For years, OpenAI, Meta and Google have fought for AI dominance. Now, they’re putting their differences aside to support the same startup program.
Station F, the world’s largest startup campus launched F/AI in early 2026, a first of its kind accelerator that brings the biggest names in AI together. This launch has everyone wondering why these competitors have chosen to back the same program.
What the F/AI Accelerator Is and How it Works
At its core, the F/AI is a new accelerator program where AI leaders like OpenAI, Google, Meta, Mistral and Anthropic have all joined forces under a single program.
Beyond this support, the program targets early stage AI-startups globally and will host two batches of 20 companies each per year, selected by Station F on the basis of recommendations from partners rather than open applications. The objective is to provide a made-in-Europe launchpad to create global AI companies.
Notably, the first cohort kicked off on the 13th of January 2026 and runs a three-month curriculum twice a year. Each cohort includes 20 European startups building on partner models.
What Accepted Startups Actually Receive
With this partnership, the backers did more than just support in name only, they put resources on the table too.
Founders receive over $1million in credits for AI models, compute and related services. On top of that, they gain access to internal expertise, senior leaders and global networks from all participating companies.
Additionally, US VC companies like Sequoia Capital, General Catalyst and Lightspeed joined as backers alongside European investors like 20VC, Kima Ventures and Drysdale Ventures.
Why OpenAI, Meta and Google are Funding the Same AI Startup Program
Europe is racing to compete in the global AI race. For a start, AI led venture investment in Europe for the first time in 2025 with around $17.5 billion in funding going to AI, yet the continent still struggles to match Silicon Valley’s output.
To fix this, France named Paris the AI capital of Europe and aggressively sought investments. President Macron personally lobbied tech CEOs and the French government to pour billions into building AI infrastructure. As a result, Bpifrance committed €10 billion to developing the AI ecosystem through 2029, and Macron announced a €109 billion AI investment package in February 2025.
The reasoning behind this support is pretty simple. Everyone just wants the first pick of developers before competitors. The US based labs have the opportunity to expand their influence in Europe by offering credits and resources that encourage startups to build on their models and once you start with a particular model, switching becomes difficult. This is because the application has been tailored to that model’s specific behaviour.
The Hidden Conflict of Interest
Behind closed doors, this collaboration raises serious questions. These companies get first look at startups before they become acquisition targets or competitors.
Moreover, the possibility of conflicts of interest is very high. If a startup builds if a startup builds a breakthrough application that competes directly with one backer’s products, it remains unclear whether the others would continue supporting it.
Even so, Station F director Roxanne Varza emphasizes the urgency for European startups to hit high revenue benchmarks to catch up with their global peers.
Ultimately, F/AI represents Europe’s most ambitious effort to build AI champions at scale. In the end, whether this unprecedented collaboration between competing tech giants, European institutions, and ambitious founders succeeds will shape the continent’s technological future for decades to come.
