Paris Region’s economy relies on its strong digital ecosystem to cater to the needs of many other industries. Artificial Intelligence (A.I.) is one of its pillars. To find more resources, browse our downloadable guides.
Expert
Thomas Fauvel
Deep TechExpert
The Expert’s Analysis
In leveraging the strengths of French culture, our innovation ethos revolves around the precautionary principle. Paris Region's competitive edge lies in its exceptional AI talent pool, nurtured by top-tier educational institutions.
Choose Paris Region actively seeks out Responsible AI companies, prioritizing model transparency, ethical data use, and positive societal impact. The success of Mistral AI and Kyutai serves as a model, embodying our ecosystem's values. They set the standard for others to join and contribute to the thriving Digital & AI landscape of the Paris Region.
The A.I. and Digital industries in Paris Region boast impressive figures. With nearly 85,000 businesses and 710,000 employees in these fields, Paris Region has the largest Information and Communications Technology (ICT) workforce in Europe.
Key players across the value chain have found the perfect ecosystem that supports and facilitates their business activities in industries such as IT for business, telecommunications, digital content production, defense & security, artificial intelligence, optics and electronics. This is also why major multinational corporations such as Dassault Systèmes, Orange, Criteo, Ubisoft, Accenture, Atos, Capgemini, etc. have headquarters in Paris Region.
Europe’s Leader for ICT Research & Development
Paris Region is home to the world's largest mathematics community, several of France's largest computer science laboratories, but also a dense industrial fabric in artificial intelligence.
10,000+ public and private sector researchers and engineers work in the Region, half in many private laboratories run by industry leaders such as Orange Labs, Fujitsu, Thales, Nokia Bell Labs, Google, Microsoft, Huawei, Samsung, TCS, Meta AI Research and IBM.
Globally renowned state-funded research entities such as CEA List, INRIA, LIP6, CNRS Informatics’s members such as LISN (Interdisciplinary Computer Sciences Laboratory) or ISIR (Institute of Intelligent Systems and Robotics) lead the way with their research, alongside 70 higher education institutions which train more than 20,000 ICT students annually. These world-class schools include elite “Grandes Écoles” such as Ecole Polytechnique, Centrale Supélec, Télécom Paris, ENS Paris-Saclay, and more.
In this extremely rich context, AI4IDF, brings together the four main AI institutes - DATAIA, Hi! PARIS, PRAIRIE and SCAI –to structure and animate the community, and to offer industrial and international partners a unified vision of the exceptional forces at work.
A Momentum Boosted by Paris Region’s Local Government
Paris region's “AI plan” has been launched in 2018 to support players investing in artificial intelligence in Paris Region where 40% of French R&D expenditures in A.Ii is already invested.
This strategic plan funded 6 AI challenges with €1M each, to develop innovative solutions with large companies and local research labs in four fields: Industry, Energy, Health and Citizen’s life. It also actively supports local SMEs and Mid-Caps by financing AI proofs of concept through the innovative ‘Pack IA’ scheme. This initiative facilitates a rapid digital transformation within the Paris Region's ecosystem, fostering growth in the sector and stimulating opportunities for AI solution providers.
Clusters,Incubators and Accelerators to Support Your Growth in Paris Region
Two main clusters in the Region offer services with a strong focus on Information and Communications Technology:
Systematic Paris Region focuses on digital B2B Deep Tech systems. Since its creation in 2005, it has been engaging a community of about 900 members, which includes 600 startups and SMEs, 140 corporate groups, 140 academic members, investors and local governments.
It hosts 6 tech hubs centered on: Data Science & Artificial Intelligence, Cyber & Security (& Defense), Digital Engineering, Digital Infrastructure & IoT, Optics & Photonics and Open Source.
So far, Systematic Paris Region has supported 626 projects towards their funding. This represents a total spending of 3.18 bn in R&D and 620 products launched as a result. Learn More.
Cap Digital Paris Region is a cluster focusing on digital B2C and services industries.
Its mission is to promote Paris Region as one of the world leaders in digital and ecological transformation. The cluster covers 6 major fields of activity including technology, data and AI.
The cluster works with its 1000+ members (including experts, VSEs/SMEs, major groups, research and training organizations and venture capitalists) to help them find the support, connections and financing they need for their innovative projects.
Since the creation of Cap Digital, the cluster has invested more than €1.7 bn in R&D. Learn More.
Download our guide to find the right incubator or accelerator for your company in Paris Region.
Tailored Incentives for Your Projects
In addition to Paris Region’s AI Challenges, Paris Region gives priority subsidies to AI innovation projects through its INNOV’UP program. This covers the whole development cycle from research, innovation and market introduction.
Your future Paris Region-based R&D center would be eligible to local and national funds for research and innovation. One incentive is the French Research Tax Credit that “refunds” roughly 30% of all R&D expenses of a company, even if the company does not pay income tax. It can be doubled if the company hires young PhDs.
Digital and A.I. Events in Paris Region
France Digital Day, Paris, September 18, 2024 – For this 12th edition, join over 4,000 founders and investors from Europe for a unique family reunion at the FDDay. Discuss the latest trends in business, tech, and society, close (big) deals with business meeting tracks, network, raise funds, and meet with your peers in a village-like venue in the heart of the French capital. Learn More.
AI for Finance Summit, Paris, September 17, 2024 – Experience four stages and a large demo zone in the historic former stock exchange building in downtown Paris. Connect with hundreds of banking and insurance groups, tech companies, startups, Fintechs, research institutes, data labs, regulators, and other communities. Learn More.
B2B Rocks, Paris, September 25-26, 2024 – Meet 3,000 visitors gathered around one goal: SaaS growth. Learn More.
Network X, Paris, October 8-10, 2024 – Network X returns to Paris. It is the only event that brings the fixed and mobile markets together to connect and build business models and frameworks, and approaches to monetise B2B and consumer with cloud-enabled fibre and 5G networks. Meet 5000+ industry professionals in person. Learn More.
No Code Summit, Paris, October 10-11, 2024 – If you’re looking to engage with the global Low-Code/No-Code (LCNC) community, mark your calendar for the 3rd edition of the No Code Summit at STATION F. Learn More.
Big Data & AI Paris, Paris, October 15-16, 2024 – With over 20,000 visitors, 300 business workshops and 370 sponsors and exhibitors, this event is the place to engage with the key players of both the Big Data and the AI scenes. Learn More.
Hello Tomorrow Global Summit, Paris, March 13-14, 2025 – Bringing together 1,000 startups, 1,000 corporates, 300 investors, 400 researchers and technology transfer experts and 300 incubators/accelerators, the event is a unique opportunity to leverage collaborative power to drive forward innovation helping solve the many crises our planet is facing, as well as those that are yet to come. Learn More.
Viva Technology, Paris, June 11-14, 2025 – With 65,000 attendees, 13,500 startups, 2,400 investors, VivaTech has become the biggest annual getaway in Europe for innovation players from across the world. It is made to ignite growth, business transformation and spark positive change. Its mission it to help startups and major corporate groups become digital champions, succeed in their digital transformation, and innovate together for the greater good. Learn More.
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