About

The European Ambition Institute (EAI) is a community of technologists, builders, investors and policymakers focused on making difficult but consequential things happen in Europe. Centred around the strategic industries of the future, the EAI convenes focused task forces to remove barriers to progress across the major technology centres of Europe.

Minutes from EAI Action Committees

More FactoriesThe Energy Bottleneck for AI

Library

Can Europe build its first trillion-dollar startup? (Ian Hogarth, FT, 2024)European Ambition (Mario Gabriele, The Generalist, 2024)European tech’s confidence crisis is its biggest challenge (Niklas Zennstrom, 2024)EU Competitiveness (Mario Draghi, 2024)EU Inc Policy Proposal (EU Inc, 2024)John Elkann + Patrick Collison Discussion (2022)Patrick Collison on EU Innovation (The Economist Letter to the Editor, 2022) 

Transformative European Projects 

Europe has undertaken some of the most transformative and fast-moving projects that have reshaped industries and societies. Below is a curated list.Industrial Revolution (UK, 1760–1840): The Industrial Revolution transformed Britain into an industrial powerhouse that catalysed global industrialisation and shaped modern economic systems.The Eiffel Tower (France, 1887–1889): Built in ~2 years and was the tallest building in the world for 40 years.Concorde Project (UK/France, 1962–1976): Despite being retired in 2003, the passenger jet developed by the UK and France showcased supersonic flight’s potential.Airbus (France, 1970): Established as a European aerospace consortium to challenge Boeing’s dominance. Airbus remains the largest commercial aviation company by market capitalisation.Sweden’s Nuclear Program (Sweden, 1972–1985): Sweden built 12 nuclear reactors in 13 years transitioning its energy mix from being 75% reliant on oil to 50% powered by domestic nuclear power.Messmer Plan (France, 1974-1990): Prime Minister Pierre Messmer program led to 48 reactors being built in 16 years. Today France remains a nuclear leader and has one of the lowest carbon emissions per GDP.Train à Grande Vitesse (TGV) (France, 1976–1981): Europe’s first high-speed rail line was completed in five years, setting a global benchmark for high-speed rail systems.Eastern Scheldt Barrier (Netherlands, 1976–1986): The world’s largest and most extensive storm surge barrier. Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso (LNGS) (Italy, 1982–1985): Built 1.4km under central Italy’s highest mountain lies a world leading underground particle physics laboratory. Maeslant Barrier (Netherlands, 1991–1997): A storm surge barrier that is one of the largest moving structures on Earth. Øresund Bridge (Denmark and Sweden, 1995–2000): A combined railway and motorway project completed in five years is often referred to as a world class mega-project.Large Hadron Collider (LHC) (Switzerland, 1998–2008): Located at CERN, the LHC is the world’s largest and most powerful particle accelerator, which consists of a 27-kilometre ring of superconducting magnets. Millau Viaduct (France, 2001–2004): World’s tallest bridge referred to as a wonder of the modern world. Svalbard Global Seed Vault (Denmark, 2006–2008): Built in the remote Svalbard archipelago, the facility provides free, long-term storage of seed duplicates to ensure the world’s future food supply. International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) (France, 2007–present): Remains one of the top fusion mutinational research institutes.Wind Power Revolution (UK, 2010–present): The UK's North Sea wind farms were built fast and the country became a world leader. Today wind generates 25-30% of the countries electricity.Fehmarnbelt Tunnel (Denmark, 2020–estimated 2029): Denmark’s largest infrastructure project and the world’s longest immersed tunnel.