AI for Humanity: French industry engages on Artificial Intelligence

PRESS RELEASE
July 3^rd, 2019
Paris
                                     

AI for Humanity: French industry engages on Artificial Intelligence

• In line with the French government's AI for Humanity strategy, the Ministry of Economy and Finance and eight of France's global industry players — Air Liquide, Dassault Aviation, EDF, Renault, Safran, Thales, Total and Valeo — today signed a manifesto on Artificial Intelligence for Industry.
• In the manifesto, the eight global companies put forward a common strategic vision of AI.
• The signatories have agreed to conduct a joint review between now and September 2019, to share findings with policymakers and establish a coordinated plan of action with the French AI ecosystem by the end of the year, and to encourage the participation of all public and private stakeholders who share this common strategic vision of AI.

Leveraging AI to drive growth and create jobs for industry

All eight companies depend on innovation to drive their growth and are engaged in a far-reaching digital transformation. They have come together to define a common strategic foundation for AI with a view to establishing leadership positions in their respective markets at international level. The companies will work together on issues related to the development of the AI technologies that meet the requirements of their industries, and in particular the Big Data technologies that are critical to their competitive performance. The aim is to reach critical mass more quickly in priority fields of research.

Trusted, explainable and certifiable AI

In the manifesto on Artificial Intelligence for Industry, the signatories identify themes of common interest, with specific reference to the use of AI in industrial environments: trust, explainability and even certifiability; embedded systems (i.e. autonomous electronic systems used to perform a task); AI for design, simulation, development, testing and logistics; AI for maintenance and Industry 4.0; and issues related to very high performance, reliability, robustness, and more generally the use of AI in critical systems.

The manifesto: industry engagement with the principle of open innovation
As the digital transformation gains pace, and with increasing international competition and growing cybersecurity requirements, the signatories call for coordinated action, first by industry players, and also by industry and the academic community, and by industry and policymakers. The objective of this open innovation approach is to share research and development capabilities and raise awareness of the uses of AI in industry while at the same time supporting the recruitment of the best talent in France.

Once the joint review has been conducted, the signatories will share the findings with policymakers with a view to defining concrete policy measures by the end of 2019 to be coordinated at the national level across the entire French AI ecosystem. All public and private stakeholders who share this common strategic vision of AI will thus be encouraged to join this initiative.

Through this manifesto, the signatories from industry seek to develop a collective response to the need for sovereign AI capabilities in terms of both economic sovereignty (technological independence of French companies operating internationally) and national sovereignty (one of the four priorities identified in the Villani report).

To read more about AI for Humanity, please visit https://www.aiforhumanity.fr/en/

About Air Liquide

A world leader in gases, technologies and services for Industry and Health, Air Liquide is present in 80 countries with approximately 66,000 employees and serves more than 3.6 million customers and patients. Oxygen, nitrogen and hydrogen are essential small molecules for life, matter and energy. They embody Air Liquide’s scientific territory and have been at the core of the company’s activities since its creation in 1902.

Air Liquide’s ambition is to be a leader in its industry, deliver long term performance and contribute to sustainability. The company’s customer-centric transformation strategy aims at profitable growth over the long term. It relies on operational excellence, selective investments, open innovation and a network organization implemented by the Group worldwide. Through the commitment and inventiveness of its people, Air Liquide leverages energy and environment transition, changes in healthcare and digitization, and delivers greater value to all its stakeholders.

Air Liquide’s revenue amounted to 21 billion euros in 2018 and its solutions that protect life and the environment represented more than 40% of sales. Air Liquide is listed on the Euronext Paris stock exchange (compartment A) and belongs to the CAC 40, EURO STOXX 50 and FTSE4Good indexes.

About Dassault Aviation

With over 10,000 military and civil aircraft delivered in more than 90 countries over the last century, Dassault Aviation has built up expertise recognized worldwide in the design, development, sale and support of all types of aircraft, ranging from the Rafale fighter, to the high-end Falcon family of business jets and military drones. In 2018, Dassault Aviation reported revenues of €5.1 billion. The company has 11,500 employees.

https://www.dassault-aviation.com/en/
Twitter: @Dassault_OnAir

About EDF

A key player in energy transition, the EDF Group is an integrated electricity company, active in all areas of the business: generation, transmission, distribution, energy supply and trading, energy services. A global leader in low-carbon energies, the Group has developed a diversified generation mix based on nuclear power, hydropower, new renewable energies and thermal energy. The Group is involved in supplying energy and services to approximately 39.8 million customers(1), 29.7million of which are in France. It generated consolidated sales of €69 billion in 2018. EDF is listed on the Paris Stock Exchange.

