OpenChip, a burgeoning company focused on providing Europe with a domestic alternative to foreign-made AI chips, is expanding its operations with a new branch in Ghent, Belgium. This new location, OpenChip’s fifth, will concentrate on software development, a critical component in the eventual adoption of their forthcoming chip.
Presently, AI companies in Europe rely on chips primarily sourced from the United States and China. OpenChip aims to change this landscape. Despite being only a year old, the company has seen rapid expansion, with existing branches in Italy, Germany, Poland, and Spain. However, the chip itself is still in development. “The OpenChip chip will be on the market by early 2027 at the latest,” stated Steven Latré, who leads OpenChip’s AI department in Ghent, in an interview with VRT NWS.
This project is fueled by considerable European backing, specifically through support from the IPCEI ME/CT initiative approved in 2023, which allocated €8.1 billion for projects related to microelectronics and communication technologies. OpenChip’s website highlights this European Commission initiative, underscoring the project’s strategic importance.
The new Ghent branch will not be directly involved in the chip’s physical creation. Instead, it will focus on developing the necessary software to fully utilize the chip once it’s available. “In Ghent, we are already starting to develop AI software,” Latré explained.
OpenChip’s ambitions extend beyond the European market. “We have the ambition to become a world player. The race is not over yet. The recent developments of the Chinese DeepSeek show that substantial catch-up is possible,” Latré affirmed. This demonstrates the company’s confidence in its potential to become a key player in the global AI chip market.
Latré also noted that Belgium’s established reputation as a research hub within the chip industry played a role in OpenChip’s decision to base its software development operations there. The presence of Imec, a prominent research institute based in Leuven, which is involved in chip development and production optimization, solidifies Belgium’s appeal within this sector.
