In June 2018, all stakeholders involved in innovation and research promotion in Hauts-de-France joined forces around Eurasanté, as the lead partner, and its partners, SATT Nord, Euratechnologies, and Hauts-de-France Innovation Développement, to submit a single application in response to the call for expressions of interest for the "French Tech Seed Business Contributor" label. Business French Tech Seed" label. With €400 million from the Investment for the Future Program, which is part of the Grand Investment Plan and operated by Bpifrance on behalf of the French government, the French Tech Seed investment fund aims to support innovative deep tech start-ups less than three years old and seeking financing to accelerate their development. French Tech Seed Hauts-de-France has obtained the label and become a prescriber for this investment fund, which will act as an additional lever in the financing of innovative regional start-ups.
Supported by Eurasanté, Euratechnologies, SATT Nord, and the Hauts-de-France Innovation Développement agency, the Hauts-de-France region's application for French Tech Seed certification brings together the entire region and its innovation and research promotion stakeholders. This certification is a unique opportunity for the regional economy to strengthen its support for deep tech companies and their growth.
All key sectors and themes identified in the Regional Economic Development Plan, such as health, food, digital technology, mobility, and the bioeconomy, are eligible for this fund.
The birth of a new pre-seed financing mechanism for start-ups Open to all projects resulting from public or private research, across all sectors, French Tech Seed Hauts-de-France is organized into various selection committees that mark the stages of a precise recommendation process.
• An operational committee headed by Eurasanté, Euratechnologies, SATT Nord, and Hauts-de-France Innovation Développement, evaluates the eligibility of projects submitted by ecosystem players;
• A selection committee involving incubators and regional financing partners (Bpifrance, French Tech Lille, Finovam, Nord France Amorçage, Picardie Investissement, etc.) analyzes start-up applications;
Support is being provided for a presentation to private investors, notably through the regional investment platform Invest'Innove;
• An assessment by Bpifrance is being carried out to access French Tech Seed financing. At the national level, eighteen organizations have been selected as winners of the French Tech Seed AMI, chosen for their response to the following criteria:
• The potential to propose innovative, technology-intensive business creation projects;
• The guarantee of the innovative and technological nature of the projects;
• Guarantee of monitoring and support for the company in terms of strategy
,
commercial development, and financing;
• Ability to mobilize the private financing ecosystem.
Thanks to this certification, French Tech Seed Hauts-de-France aims to finance 20 new projects per year through this new program.