France's Mistral AI raises 105 mln euros shortly after being set up (updated)

Sofina SA

13/06/2023 19:37

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      Fund-raising led by Lightspeed Venture Partners
    

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      Ex Google CEO Schmidt is shareholder in firm
    

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      Xavier Niel and Rodolphe Saade also involved in funding
    

  
 (Updates throughout with details from company statement)
    By Sudip Kar-Gupta
       PARIS, June 13 (Reuters) - French technology and
artificial intelligence company Mistral AI has raised 105
million euros ($113.4 million) just a month after being set up,
the company said on Tuesday, giving a boost to France's plans to
market itself as a major global tech hub.
    The fund-raising highlights the rapid growth of the
artificial intelligence (AI) sector as well as Europe's desire
to create rivals to Silicon Valley companies such as
Microsoft-backed  MSFT.O  OpenAI and Google's  GOOGL.O 
DeepMind.
    Paris-based Mistral AI was set up by former Meta  META.O 
and Google artificial intelligence researchers Timothee Lacroix,
Guillaume Lample and Arthur Mensch. 
    "We are proud to initiate this global project from France,
our home country, and to contribute, at our level, to the
emergence of a credible new player in generative artificial
intelligence from Europe," Mensch, Mistral AI's president, said.
    Mistral AI's fund-raising was led by international venture
capital fund Lightspeed Venture Partners. 
    Businessmen Xavier Niel and Rodolphe Saade were also
involved, as were JCDecaux Holding  JCDX.PA , Italy's Exor
Ventures  EXOR.AS  and Belgian firm Sofina  SOF.BR . Former
Google CEO Eric Schmidt is also a shareholder in Mistral AI.
    Paris has traditionally lagged New York, California and
London as a technology hub, but Mistral AI's fund-raising was
lauded by French government minister Jean-Noel Barrot, as Paris
aims to burnish its credentials as a global tech centre.
    "Bravo to the start-up Mistral AI which has raised 105
million euros just a month after its creation: a record!" wrote
Barrot on Twitter.
 ($1 = 0.9264 euro)

 (Reporting by Sudip Kar-Gupta; editing by David Evans and
Leslie Adler)
 ((sudip.kargupta@thomsonreuters.com;))