Health Data Hub: France (finally) makes its shift towards a sovereign cloud
The Health Data Platform selected Scaleway to host its infrastructures, marking a turning point after years of controversy surrounding the use of Microsoft and the risks linked to the Cloud Act. At the end of a process based on more than 350 technical criteria, the State is validating for the first time on a large scale a European alternative capable of managing critical health data, including that of the National Health Data System.
Beyond the choice of infrastructure, the decision marks a strategic shift: digital sovereignty becomes an operational, structuring criterion for sensitive public projects. The key issue of execution now remains, while this migration will serve as a full-scale test to assess the ability of European players to compete sustainably with American hyperscalers.
UNIVITY invests 27 million euros on 5G space infrastructure to give back control to telecom operators
UNIVITY, space connectivity operator, is raising 27 million euros from Blast, Expansion and the Deeptech 2030 fund managed by Bpifrance, in order to accelerate the development of its orbital telecom infrastructure. The startup relies on a very low orbit (VLEO) architecture combined with the exploitation of operators’ 5G spectrum to offer low-latency high-speed connectivity, directly interoperable with existing networks. Its uniShape demonstrator, developed with the support of CNES, must validate a world first: continuity of 5G service between space and land, including direct connectivity to smartphones.
Unlike the integrated models supported by players like Starlink, UNIVITY adopts a “wholesale” approach, providing neutral space infrastructure that operators can operate themselves. This positioning aims to preserve their role in the value chain, while land-space convergence is establishing itself as an industrial standard. The lifting should make it possible to reach an industrial milestone with a view to commercial deployment from 2028, in a hybrid connectivity market estimated at several tens of billions of euros by 2030, in a context where sovereignty and control of infrastructure become central.
OUIDROP raises 7 million euros to industrialize the autonomous collection of races
OUIDROP announces a fundraising of 7 million euros from Épopée Gestion, SWEN Capital Partners, GSO Innovation and Crédit Agricole. The Bordeaux startup, which is developing the Dropper, a tri-temperature robotic system allowing the withdrawal of groceries 24 hours a day, is aiming for rapid industrialization with a new production site.
Already deployed with brands such as E.Leclerc and Intermarché, the company plans 40 installations by the end of 2026 and a move to 200 annual units by 2030. In a drive-through market worth 13.6 billion euros, OUIDROP is betting on the automation of the last mile to restore the profitability of brands.
From Mistral to xAI: Devendra Chaplot changes sides in the model war
Devendra Chaplot, member of the Mistral AI founding team, joined xAI, where he now works on next-generation models. AI Research Scientist at Mistral between August 2023 and February 2025, he participated in the development of the French startup’s key models, including Mistral 7B, Mixtral 8x7B and Mistral Large. Beyond these contributions, Devendra Chaplot led multimodal research, notably with Pixtral 12B and Pixtral Large, and had initiated the presence of Mistral in the United States.
