NEW YORK, March 7, 2016— On the occasion of South by Southwest (SXSW) 2016, the celebrated music, film, and technology innovation festival in Austin, TX that draws over 300,000 people each year, La French Tech, a French government initiative that aims to support French start-ups, has organized a series of varied events showcasing the best of French creation. The French Tech Innovation Square at the SXSW trade show will welcome 20 startups from March 13 to 16.
French Tech Day, on March 15, will include panels, demos, pitches, and concerts, all aimed at promoting French creativity and innovation among professionals and the general public.French Tech Innovation Square – March 13-16Fifteen French startups[1] supported by Business France will visit the French Tech Innovation Square (March 13-16) at the heart of the SXSW trade show. Startups will include Qwant, the European search engine; Holi, alarm clock replacement lamp that connects to your smart phone; Afrostream, the Netflix for African and African-American movies, and more. They’ll be greeted by the Living Mona Lisa, a painting conceived by Florence Aziosmanoff with artificial intelligence that is capable of conversing with spectators. The interactive painting is the perfect example of the strong links between culture and innovation that characterize French creativity.
Devialet, one of the foremost startups worldwide in the field of sound innovation, will also be present among the French Tech scene and will showcase its new speaker system: Phantom, Implosive Sound.
French Tech Day – March 15French Tech Day, taking place on March 15, will highlight the richness of French innovation. Designed to promote French talent, French Tech Day was organized by La French Tech, Business France, the Cultural Services of the French Embassy, and Bureau Export, with support from the Institut Français—Paris. Broken into four major parts, French Tech Day offers a host of festive events to encourage discovery and networking.
French Tech Café – 8:30AM-10:30AM – 201 East 2nd St. (Offices of Cultural Arts Division, City of Austin)Taking place near the Austin Convention Center, this combination breakfast-debate is dedicated to comparing Austin’s and Paris’s ecosystems.Panel: “Austin’s Innovation Economy Leaders Meet France’s Booming Tech Scene”Moderated by: Christophe Daguet, Strategy and Innovation Director at Dell; Liz Wiley, Honorary Consul of France in Austin.With participation from the following incubators, accelerators, and Texan and French entrepreneurs:- Capital Factory (Fred Schmidt/Ali Syed)- Tech Ranch (Kevin Koym)- International Accelerator (Angelos Angelou)- Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce (Michele Skelding, Senior VP Global Technology and Innovation)- NUMA, Paris (Roman Navalpotro)- Orange Digital Ventures (Grégoire de Padirac)- French Digital Council (Yann Bonnet)RSVP recommended via this link
French Tech Demo – 10:30AM-12:00PM- Trade Show – Austin Convention Center, 500 E Cesar Chavez Str.French Tech Innovation Square will welcome four of the most disruptive French startups: Wize and Ope, Prynt, Wynd, and Lucielabs. French Tech Lunch – 12:00PM-3:00PM – Brush Square Park, 409 E 5th St12:15PM-12:40PM – Demo & Pitch Session: Success Stories and New Talents450 professionals will gather for a giant BBQ in Brush Square, an open space at the heart of the festivities, right across from the Convention Center.
Networking opportunities for tech and music professionals will abound at this convivial event, complete with pitch sessions, live concerts, and delicious barbecue.Three French companies who have successfully expanded internationally will tell their stories and share keys to success.
Vivendi Village, which brings together high potential digital services companies as well as entities dedicated to the performing arts and to talent development, will be represented by Chief Marketing Officer Lucien Boyer. Alexandre Panizzoli, director of sales at Devialet will perform a demo of the new ultra high quality Phantom speakers. And Fabrice Sergent, CEO of Bandsintown, will present his app, which is the most-used app in the U.S. for finding concerts.A speedy pitch session will give spectators a glimpse of a dozen French startups—including Happn, Vodkaster, Qwant, Reminiz, and Klaxoon—through one minute-long presentations.12:40PM-3:00PM – Live Music Fakear, the young French electronic music prodigy, and Talisco, the rising star of electro-folk, will perform at Brush Square Park stage.
French Tech Night – 8:00PM-2:00AM – Trinity Hall, 401 East 6th StreetSeveral talented members of the French music scene will close the festive day.8:00PM: Hooka Hey9:00PM: Joon Moon10:00PM: Alice on the Roof11:00PM: Talisco12:00AM: Marina Kaye1:00AM: FakearMore info about SXSW’s music program here: http://www.francerocks.com/austin2016/Press Contact:Clément Moulet – 01 40 73 35 31 – 06 75 55 73 19 – clement.moulet@businessfrance.frCultural Services of the French Embassy: Emilie Cabouat – +1 212 439 1417 – emilie.cabouat@diplomatie.gouv.fr
About La French Tech
France is undergoing a startup renaissance driven by a new generation of entrepreneurs, investors, engineers, designers, and other talented people. It’s a new ‘Startup Republic’, home to vibrant tech hubs and a hotbed of talent, imbued with a strong enterprise culture. The name of this movement is La French Tech, and its actors are the French startups. Since 2013, French startups are united and visible thanks to a single and powerful brand, La French Tech, both in France and abroad.www.lafrenchtech.com @MeetLaFT #FrenchTechSXSW
4D Views, Afrostream, Fretbay, Holi, Klaxoon, Lucie Labs, Prynt, Qwant, Reminiz, Smart&Blue, Vodkaster, Voxeet, WB Technologies, Wize&ope, Wynd