French President Emmanuel Macron attended the country’s first technology event, Vivatech. President Macron told CNBC that France will “invest like crazy” in AI.
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PARIS — France is pushing hard to establish itself as Europe’s artificial intelligence hub, with a focus on fast-growing and touted technology.
“I think we’re number one [in AI] In continental Europe it has to accelerate,” French President Emmanuel Macron told CNBC’s Karen Tso last week.
Countries are looking to position themselves as AI hubs because the technology is considered revolutionary and therefore of strategic importance to governments around the world. AI, which is expected to impact industries from finance to healthcare, is also caught in a broader tech war between China and the United States.
The AI hype was partially driven by the viral nature of US company OpenAI’s ChatGPT chatbot.
At Viva Tech, France’s annual technology conference, AI was on everyone’s lips, from start-ups to established tech companies, as well as companies in industries as diverse as cosmetics and banking.
Mr. Macron, French Finance Minister Bruno Lemaire and Digital Minister Jean-Noël Barraud attended the event, adding government support for France’s technology push.
“We invest like crazy in training and research,” Macron told CNBC, adding that France has an advantage in AI thanks to access to talent and the start-ups being formed around the technology. He added that he was in a position
The United States is in many ways considered the leader in AI, but France wants to catch up.
“It’s clear that the United States is number one,” Macron said. , I want more acceleration.” .
Paris’ ambitions face tough competition, even within the European Union.
“France clearly has a chance to become a leader in Europe, but faces tough competition from Germany and the UK,” Anton Derbra, co-director of the Johns Hopkins University Autonomy Assurance Institute, told CNBC in an email. I have,” he said.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak last week advocated for the UK to become a global AI center.
For France to be successful, D’Abra said it would need to “use AI to strengthen areas of the economy where it already has strengths”, such as manufacturing and pharmaceuticals.
“Now is a critical time to strategically identify specific areas with clear competencies and invest heavily in AI to build an edge,” said Dabula.
French AI companies take notice
Today, the AI story is dominated by US companies, with names like Microsoft, which invested in OpenAI, and chipmaker Nvidia staying on top of our minds.
Macron said France doesn’t have an AI giant like the US, but wants to create two or three “global giants” in the technology space.
The company expects the startup to grow rapidly. Emphasizing the potential and hype of AI development, four-week-old French startup Mistral AI has raised €105 million to fund the company. Many other local startups were showing off their products at his Viva Tech.
Focus on global AI regulation
As part of France’s pitch to become an AI hub, technology regulations are ahead.
While France is usually seen as supporting strong regulation of technology, it has questioned some of the EU AI laws related to generative AI, the technology underpinning OpenAI’s ChatGPT, as being too strict. .
“What worries me is that in recent weeks the EU parliament has taken a very strong stance on AI regulation, and in a way, this function of AI is a means of trying to solve too many problems at once. France’s Digital Minister Barotte said of the regulations on generative AI:
France wants global regulation of AI, which it hopes to achieve through the G7 group, which includes the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development.
“From my point of view … I think regulation is necessary and all players agree with it, including American players. I think we need global regulation,” Macron said.
America is considered a frenemy
France sees the United States as both a rival and an ally. French and European companies will try to compete with US giants like Microsoft and Google, but any global regulation will require Washington’s consent.
“Competition is always good. That is why we are working very closely with the US, but at the same time we want to gain access to our own AI intelligence and companies. It is good for both the United States and Europe to have fair competition between them and to cooperate on some key equipment,” French Finance Minister Bruno Lemaire told CNBC.
“Even with regard to regulation, I think it is absolutely essential to have a thorough discussion with US authorities on how best to regulate artificial intelligence.”