France – National Strategy for AI

• August 8, 2023
• Andrew

National Strategy for AI was adopted by the President of the Republic in november 2021 as part of the “France 2030” plan. National Strategy for AI is a follow up of the first phase of the strategy – “AI for humanity”, which was implemented in France from 2018 – 2022. The second phase of the national AI strategy continues the work of the 1st phase and aims to expand the pool of AI-trained talents, a crucial competitive advantage, and to accelerate France’s research and development potential for economic success.

The strategy supports the growth of the AI ecosystem at the national level through a public-private partnership, focusing on the following key objectives:

• Enhancing the nation’s skills
• Establishing France as a leader in embedded AI and trustworthy AI
• Accelerating the integration of AI into the economy

The plan is built upon two pillars:

• IA-Cluster: This initiative aims to transform French training and research centers into international hubs of AI expertise. The goal is to establish centers of excellence for AI training and research across France, with the aim of achieving European and global leadership in this field. By 2030, the plan intends to double the number of AI specialists in France. It also aims to enhance the standing of at least three French institutions within the top 50 global universities specializing in AI.
• IA-Booster: This pillar focuses on supporting the digital transformation of French SMEs. It seeks to facilitate the integration of AI technologies into these smaller businesses.

Furthermore, the AI strategy is committed to bridging the gap in AI, data science, and robotics skills within the labor market. To achieve this, the strategy continues to offer financial incentives to higher education and research institutions. These incentives are intended to encourage the expansion of initial training offerings at all levels, including foundational, intermediate, and expert programs, as well as dual programs and the retraining or upskilling of talent.

The priority of this second phase of the strategy is to ensure that France has the means to educate and attract the best international AI talents. This is a crucial challenge to enable France to have an impact on the global AI landscape and enhance the attractiveness to future industry leaders, particularly in the face of digital skills shortages.

The indicators set to be achieved till 2025 in the skills area are:

• Train and financially support a target of at least 2000 students in DUT / bachelor’s / professional bachelor’s programs, 1500 students in master’s programs, and an additional 200 theses per year in steady-state.
• Position a minimum of 1 center of excellence among the top international ranks.
• Recruit 15 world-renowned foreign scientists by January 2024.

The strategy is overseen by the National Coordinator for Artificial Intelligence, Renaud Vedel, and is integrated into the governance structure of the “Investments for the Future Program” (PIA) and the “France 2030” plan through the General Secretariat for Investment (SGPI).