The 6th edition of Paris-Saclay SPRING was held on 1-2 June 2023 with Servier once again acting as ambassador. During this not-to-be-missed event, innovation stakeholders gathered at the HEC Paris campus, host of this year’s event. Paris-Saclay SPRING is an opportunity to discover the breadth and diversity of the Paris-Saclay ecosystem and, for Servier, to create new innovative research collaborations!
Paris-Saclay SPRING, a unique opportunity to meet the most innovative startups
A format encouraging open innovation and interaction
SPRING is a unique event. All stakeholders on the Paris-Saclay campus who directly or indirectly contribute to innovation in France are invited to take part. Over the course of two days, companies, investors, academics, researchers and, of course, startups meet in a setting conducive to interaction.
The program includes round-table discussions, an “innovation village”, tours of buildings dedicated to innovation, pitches from 50 startups, and as well as individual meetings organized to allow participants to create new synergies. It’s a unique opportunity for startups to find funding for their projects, but also for groups like Servier to forge new partnerships aimed at accelerating research to benefit patients.
Innovation in six fields of excellence
Paris-Saclay SPRING highlights scientific advances in six areas of excellence on the Paris-Saclay campus. These include players in Foodtech, Greentech, innovations in mobility and transport, digital technologies, newspace and, of course, health and biotech, which relate more directly to Servier’s activities.
This year, startup CGenetix won 1st prize for the most innovative and promising biotech startup in the health-biotech category of Pitch 50.
Servier gets involved in the Paris-Saclay ecosystem
Servier, 5 months after moving to Paris-Saclay
This February, the first employees arrived at our new R&D Institute. Servier chose Paris-Saclay in order to increase synergies with institutional and private research players. The aim is to bring together our Group’s innovation potential in a powerful ecosystem and scientific center of excellence.
During Paris-Saclay SPRING, around a hundred visitors had the opportunity to discover our Institute and its stimulating working environment. Designed by Wilmotte & Associés, the architecture of the building itself is designed to promote new working methods.
Ambassador of Paris-Saclay competitiveness cluster
The Paris-Saclay public development agency (Etablissement Public d’Aménagement – EPA) has created a network of ambassadors from major groups and economic players based in the area. Servier is one of them, along with Danone, Total, Saint-Gobain, and the Paris-Saclay Cancer Cluster. In this capacity, Servier intends to raise the profile of the campus and its assets in order to showcase French scientific and technological excellence internationally.
Christophe Thurieau, General Director of Servier Research, represented the Group at the SPRING Ambassadors Round Table. He spoke of the importance of the Servier R&D Institute in Paris-Saclay, as well as the challenges faced in establishing ourselves on the campus.
“We chose the Paris-Saclay campus to address the challenges of our industry because it is one of the most dynamic ecosystems in the world. This is a unique opportunity for us to increase synergies with other top-level institutional and private players involved in Research in France. Through our new R&D Institute dedicated to innovation, we aim to contribute to the international profile of this leading innovation hub. Paris-Saclay SPRING is the concrete application of the campus spirit fostering open innovation: meeting, discussing, building, developing, and innovating together.”
Christophe Thurieau, General Director of Servier Research
The Paris-Saclay ecosystem in figures
15%
Paris-Saclay accounts for the equivalent of 15% of French research (in terms of number of researchers)
40%
Paris-Saclay accounts for 40% of private and public research jobs in the Paris Region
8
Paris-Saclay is one of the 8 most important innovation hubs in the world1
600
More than 600 startups are based on campus
Spartners by Servier & BioLabs incubator for innovative startups
The Spartners by Servier & BioLabs incubator, operated by our partner Biolabs, is directly incorporated into our Institute. A space of 1,850 m² is available to startups, including highly equipped laboratories, specially designed offices to facilitate interaction and sharing, as well as reception and restaurant areas.
Paris-Saclay SPRING was also an opportunity for startups to project themselves into these unique premises.
Spartners by Servier & BioLabs has been designed to accommodate over a hundred scientists, or around fifteen startups, which will be renewed every two years on average.
[1] Ranking by Technology Review, published by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)