A feast of AI and robotics technology, Europe's largest tech exhibition 'Vivatech 2025'

Europe's largest tech exhibition, Viva Technology 2025, was held at the Paris Expo Porte de Versailles from June 2025 (Wed) to 6 (Sat), 11. It was co-hosted by French economic daily Les Echos and Publicis Groupe, and more than 14 startups from over 4 countries around the world participated. More than 120 companies and organizations from over 1 countries exhibited at the booths, and more than 3500 leaders driving global innovation, including Jensen Huang (CEO of NVIDIA), Zhou Cai (Co-founder of Alibaba), Yann LeCun (Head of Meta AI), Venessa Wyche (Deputy Administrator of NASA), and Bernard Arnault (Chairman of LVMH), participated as keynote speakers.

<2025 Vivatech event site>

[Data: KOTRA Paris Trade Center]

VivaTech, which started as a startup-focused event connecting startups and large corporations in 2016, has grown in scale every year and is now a leading technology fair in Europe, bringing together global corporations, investors, and policymakers. Since the first event, which had 4 visitors, it has shown explosive growth in line with the French government's 'La French Tech' promotion policy. In particular, since President Emmanuel Macron announced the French Tech Initiative at VivaTech in 5000, declaring the attraction of global innovative talent, it has become an international event attended by CEOs of leading global ICT companies and startups every year. The event structure also includes conferences and exhibitions, and it is considered one of the top three technology exhibitions in the world, along with CES in the US and MWC in Spain, with world's first public demonstrations of new technologies, new product launches, startup competitions, and various award ceremonies.

 <Event Overview>

• Event Name: Viva Technology 2025
• Schedule: June 2025 (Wed) ~ 6 (Sat), 11, 14 days (the last day is open to the public)
• Venue: Porte de Versailles, Expo, Paris, France
• Hosted by: French economic daily Les Echos and Publicis Groupe
• Exhibition Areas: Cutting-edge technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), quantum technology, cybersecurity, and blockchain, as well as innovative technologies across 30 industrial sectors including mobility, aerospace, fintech, retail, and the environment (greentech)
• Participation scale: Approximately 165,000 visitors, 13,500 startups expected to participate, 50+ countries participating in national pavilions, and a total of 3,500 corporate/organization booths exhibited
• Structure: Comprehensive event including global leader keynote speeches, thematic conference sessions, panel discussions, startup pitching and competitions, corporate-startup booth exhibitions, investor networking, etc. (focused on open innovation and new technology demos between startups and corporations)

 [Source: Exhibition website]

Europe's AI Strategy and Technological Sovereignty: Macron x Jensen Huang

The last session of the VivaTech opening ceremony on the 11th was a symbolic stage that showed the future direction of the European technology industry and the global AI ecosystem flow. A discussion on the topic of European AI strategy and securing technological sovereignty was held with the attendance of French President Emmanuel Macron, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, and French AI startup Mistral AI CEO Arthur Mensch.

President Macron emphasized that “Europe must build its own future for AI, and technological sovereignty is important,” and Jensen Huang emphasized the need to expand national-level investment in AI infrastructure, saying that “intelligence cannot be outsourced.” Mistral CEO Arthur said that through infrastructure cooperation with Nvidia, Europe has laid the foundation for leading not only simple research but also product development and operation. In response, President Macron promised policy support, saying that this cooperation is “a game changer for expanding Europe’s AI capabilities.”

Jensen Huang also explained the evolution of AI technology in three stages: perceptual AI, generative AI, and agentic AI in his keynote speech at the Paris GTC (GPU Technology Conference) held in VivaTech this year. He mentioned that AI is currently entering the stage of fusion between autonomous agents and robotics, and that in this process, data centers will no longer be simple infrastructure but will play the role of “AI factories.” At this event, he unveiled the next-generation GPU platform, “Grace Hopper (Blackwell),” and also announced plans to expand Europe’s AI computing capacity tenfold within the next two years in cooperation with major European telecommunications companies, including French telecommunications company Orange.

 

A feast of robot technology that communicates and boxes while making eye contact

This year, at the VivaTech exhibition hall, startups and companies from all over the world gathered to demonstrate robotics and AI technologies, capturing the attention of visitors. In particular, during the NVIDIA keynote speech, a cute two-legged walking robot, 'Grek', appeared on stage to show the development of AI robots. This robot captivated the audience by demonstrating walking ability learned through AI-based digital simulation. In one corner of the exhibition hall, humanoid robots danced and dog-shaped four-legged walking robots patrolled the perimeter, creating scenes reminiscent of a science fiction movie, which became a hot topic on SNS.