(1)The customers were counted at the end of 2018 per delivery site; a customer can have two delivery points: one for electricity and another for gas.

About Groupe Renault

Groupe Renault has manufactured cars since 1898. Today it is an international multi-brand group, selling close to 3.9 million vehicles in 134 countries in 2018, with 36 manufacturing sites, 12,700 points of sales and employing more than 180,000 people.

To address the major technological challenges of the future, while continuing to pursue its profitable growth strategy, Groupe Renault is focusing on international expansion. To this end, it is drawing on the synergies of its five brands (Renault, Dacia, Renault Samsung Motors, Alpine and LADA), electric vehicles, and its unique alliance with Nissan and Mitsubishi Motors. With a 100% Renault owned team committed to the Formula 1 World Championship since 2016, the brand is involved in motorsports, a real vector for innovation and awareness.

About Safran

Safran is an international high-technology group, operating in the aircraft propulsion and equipment, space and defense markets. Safran has a global presence, with more than 92,000 employees and sales of 21 billion euros in 2018. Working alone or in partnership, Safran holds world or European leadership positions in its core markets. Safran undertakes Research & Development programs to meet fast-changing market requirements, with total R&D expenditures of around 1.5 billion euros in 2018.

Safran is listed on the Euronext Paris stock exchange, and is part of the CAC 40 and Euro Stoxx 50 indices

For more information: www.safran-group.com / Follow @Safran on Twitter.

About Thales

The people who make the world go round – they rely on Thales. Our customers come to us with big ambitions: to make life better, to keep us safer. Combining a unique diversity of expertise, talents and cultures, our architects design and deliver extraordinary high technology solutions. Solutions that make tomorrow possible, today. From the bottom of the oceans to the depths of space and cyberspace, we help our customers think smarter and act faster, mastering ever greater complexity at every decisive moment along the way. With 80,000 employees in 68 countries, Thales reported sales of €19 billion in 2018, on a pro forma basis including Gemalto

www.thalesgroup.com / Twitter : @Thalesgroup

About Total

Total is a major energy player that produces and markets fuels, Natural Gas and low-carbon electricity. Our 100,000 employees are committed to better energy that is safer, more affordable, cleaner and accessible to as many people as possible. Active in more than 130 countries, our ambition is to become the responsible energy major.

About Valeo

Valeo is an automotive supplier, partner to all automakers worldwide. As a technology company, Valeo proposes products and systems that contribute to the reduction of CO2 emissions and to the development of autonomous driving. Innovation is central to the Group’s strategy, with 2 billion euros invested in Research and Development in 2018.

Already the world’s leading manufacturer of driving assistance sensors, Valeo is now on track to become one of the major players in automotive-focused artificial intelligence, recording 1 billion euros in order intake for AI-enabled products in 2018. Leveraging a team of 200 AI experts, in 2017 the Group opened Valeo.ai, the first global fundamental research center fully dedicated to AI for automotive applications.

PRESS CONTACTS

Air Liquide
+33 (0)1 40 62 58 49
media@airliquide.com

Dassault Aviation
Corporate Communications
Mathieu Durand
+33 (0)1 47 11 85 88
mathieu.durand@dassault-aviation.com

EDF
+33 (0)1 40 42 46 37
service-de-presse@edf.fr

Groupe Renault
Vanessa LOURY
+33 (0)1 76 84 52 94
vanessa.loury@renault.com

Safran
Quitterie de BREBISSON
quitterie.de-brebisson@safrangroup.com
T +33 (0)1 40 60 84 40

Thales
Alice Pruvot
+33(0)1 57 77 89 52
alice.pruvot@thalesgroup.com

Total
Media Relations: +33 1 47 44 46 99 l presse@total.com l @TotalPress
Investor Relations: +44 (0)207 719 7962 l ir@total.com

Valeo
43 rue Bayen 75017 Paris
Press contact
07 64 56 85 48 | 06 81 73 83 41
press-contact.mailbox@valeo.com

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