Mistral raises $3.5B to build AI infrastructure, aiming to rival OpenAI and Anthropic

French AI startup Mistral raised 3 billion euros ($3.5 billion) led by Samsung and the EU-backed Scaleup Europe Fund, valuing the company at over 21 billion euros. The funding will help Mistral build its own data centers and expand computing capacity to train larger AI models. Mistral aims to offer custom AI tools for businesses and position itself as a European alternative to U.S. and Chinese AI firms. CEO Arthur Mensch expects strong revenue growth and plans to double owned computing power within five years to stay competitive amid intense global AI competition.