of Brussels' decision on the ongoing call for seven AI gigafactories in Europe.

What was signed

The memorandum is a formal statement of intent to cooperate, not a finished construction plan. Poland and Czechia agreed to work together, consult positions at EU forums, and jointly draw on funding from the EuroHPC and InvestAI programs. The final shape of the cooperation depends on how the European Commission resolves the call for AI gigafactories it opened in late July.

On the Polish side, the document was signed by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Digital Affairs Krzysztof Gawkowski and Deputy Minister of Digital Affairs Dariusz Standerski. Czechia was represented by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Industry and Trade Karel Havlíček, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Jan Sechter, and government AI envoy Lukáš Kačena.

Three scenarios

The document outlines three possible scenarios. The first is a joint Polish-Czech gigafactory project. The second envisions two separate facilities, one in Poland and one in Czechia, working together by sharing computing loads and running joint procurement. The third scenario has both countries taking part in a single project selected by the European Commission, with computing capacity accessible to both sides regardless of where the center is physically built.

The best-case scenario would be two parts of the AI gigafactory, one in Poland and one in Czechia. Both governments consider this the best scenario and recommend that companies move in that direction too - Dariusz Standerski, Deputy Minister of Digital Affairs

Region speaks with one voice

The Polish-Czech memorandum is part of a broader diplomatic push by the Central and Eastern European region. Alongside the bilateral agreement with Czechia, Poland, Czechia, Hungary, Slovakia, Croatia and Lithuania signed the so-called Prague declaration on cooperation in artificial intelligence. These countries had already expressed interest in accessing computing capacity from a potential Polish gigafactory, should Poland win the EU tender.

The Polish-Czech agreement is only part of our diplomatic offensive in this area, because we're also cooperating on the gigafactory with Hungary, Slovakia, Croatia and Lithuania - Dariusz Standerski, Deputy Minister of Digital Affairs

Standerski stressed that if the gigafactory is built in Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, Croatia and Lithuania would share in the computing capacity flowing directly from Poland. On the Czech side, envoy Lukáš Kačena assured that the Prague declaration is not merely a symbolic gesture, announcing the creation of an informal network of AI coordinators and a working meeting between the region's countries as early as October.

Domestic competition for the gigafactory

The memorandum coincides with domestic rivalry over a spot in the EU project. Standerski acknowledged that three consortia are currently forming in Poland to bid for the gigafactory, and said the government would not favor any of them. The European Commission opened its call for seven AI gigafactories in Europe in late July, with the EU's InvestAI program earmarking a total of 20 billion euros in funding for the effort.

I've heard that three consortia are forming in Poland that will compete to build the gigafactory, so may the best one win - Dariusz Standerski, Deputy Minister of Digital Affairs

The government's declaration also mentions more than 400 million zloty in public funding that Poland is prepared to commit to the project, though that figure has not yet been confirmed in an official statement from the Ministry of Digital Affairs.

What it means for Polish companies

For Polish businesses and research institutes, what's at stake is access to computing power, which today is a bottleneck for the development of domestic AI models and corporate deployments. An AI gigafactory built in Poland, whether independently or in cooperation with Czechia, could lower the cost of training and accessing large models for local companies and attract investment in data center infrastructure. The European Commission's decision on the seven-gigafactory tender is expected in the coming months, with a working meeting of the region's countries planned for October.