AI power, optical wafers, and new platform rules

In brief

Five developments

1. ChatGPT enters the EU's "very large platform" regime

• The European Commission said ChatGPT, Reddit, and Roblox must follow the European Union's rules for very large online platforms and search engines under the Digital Services Act (DSA). 1
• Each service declared at least 45 million monthly users in the EU, the threshold for the designation; ChatGPT qualifies as an online search engine, while Reddit and Roblox qualify as online platforms. 1
• The companies have four months to add risk assessments and mitigations covering illegal content, minors, fundamental rights, elections, public security, and user wellbeing. 1

2. Europe orders a EUR 387.8 million AI supercomputer

• EuroHPC selected French state-owned Bull to build LUMI-AI, a EUR 387.8 million machine for the EU's AI Factories program. 2
• Bull will install the system alongside the existing LUMI supercomputer at Finland's supercomputing centre, with service expected to begin in the second half of 2027; EuroHPC and a consortium of Finland, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Norway, and Poland will split the funding equally. 2
• AMD will supply the compute chips, IBM the storage, and Nokia the networking, giving European model teams access to training and inference capacity alongside scientific simulation workloads. 2

3. OpenAI reportedly received USD 5.5 billion in SB Energy warrants

• The Wall Street Journal reported that draft IPO documents show OpenAI received warrants valued at an estimated USD 5.5 billion in power and data-centre infrastructure company SB Energy. 3
• Reuters said it had yet to independently verify the report, and SB Energy and OpenAI had not responded to its requests for comment outside regular business hours. 3
• The reported warrants sit alongside Nvidia's USD 1.5 billion SB Energy investment and a guarantee of up to USD 105 billion tied to OpenAI's planned Ohio data-centre lease, making the filing relevant to both OpenAI's IPO story and its compute supply. 3

4. Soitec locks in customers for AI optical wafers

• French chip-materials company Soitec is seeking multi-year photonics-SOI supply agreements with deposits and fixed prices as hyperscalers expand optical links inside AI data centres. 4
• Soitec expects photonics-SOI revenue to exceed USD 200 million this financial year, up from slightly above USD 100 million; more than 10 customers are reserving capacity, with about 80% of the agreements expected within one to two weeks. 4
• Customers receive their deposits back when they take the committed volume and forfeit them when they fall short, while Soitec plans to add tools in existing cleanrooms and assess a Singapore building before considering a new plant around 2029. 4

5. Financial Stability Board puts AI cyber risk first

• Financial Stability Board Chair Andrew Bailey said AI-driven cyber risk was the most immediate concern for the global financial system because advanced models could change the speed, scale, and economics of attacks. 5
• In a letter to G20 finance ministers and central-bank governors, Bailey said many countries lack systems for managing advanced-model deployment and warned that dependence on a small group of technology providers could weaken system-wide market confidence. 5
• The immediate operational question for banks and regulators is whether testing, patching, and recovery procedures can keep pace with models that discover vulnerabilities faster and with AI systems that may bypass safeguards. 5

The read-through

Watch next

• The four-month DSA compliance period for ChatGPT, Reddit, and Roblox, including the European Commission's supervisory response. 1
• Bull's LUMI-AI delivery plan and the final compute, storage, and networking specifications before service begins in the second half of 2027. 2
• OpenAI and SB Energy filings or statements that confirm or revise the reported warrant arrangement. 3
• Soitec's customer deposits, Singapore capacity decision, and the timing of its next cleanroom expansion. 4
• The G20 finance meetings and any supervisory measures that follow Bailey's warning on AI cyber resilience. 5