Facebook to open startup incubator in Paris, will boost AI
In an event held in Station F last week, Sandberg has launched an initiative Facebook calls Startup Garage, which will provide 80 desks and working space for 10-15 independent start-ups in the data economy.
According to a report from the Financial Times, Facebook will not take equity in any of the chosen companies, but instead provide expertise to get them off the ground. The new incubator will be its second major investment in Paris, following the opening of its only European artificial intelligence lab in 2015.
“France is home to some of the most innovative technology companies in the world,” said Sandberg during the launch event. “We’re excited to support a new generation of French start-ups with enormous potential to grow the economy and create jobs.”
Although Facebook has previously run digital start-up mentorship programmes, this is the first physical space that the company will occupy and run as an accelerator, similar to rival Google’s campus spaces in London, Madrid, Seoul, Tel Aviv, Warsaw and São Paulo, notes the Financial Times.
Facebook is inviting startups to apply via the Startup Garage Facebook page.
On its webpage – https://stationf.co, the Station F campus advertises 34,000 square meters of space and over 3000 desks in the startup zone, encompassing 26 international startup programs, one makerspace, a restaurant, four kitchens a café and a bar. Eight event spaces complete the package, for a €195 monthly fee per desk for full-time residency and program. It will be open 24/7.
Facebook had announced an AI lab in Paris last June as an extension of its Facebook AI Research (FAIR) program. Recruiting a new AI research team in Paris, the company wants to replicate what it has been doing with existing FAIR teams in Menlo Park and New York, working on ambitious long-term research projects in image recognition, natural language processing, speech recognition, and the kinds of physical and logical infrastructure required to run these AI systems.
“We think the FAIR Paris team will bring valuable expertise and new perspectives to our work, and we plan to work openly with and invest in the AI research community in France, the EU, and beyond as we strive to make meaningful progress in these fields. We have a collaborative agreement in place with INRIA, a leading research institute in Paris which opens up new joint study opportunities for talented research professionals, PhD students, and postdoctoral researchers. We believe this open model ultimately spurs more innovation, encourages collaboration and mutual review, and helps us all move faster” wrote Facebook in an online statement.
Station F – https://stationf.co
Startup Garage Facebook – www.facebook.com/FbStationF
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