Despite the impact of US tariffs — particularly on Ireland — the EU economy remains resilient, with real GDP growth in 2026 expected to match 2025, supported by strong intra-European trade and rising defense spending. European tech spending will grow a robust 6.3% in 2026 to exceed €1.5 trillion, driven by growth in AI-optimized hardware, cloud, cybersecurity, and software. Europe will see strong data center expansion in the Nordics and Southern Europe and fast growth of sovereign cloud services, AI chip development, and data governance.