EU has all the ingredients to build a competitor. And the first mover’s advantage can be compensated by other things. The reality is that the EU tech community is just shitting their pants to throw their hat into the ring.
... Except for VC funding from non risk averse investors.
You are not going to build an EU openAI on Horizon2020 grants. Also EU investors are closer to business angels when you compare with the VC funding scene in the US.