- On the occasion of the European Deeptech Week organized by Bpifrance, CentraleSupélec announces the publication of the first edition of the study Deeptech Dynamics, conducted in partnership with Bpifrance and France Deeptech. This initiative aims to better understand the success factors and obstacles faced by startups. The objective is to raise awareness among various stakeholders - and particularly investors - of the specific characteristics of deeptech startups to better support them in scaling up.
- Indeed, as the French deeptech ecosystem enters a phase of maturation and acceleration, a new framework for understanding the innovation pathways specific to deeptech companies is necessary to accelerate the growth of the European ecosystem. This is particularly true in a context where 15% of deeptech startups - referred to in the study as "World Builders" - capture 40% of the funds raised, demonstrating an unequal distribution of funding among startups based on their nature and the need to refine the criteria guiding investment choices to ensure a balanced deployment of the Deeptech plan led by Bpifrance.
A historic commitment from CentraleSupélec to deeptech innovation and entrepreneurship
As a leading engineering and systems science grande école, CentraleSupélec has played a prominent role for several years in supporting the development of technological entrepreneurship and innovation in France and Europe. The institution actively encourages its students, researchers, and alumni to transform their scientific work and ideas into entrepreneurial projects capable of addressing major contemporary technological, industrial, and societal challenges.
This commitment is reflected in the implementation of a comprehensive support system for deeptech startup projects, covering all stages of their development: from ideation to acceleration, including incubation and funding. Following this approach, CentraleSupélec created the accelerator 5 years ago (in 2021) 21st by CentraleSupélec dedicated to innovative companies, which has supported over 100 deeptech startups since its launch. Similarly, the school also launched CentraleSupélec Venture, an investment fund designed to support entrepreneurial projects emerging from its ecosystem. These initiatives have resulted in:
- 1,276 startups founded by alumni
- 10 unicorns, representing a cumulative valuation of 82 billion euros
- 172 deeptech startups created by alumni
- 50 scale-ups featured in the FrenchTech 2030 and Next40/120 programs
As part of this dynamic, the school also develops new partnership initiatives each year aimed at strengthening synergies between academic, industrial, and institutional stakeholders. In 2024, CentraleSupélec notably launched the Deeptech+ LAUNCH training program, in partnership with ESSEC Business School and Systematic Paris Région, to support the creation and development of deeptech startups in the Île-de-France region.
A privileged vantage point for understanding the innovation trajectories of deeptech startups
This commitment to innovative companies places CentraleSupélec and its accelerator 21st at a privileged vantage point for deeptech startups and the obstacles they face as they grow. It is from this position that the school has been able to identify typical development trajectories for deeptech startups, whose innovation cycles, funding needs, and market dynamics often differ from those of conventional tech startups.
For example, it observed that the World Builders, startups that don't just enter a market but must simultaneously build their technology, value chain, and ecosystem (e.g., Mistral AI, Alice & Bob, Verkor, Innovafeed, etc.), attract 40% of invested funds while representing only 15% of projects, and raise an average of 26 million euros in SEED funding, 8 to 9 times more than other categories. This finding highlights an unequal distribution of funds among startups based on their nature and the need to refine the criteria guiding investment choices. This is crucial to equitably support the deployment of the Deeptech plan led by Bpifrance and to reflect the diversity of innovations being developed.
In this context, CentraleSupélec publishes the study Deeptech Dynamics conducted in partnership with Bpifrance and France Deeptech, which aims to provide entrepreneurs, investors, support organizations, and public policymakers with new analytical and strategic insights into the sector. Based on a quantitative analysis of a cohort of 240 startups, as well as a series of in-depth interviews with around forty deeptech scale-up leaders and specialized investment funds, the study highlights the limitations of traditional deeptech startup analysis approaches, primarily based on sectoral segmentation (health, space, defense, food, etc.) and the depth of technological breakthroughs offered.
The "Deeptech Quadrant," a new analytical framework for "scaling" deeptech
To better understand the factors driving the scaling of deeptech companies, the study proposes a new analytical matrix - the Deeptech Quadrant - which distinguishes four main families of companies with distinct characteristics.
- The Performers, who develop innovations that build upon existing technological standards to improve their performance.
- The Transformers, who rely on disruptive technologies capable of profoundly transforming an industrial sector.
- The Explorers, whose technologies must progressively identify and structure their application markets.