In particular, the rapid convergence between robots and various industries such as education, healthcare, and logistics was noticeable. Mirokaï, a humanoid robot from French startup Enchanted Tools, recognized human voices and facial expressions based on the NVIDIA Jetson chipset and various sensors, and was capable of autonomous driving and emotional expression, proving its potential for use in medical, hotel, and educational settings. The event was conducted in a way that a robotics engineer directly explained the operating principles and communicated with visitors, and some of the on-site visitors commented that they felt the technological advancement, saying, “After making eye contact with the robot, it didn’t feel like a robot.”

Chinese robot developer Unitree attracted attention with its G1 boxing robot that implements fighting movements. It demonstrated agility and balance control by implementing real boxing movements such as straights, hooks, and aerial spinning kicks, and also demonstrated the ability to automatically get up when it falls. It also demonstrated realistic interaction with detailed movements such as high-fiving and performing tricks with the audience.

Buddy, an emotional educational robot from Blue Frog Robotics of France, which consists of a 60cm small body, expressed emotions through facial expressions and voice recognition, and demonstrated the function of a social robot that converses with visitors. In addition, various robotics technologies such as autonomous delivery robots and industrial drones were introduced in large numbers, and solutions that aim for actual industrial introduction beyond simple exhibitions filled the venue.

[Data: KOTRA Paris Trade Center]

The innovation scene brought about by AI in beauty, medical/healthcare, and fashion

In front of the booth of L'Oréal, a leader in global beauty, visitors were lined up to experience AI that provides customized skin solutions. The system that analyzes the condition of the skin in real time and recommends suitable products by placing the face in front of the smart mirror piqued the curiosity of visitors. Another impressive service was that you could scan a QR code with your phone and take a picture of your face to more accurately measure the condition of your skin after removing makeup, and then simulate customized skincare, makeup, and hairstyles suggested by AI. In particular, everyone was amazed by the smart mirror with 'DermoScan' technology that precisely diagnosed even the inside of the skin. At the Unilever booth, AI color tone recommendation technology that matched skin tone set a new standard for customized beauty for consumers.

 

<Experience AI skin solutions at L'Oréal booth>

[Data: KOTRA Paris Trade Center]

 

Innovations in the medical and healthcare sectors that incorporated AI were also surprising. French startup Owkin presented a solution that uses AI to analyze patients’ genetic data and pathological images to predict cancer treatment responses, while Sonio presented a prenatal diagnosis solution that uses AI to analyze pregnant women’s ultrasound images in real time to detect fetal abnormalities early. In particular, an actual F1 racing car symbolizing the collaboration between France’s largest pharmaceutical company Sanofi and the British F1 team McLaren Racing was on display, garnering much attention. Sanofi applied McLaren’s real-time data analysis and pit-stop simulation technology accumulated in F1 to the manufacturing site, reducing production changeover times by up to 40% and achieving productivity improvements and waste reduction. This is considered a case that successfully contributed to the digital transformation of the pharmaceutical production process by utilizing high-performance technology.

The luxury industry also saw the convergence of AI and digital technology. The global luxury group LVMH (owned by Louis Vuitton, Dior, Celine, and many other fashion and beauty brands) introduced a digital transformation strategy centered on AI-based trend analysis systems and virtual try-on technology at this event. Through interactions where digital humans introduce product information in real time and provide customized recommendations, we were able to see how AI-based personalized consumer experiences are emerging as important competitive advantages in the luxury industry.

At the booth of VusionGroup, a French company that provides store management solutions, visitors could see cutting-edge solutions that combine AI, RFID, cloud, and IoT technologies to automatically grasp inventory status in real time and predict and automate inventory movement and replenishment between stores. At the booth, which implemented an actual store environment, visitors experienced firsthand how smart shelves and sensors automatically recognized inventory and immediately reflected it in mobile apps or management systems.

 

Fast-growing European greentech market centered on carbon reduction, energy efficiency and inclusive technologies

As the need for climate crisis response and energy transition grows, Europe is actively fostering the greentech sector as a next-generation core industry. In fact, ‘Sustainability, Climate & Mobility’ was designated as the official theme for this exhibition, and innovative technologies related to sustainability, climate, and mobility stood out.

French startup Sweetch Energy has introduced a “blue energy” power generation technology that uses the difference in salinity between seawater and freshwater to generate electricity. The technology can be installed without existing large-scale infrastructure and shows the potential to be a clean energy source with no carbon emissions.

Also noteworthy is Carbonfact, a French startup that has developed a SaaS (Software as a Service) platform specializing in carbon management in the fashion and footwear industries, which are identified as one of the main culprits of carbon emissions. Carbonfact supports global brands in Europe in responding to environmental regulations (e.g., EU CSRD) and establishing decarbonization strategies, and hundreds of fashion and footwear brands are actually measuring and managing the carbon footprint of each product through this platform.

