The biggest French startups in 2024 according to the French government | TechCrunch

There are many ways countries can support their tech industries. In France this includes selecting an annual cohort of 120 high-potential startups – French Tech 120 – It includes 40 private companies, which are considered the most promising, and which have been named Next40.

Marina Ferrari, French State Secretary for the Digital Economy, reveals this year’s award winners Vivatek It was the fifth week in Paris. According to its promoters, it was the fifth square The most selective From the beginning of the program.

The French Tech Next 40/120 program was first launched in 2019, and many lessons were learned along the way, especially when some unicorns emerged ZIRPicornsFollowing the recommendations of experts in the technical field, the criteria have changedAnd half of the selection is now based on revenue metrics rather than fundraising.

As a result, only 28 of the selected French Tech 120 in 2024 boasted a valuation of $1 billion or more. On the other hand, La French Tech reports that the group collectively had a €10 billion net revenue in 2023Whereas in 2022 it was €7.5 billion. Thirty-one companies recorded net revenues of more than €100 million.

Overall, this group reveals or confirms some interesting trends that France is riding on, such as the rise of deep tech and AI. But it’s also worth taking a look at the Next40’s new winners: if and when the IPO window reopens, some of these will be expected to go public and reintroduce long-awaited liquidity into the venture capital pipeline.

Without further ado, here’s a picture summary of the Class of 2024:

This isn’t the most digestible format, so let’s take a closer look new faces,

Welcome to the club

Here are the companies that made it to the Next40 list:

• add guestThe parent company of BanglaSpecials and campings.comwhich joins the French Tech 120 in 2023;
• ChapsVisionA B2B company that positions itself as a specialist in sovereign data processing;
• aquateura renewable energy provider that raised a Mix Venture capital and public support,
• equivalentOne EdTech Company Formerly known as Smart AdServer which was derived from Aufeminin;
• Orenburganother green energy supplier;
• MaltA freelancer marketplace active in France, Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain and the UK,
• MrTemp’an online temporary work agency;
• Mistral AIThe open LLM rocketship that is rumored Raising money at $6 billion valuationtripled its valuation in December;
• penny LaneAccounting Software That Scales Up became a unicorn in February;
• Coward GroupAnother renewable energy player;
• WeezEventA ticketing platform created in 2008.

It is impressive, in particular, to see how quickly Mistral AI joined the two-decade-old Vizvent list. The AI ​​company has only recently turned one year old, but Arthur Mensch and his co-founders are now at the helm of one of France’s most promising companies, and perhaps even a public listing eventually.

Although this is somewhat hinted at by the name “Next40” which points towards France cac 40It is too early to tell which of these will become IPO candidates and when or where. In 2023, Euronext welcomes only 64 new listingsbelow from 83 in 2022 And 212 in 2021,

Among the other 80 companies completing the FrenchTech 120, new entrants include Adagio, AQEMIA, BrainCube, Comet, DriveMe, Aximetrics, ExoTrail, FlowDesk, Foodles, Greenly, HappyVore, Hopen, iSupplier, La Fourche, Madbox, Moon Surgical, MoonCard Are. mylight150, Optimis, Pascal, PerfectStay, Planity, Shares, SeaPearl, Swan, Umiami, UnseenLabs, Volta Medical, WAAT, Womenten and Worldia.

To our knowledge, none of these startups are unicorns yet. Still, maybe this was never meant to happen. North Star, Still, it would have been a hard Target Achievement achieved in recent months: Investment in French startups has declined significantly last year. From €13.49 billion to €8.32 billion in 2022. According to EY, Green Tech was the largest group €2.7 billion in financingAnd it’s well represented in the French Tech 120 as well.

reflecting trends

French tech comes from 120 different sectors, from fintech to space tech, but there are clear trends.

However, one caveat: for the first time, applicants were asked to respect commitments in terms of gender equality and ecological change. A little more importance could have been given later to green tech companies, which represent 30% of the 2024 class, but that’s also in line with the share of investment they attracted last year.

AI is another area in which French startups have attracted mega-rounds, Even at the seed stage. there is Something is going on with AI startups in Franceand the French government wants to support it. The French Tech Next40/120 includes Mistral AI as well as Pharmatech Acumia and quantum computing startup pascal,

Beyond AI, deep tech tops the list, accounting for 23% of the 120 companies. Again, this is no surprise: we already reported that deep tech was on the rise In Europe, public funding is helping.

The French Tech Next40/120 program also comes with perks. There is no direct financing involved; the main benefit is the promise of less friction and fewer “unnecessary institutional barriers”. This pretty much explains why it is promoted as a liberal one, and presumably, more companies could benefit from it. But if you want to become a global champion, you have to start somewhere.

The French Tech Next40/120 has already crossed borders: 88% of the companies in the new class have a physical presence or significant commercial activity abroad in 2024.

Being selected will give them greater international visibility, but it is at home that it will open doors more directly: from 2023, an initiative named “i choose french takeEncourages public administrations and large corporations to source solutions from French startups. Now that the market cares more about profitability, this is far more tangible than the unicorn horn.