- The World Builders, who drive innovations capable of forming the foundations of new industrial sectors and value chains.
These new categories of companies constitute a "new atlas of deeptech innovation" and are set to become the new foundation for reflection and analysis for all ecosystem players (incubators, investors, universities, innovation hubs, etc.) in France and Europe. Indeed, the gradual establishment of a shared framework will ultimately enable the construction of tailored support and investment strategies based on target markets and the type of innovation developed by these young companies. This is an essential milestone for achieving, in the coming years, the European ambition to foster a new generation of globally influential technological leaders on its soil.
« By contributing to a better understanding of the specific dynamics of deeptech companies through an approach that challenges conventional thinking among funds, entrepreneurs, and incubators, the Deeptech Dynamics study ultimately aims to foster the emergence and growth of more startups developing breakthrough innovations capable of achieving sustainable industrial and economic viability. Beyond this first edition of the study, our ambition is to build a European Deeptech Observatory, which will eventually allow for comparisons between different EU markets, providing a holistic view of best practices across the continent. », comments Dr. Rodolphe Rosier, Deputy Director of Innovation and Entrepreneurship at CentraleSupélec and author of the study Deeptech Dynamics.
« Deeptech is central to the momentum driven by the France 2030 plan, aiming to transform French scientific excellence into world-class industrial innovations. Through its support for this study, conceived and designed by CentraleSupélec with the help of Bpifrance, France Deeptech aims to highlight the diverse growth trajectories of startups and accelerate the emergence of technological champions capable of addressing the major challenges of sovereignty and competitiveness for our economy. », adds Romain Roullois, General Manager of France Deeptech.
« European deeptech has significantly gained momentum in recent years. To scale up, it needs to attract new players, both industrial and financial, who are not yet fully familiar with it. This requires it to become more understandable. At Bpifrance, we have always believed that transparency and data sharing are essential levers to achieve this: you cannot attract what you cannot explain. The framework proposed by CentraleSupélec is not prescriptive, but it helps build a common culture, a shared understanding among entrepreneurs, investors, and industrialists. This is exactly what we aim to do at European Deeptech Week: create the conditions for these stakeholders to understand each other, communicate, and build together. We are proud to support our partners' initiatives that contribute to this goal. », concludes David Boujo, Deeptech Development Director at Bpifrance.
About CentraleSupélec - www.centralesupelec.fr
Born in 2015 from the merger of École Centrale Paris (1829) and Supélec (1894), CentraleSupélec is a leading engineering and systems science grande école. A public institution and founding member of Université Paris-Saclay, it trains over 5,400 students annually across four campuses in France (Paris-Saclay, Metz, Rennes, and Reims) and boasts an exceptional global alumni network.
With 18 laboratories and research teams, the school relies on a unique innovation and technology transfer ecosystem, supported by 3,000 partner companies and over 1,270 startups, including 10 unicorns with a combined valuation of 82 billion euros.
Resolutely open to the world, CentraleSupélec welcomes 25% international students and collaborates with over 170 of the most prestigious partner universities worldwide. As President of the Groupe des Écoles Centrale, it also oversees the Centrale schools in Beijing, Hyderabad, and Casablanca.
Driven by an ambitious strategic plan, and capitalizing on its industrial DNA and the strong relationships it has maintained with the socio-economic world since its inception, the school aims to double its graduate output between 2022 and 2032, and strengthen its impact on major societal challenges: ecological and energy transitions, national and European sovereignty, and health and quality of life.
About the 21st acceleratorst - http://www.centralesupelec.fr/entrepreneuriat
As an impact accelerator, 21st by CentraleSupélec supports students, researchers, and entrepreneurs in developing deeptech startups, from ideation to scaling up.
Rooted in CentraleSupélec's entrepreneurial DNA, which has spawned numerous success stories in France and internationally, 21st annually supports over 200 projects with high environmental and societal impact, across three major innovation areas: Climate & Biodiversity, serving climate transition, in partnership with AgroParisTech; Health & Care, serving health and medical research; and Future of Industry, serving industrial revival and technological sovereignty, in partnership with the DATAIA institute. Supported startups benefit from access to the Paris-Saclay and STATION F campuses, as well as a unique ecosystem combining strategic coaching, mentorship, funding, 18 research laboratories, over 400 research faculty, and a network of 50,000 alumni.
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