Plans have been unveiled in Paris for their version of our Tech City and California’s Silicon Valley.The ‘mega digital incubator’ – as it is rapidly becoming known as, will house around 1000 start-up businesses in a listed building known as Freyssinet Hall.
The complex will also include; gardens, a digital library, an auditorium, a bar and office space. Top fashion shows are also planned to be hosted at the complex which is due to be completed by 2016.
Speaking of the plans, the man in charge of innovation at the town hall in Paris, Jean-Louis Missika, said: “It will be a huge incubator that will gather young innovative enterprises in the digital sector, perhaps the biggest incubator in the world. It will be a co-working space that will enable companies to access innovative but highly costly tools, such as 3D printers.”
But are the Paris plans any match for Tech City and Silicon Valley? The architect behind Paris’s incubator, Jean-Michel Wilmotte thinks so.
He said: “Paris is a digital city, the most innovative capital in Europe. In terms of capacity and modularity, this unique location will be well above what is being done in London, Silicon Valley or in Israel.”
Do you agree with Mr Wilmotte that Paris is “the most innovative capital in Europe” or do you think France is simply playing catch up with what we already have?
