Samsung in talks to invest up to $1B in AI startup Mistral

Samsung Electronics is in discussions to invest up to €1 billion in French artificial intelligence startup Mistral as part of a fundraising round that would value the company at approximately €20 billion, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter.economictimes+1

The South Korean technology giant, which has previously backed Mistral through its venture arm, is discussing an investment worth hundreds of millions of euros and could ultimately commit around €1 billion, according to the report. Swedish investment firm EQT's Scaleup Europe Fund is also in talks to participate in the round.investing+2

A European AI Champion Courts Asian Capital

The potential deal would mark a deepening relationship between Samsung and Mistral as both companies seek strategic advantages in the AI race. Mistral has positioned itself as a European alternative to U.S. AI giants at a time when governments across the continent are pushing for greater technological independence. The startup supplies the French military and has built a reputation on open-weight AI models.economictimes

The fundraising follows a report from Bloomberg in June that Mistral was in early talks to raise approximately €3 billion at a €20 billion valuation, nearly double the €11.7 billion it commanded during its Series C round in September 2025. Sifted reported on July 15 that EQT was in talks to lead or co-lead the Series D through its €5 billion Scaleup Europe Fund.techcrunch+2

Microsoft Partnership and Infrastructure Push

The Samsung discussions come one day after Microsoft ↗ 2.38% and Mistral announced an agreement under which the U.S. cloud giant will spend billions of dollars on Mistral's computing infrastructure in Europe while expanding distribution of the French startup's technology.economictimes

Mistral has been on an aggressive infrastructure buildout this year. In March, the company closed an $830 million debt financing round to construct Nvidia-powered data centers across Europe. It has outlined plans to reach 200 megawatts of computing capacity on the continent by the end of 2027, with a long-term budget of €4 billion for the effort.techfundingnews+2

Valuation Gap Persists

If completed, the round would bring Mistral's total equity and debt financing to roughly €6.5 billion. Still, the company's valuation remains far smaller than U.S. peers such as Anthropic and OpenAI, which have raised multiples more in funding. Discussions remain ongoing and terms are subject to change, with both Samsung and Mistral declining to comment.sifted+4