Choose France Summit Highlights Commitment to Domestic Investment and French Tech Innovation

The 2025 Choose France summit, inaugurated this morning at the Maison de la Chimie in Paris, has shifted its traditional focus on attracting foreign investment toward promoting domestic economic development by French companies. Over 200 businesses, including large groups, SMEs, and startups such as Mistral AI, OVH Cloud, U-Space, and Wimi, are participating in this gathering aimed at fueling national industrial growth and technological leadership. The French government anticipates announcing investment projects worth more than 30 billion euros across 151 initiatives, including 9.2 billion euros in new ventures.

Minister of Digital and AI Anne Le Hénanff chaired a roundtable titled “Strengthening Digital Sovereignty and Promoting AI Adoption: A Clear Direction for a More Productive and Safer Economy,” emphasizing AI's vital role in sectors ranging from energy and agri-food to healthcare, chemistry, and space. Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu addressed the summit, notably seeking to ease public concerns about France’s high national debt and public deficits. Meanwhile, President Emmanuel Macron hosted a dinner at the Élysée Palace with prominent French Tech entrepreneurs, including Gautier Cloix of H company, Armand Thiberge of Brevo, and Matthieu Masselin of Wandercraft, underscoring the government's commitment to champion domestic innovation and startup ecosystems.

This summit represents a strategic approach by France to leverage homegrown technological innovation for economic resilience and maintain leadership in critical sectors, particularly digital and AI technologies. The government's coordination between public policy and entrepreneurial leadership aims to bolster a productive and secure economic future.

Meanwhile, Country concerns about external crises were also top of mind, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky visiting Paris amid ongoing war challenges. President Macron expressed hope for peace in Ukraine before 2027 and highlighted France’s historic commitment to supply Ukraine with up to 100 Rafale jets, signaling France’s broader strategic and financial responsibilities.

The Choose France summit thus serves as both a platform for domestic economic strategies and an illustration of France’s intertwined national and international priorities in innovation, security, and geopolitical stability. The summit’s continuation this evening with the Élysée dinner showcases the synergy between government leadership and French Tech entrepreneurs striving towards a digitally sovereign and economically robust France.