Vittorio Colao says Europe missed much of the past two decades’ digital wave and risks repeating that mistake with artificial intelligence. Speaking at Wave by Vento in Turin on 9 October 2026, he argued that Europe has not turned its research, industrial capabilities and entrepreneurial talent into enough globally competitive technology companies. His prescription is not simply to deregulate: simplify the path from startup to scale-up, widen access to capital and computing infrastructure, and keep safety, copyright and accountability in view.
What does Colao mean by “missing” the digital wave?
Colao’s warning is about the gap between having valuable capabilities and building companies that can compete at global scale. He put it starkly at Wave by Vento: “Abbiamo perso la grande ondata degli ultimi vent’anni. Questa è la realtà” (“We missed the great wave of the last twenty years. That is the reality,” translated from Italian). His concern is that Europe could again be strong in research or industrial know-how yet lose ground in the companies and infrastructure that turn new technologies into widely used products.
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The comparison has historical context, but it should not be mistaken for a single, definitive measure of Europe’s digital performance. A 2019 analysis by the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) argued that Europe had missed opportunities in personal computers, smartphones, cloud computing, search and social media. It also pointed to European strengths in engineering, universities and industry, especially for applying technology to the physical world, while calling for stronger software capabilities and investment. That is one policy analysis, not a current ranking of Europe against every competitor.
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In a Corriere interview published on 28 May 2025, Colao had likewise argued that Europe’s opportunity extended beyond large language models to industrial uses of AI. He cited public-private activity involving supercomputers, chips, space, robotics and biotechnology as areas on which Europe could build. Those examples describe his perspective at that time; they do not establish that every initiative has since been completed.
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Why is starting a company different from scaling one?
Rules accumulate across borders
Colao proposes making conditions simpler during a startup’s first three to five years, when a small team is trying to develop a product, find customers and raise money. The point is not that every country imposes the same obstacle. It is that administrative duties, tax differences and national rules can require a firm to adapt its operations market by market as it expands.
The report illustrates the friction with a digital-health company operating in France, Germany, the UK and Italy. The company may have to adjust its operating model to meet each market’s requirements. Because the example includes the UK as well as EU countries, it illustrates cross-border complexity broadly; it does not mean that the UK is part of the EU framework or that the four markets have identical rules.
A common formation option would not settle the scaling question
The EU’s proposed “28th regime” is described as an optional company framework alongside national systems. The targets reported for the proposal are digital procedures, formation within 48 hours and registration costs below €100. These are proposal targets, not a statement that the service is available on those terms or that a company can expand across Europe within 48 hours.
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Colao’s criticism, as reported by la Repubblica, is that simplifying incorporation alone would leave tax and labour-policy differences—and the broader challenge of cross-border growth—unresolved. In other words, making it easier to create a legal entity and making it easier to operate one across markets are related but distinct tasks.
Where should growth capital come from?
Colao’s financing argument is that European firms seeking large sums often turn to the United States, while a more integrated European capital market could make cross-border funding easier. He points to two potential sources of longer-term risk capital: entrepreneurs reinvesting proceeds from successful companies, and pension funds investing within prudential limits. The report cites Sweden as an example of entrepreneurs financing later generations of startups, but gives no figures that would support a quantitative comparison.
This makes capital access part of the same scale-up problem as regulation. A company may be able to form locally, but still need larger pools of investment and access to multiple markets to grow into a global competitor. Colao links this diagnosis to the competitiveness concerns raised by the Draghi report; the event coverage presents his position rather than an audited assessment of European funding outcomes.
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What role does Colao want government to play?
His reported position distinguishes between improving the conditions around startup investment and having public bodies select individual startup investments themselves. He is cautious about the latter, preferring public support to work through professional investment operators. At the same time, he sees a stronger case for direct public involvement where infrastructure needs and economic-security concerns are significant.
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|---|---|
| Administrative barriers | Simplify the rules and obligations that weigh on young companies. |
| Public procurement | Make appropriate procurement opportunities accessible to smaller innovative firms. |
| Startup investment | Be cautious about public bodies directly choosing venture investments in individual startups; use professional investment operators for public support. |
| Strategic infrastructure | Allow a stronger direct public role for areas such as semiconductors, energy and large-scale computing. |
The distinction is between governments improving the environment in which firms grow and governments taking a direct role in specific strategic assets. The report presents this as Colao’s policy view, not evidence that one approach has been proven more effective in every case.
Why does AI computing capacity matter?
La Repubblica reported Colao’s estimate that Europe has less than two gigawatts of AI computing capacity. That figure should be read as his attributed estimate: the report does not provide a measurement method, a date range or an independent inventory that verifies it as a current total.
The strategic concern behind the number is clearer than its measurement basis. Access to large-scale computing affects the ability to train and use advanced AI systems; dependence on infrastructure controlled elsewhere can limit Europe’s room to act. For Colao, this is why public investment may be more justified in compute facilities, chips and energy infrastructure than in picking individual startup winners.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Does competing in AI mean weakening safeguards?
No. Colao’s position combines concerns about competitiveness and implementation with support for protections. He argues that AI’s international reach makes cooperation and shared safety standards important, while criticizing the AI Act as too complicated to implement. He described it as “È una legge concepita molto bene, ma troppo complicata da attuare” (“It is a law conceived very well, but too complicated to implement,” translated from Italian).
On copyright, he defends creators against unlicensed use of their work. His reported response to AI companies complaining about copyright rules was: “Quando le aziende dell’AI si lamentano delle norme sul copyright, rispondo: state rubando” (“When AI companies complain about copyright rules, I answer: you are stealing,” translated from Italian). On the Digital Services Act, he calls it a pillar of digital society and supports assigning responsibility for false or harmful content. Taken together, these views amount to criticism of complexity, not a blanket demand to remove regulation.
What social risks does he say Europe must address?
Colao also raises concerns about employment, young people’s judgment, wealth concentration and cybersecurity. The event report does not quantify AI’s effects on jobs or wealth, so these are concerns he identifies, not measured forecasts. His proposed response includes investment in education and training so that AI strengthens rather than weakens young people’s capacity for judgment.
That emphasis broadens the question of competitiveness. Europe’s ability to develop or adopt AI is only one part of the debate; how people learn to use it, how creators’ rights are protected, and who is accountable for harmful content are also part of the choices Colao says must be faced.
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