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Investing.com-- ASML Holding NV (AS:ASML) said on Tuesday it had entered an agreement with Mistral AI under which the Dutch chipmaking equipment giant invested 1.3 billion euros ($1.5 billion) to become the top shareholder in the French AI startup.
ASML also entered a strategic partnership with Mistral under which the former will explore the use of AI models across its product portfolio and in research and development operations.
ASML will invest 1.3 billion euros in Mistral as part of the start-up’s series C funding round, taking an approximately 11% stake in the firm. Reuters had reported the stake on Monday, with the fundraising round– at $2 billion– set to make Mistral the most valuable company in Europe with a $10 billion euro valuation ($11.7 billion).
ASML will also receive a seat on Mistral’s strategic committee, gaining an advisory role in the AI startup. ASML CFO Roger Dassen will take the role in addition to his current duties, the chip equipment maker said.
ASML makes advanced lithography equipment that is crucial towards chipmaking, and is a key supplier to majors such as TSMC (NYSE:TSM) and Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC). ASML, along with TSMC, has benefited greatly from rapidly increasing chip demand tied to the artificial intelligence industry.
Its partnership with Mistral ties up two of Europe’s technology leaders. Mistral is considered as Europe’s answer to U.S. AI giants such as OpenAI and Alphabet Inc’s (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Google.
Top AI chip maker NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) is also an investor in Mistral. The company was valued at about $6 billion during its series B funding round in 2024.
Mistral was founded by former Google DeepMind researcher Arthur Mensch and ex-Meta researchers Timothee Lacroix and Guillaume Lample in 2023.