The numbers Omdia released on 2 June 2026 reflect a shift that has been building for eighteen months: European enterprises are no longer discussing AI. They are buying the infrastructure to run it. IT spending across Europe is forecast to reach $1.3 trillion in 2026, up 8.2% year on year — the fastest growth rate on the continent since 2021.
The infrastructure category tells the sharper story. Spending on servers, networking, and related compute is forecast to rise 31% to $154 billion, with server investment alone growing 53%. That pace is driven by demand for AI data centre capacity, as hyperscalers and regional providers race to build facilities capable of running large models at enterprise scale.
The UK sits at the centre of the European growth story. According to the forthcoming Tech Nation Report 2026, UK AI is growing three times faster than France and twice as fast as Germany. The country is also bringing in record investment — though the report does not break out the figures ahead of its official launch at London Tech Week on 8 June.
The data lands ahead of the EU’s Tech Sovereignty package, due on 3 June. The package covers AI, cloud, semiconductors, and digital infrastructure, and is designed to address how businesses across the bloc procure and deploy digital technology. Omdia’s AI Maturity Survey context is relevant here: 71% of Western European organisations said they were in favour of national AI sovereignty, suggesting that the package lands on receptive ground.
“Europe has no shortage of AI ambition. The question now is how quickly we can turn that ambition into action,” said Carolyn Dawson OBE, CEO of Founders Forum Group and lead for London Tech Week. “The next phase of AI growth will not be shaped by policy alone, or by any single company, sector or country. It will depend on the strength of the whole ecosystem: founders building new companies, investors backing them, corporates adopting new technologies, governments creating the right conditions, and infrastructure providers enabling AI to scale.”
London Tech Week 2026 runs from 8 to 10 June at Olympia London, with fringe events through 12 June.
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