Samsung to invest €1 billion in Mistral AI at €20 billion

Samsung Electronics is in advanced discussions to invest up to 1 billion euros in French artificial intelligence startup Mistral AI, a deal that would value the Paris-based company at roughly 20 billion euros, according to reports. The potential investment, part of a larger multi-billion-euro funding round, would mark one of the largest strategic bets yet on Europe's AI sector and nearly double Mistral's valuation from less than a year ago.

The South Korean technology giant, which already holds a stake in Mistral through its venture arm, is negotiating the investment alongside other potential backers including Swedish private equity firm EQT's Scaleup Europe Fund, Novo Holdings, and Santander. The fundraising effort follows a period of rapid growth for Mistral, which was valued at 12 billion euros in September 2025.

Founded in 2023 by former researchers from DeepMind and Meta, Mistral has positioned itself as a leading European alternative to U.S.-based AI providers like OpenAI and Google. The company's open-weight language models and focus on data sovereignty have attracted enterprise customers and government contracts, including with the French military. Mistral CEO Arthur...