 

Attendance of our startup company

Korea also operated a total of four exhibition halls (pavilions) in collaboration with major organizations, introducing promising startups in various fields such as technology, content, and manufacturing. The Korea SMEs and Startups Agency focused on cutting-edge technology companies in the fields of AI, robotics, and healthcare, and the Korea International Trade Association (KITA) selected startups with digital innovation technologies to form the ‘K-Startup Pavilion’ and actively supported networking with local partners in Europe.

The Korea Creative Content Agency (KOCCA) also attracted the attention of visitors through an experiential exhibition of companies with cultural content technologies such as metaverse, virtual humans, VR and AR. The Gyeonggi Economic and Science Promotion Agency (GBSA) exhibited companies in Gyeonggi Province with digital manufacturing and supply technologies and presented practical technology demonstrations centered on smart factories and advanced manufacturing solutions. The four Korean pavilions, which were composed in this way, attracted attention throughout the exhibition as a place to prove the technological capabilities and global cooperation potential of Korean startups. At the site, a startup pitching session by Korean companies was also held with a large number of French and European investors, large corporations’ open innovation officials, and startup accelerators in attendance.

  <Korea Creative Content Agency Booth>

[Data: KOTRA Paris Trade Center]

Startup policies and investment environment in France, the hub of European innovation

France is positioned as the most active AI and IT startup investment market in Europe as of 2024. The scale of startup investment in France is approximately 108 billion euros (approximately 16 trillion won), surpassing the UK and Germany and recording the highest level in Europe. In particular, public and private investment in technology-centered startups centered on generative AI, biotech, and deep tech is rapidly increasing.

The French government operates the French Tech Visa system to attract entrepreneurs, technical personnel, and investors from around the world. The visa guarantees a stay in France for up to four years, and family members can also join. In addition, it has created a startup-friendly institutional environment by implementing tax benefits, regulatory sandboxes, and the public procurement priority purchase campaign (Je Choisis La French Tech). These efforts are rooted in the 'French Tech' initiative launched in 4, and have become a national policy since President Macron's global declaration in 2013.

< Key policies to promote French startups >

• French Tech Visa (2017~) :

- (Main contents and support method) Long-term residence visa (up to 4 years) for entrepreneurs, technical talents, and investors, family members allowed, annual minimum income standards, etc. Simplified documentation, guaranteed freedom of employment, entrepreneurship, and investment in France.

-(Expected effects and characteristics) Attracting foreign entrepreneurs and engineers, strengthening the French innovation ecosystem, and promoting the inflow of global talent

• French Tech Next40/FT120 (2019~): 

- (Main contents and support method) Every year, the top 120 (FT120) and 40 (Next40) startups are selected based on growth potential and innovation. Customized consulting, funding, global expansion, and support for government ministries and agencies are provided.

-(Expected effects and features) Intensive fostering of unicorns and promising global startups, practical support in regulations, taxes, and recruitment, and strengthening of international networks

• French Tech 2030(2023~) : 

- (Main contents and support method) Linked to the France 2030 budget, selection of 100 to 125 startups in strategic fields such as AI, eco-friendliness, and biotechnology, customized strategic and financial support, collaboration with Bpifrance, etc.

-(Expected effects and features): Focused fostering of future strategic industry startups, full mobilization of government, public institutions, and investment banks, strengthening of global competitiveness

• Bpifrance affiliated investment (2012~) : 

- (Main contents and support method) Various financial support such as creation of venture fund, direct and indirect investment, private fund matching, subsidies and loans led by state-owned investment bank Bpifrance. The scale of support is continuously expanding, and recently announced an investment of 2029 billion euros in the AI ​​field by 100.

- (Expected effects and features) Activation of venture investment, promotion of private capital inflow, improvement of startup funding environment, fostering of French AI ecosystem

• Je choisis la French Tech (2021~) :

- (Main contents and support method) Encourage the public sector to purchase French tech companies' products and services first, with more than 600 companies and organizations participating, expanding opportunities to enter the public procurement market

- (Expected effects and features) Preferential treatment for French tech companies in the public procurement market, providing opportunities for increased sales and market verification

• Regulatory Sandbox (2019~) : 

- (Main contents and support method) Regulatory exemption and special system for verification of innovative technologies such as fintech and AI, leading discussions on EU-level sandbox, application to new industries such as blockchain and tokens

- (Expected effects and features) Promoting entry into the innovative technology market, improving policy based on evidence, leading EU regulations

 [Data: KOTRA Paris Trade Center]

implication

This year's VivaTech 2025 was an important stage to read not only global technology trends, but also specific social values ​​and policy directions required by the European market. In particular, green tech fields centered on carbon reduction, energy transition, and inclusive technology received attention, and investors also showed great interest in startups that make real contributions to ESG. Our companies can also increase their market entry potential by presenting practical solutions that meet European regulatory trends and social demands. Carbon reduction, energy efficiency, and AI-based social problem-solving products have great potential to be linked to European public procurement.

As Europe is strengthening its technological sovereignty and AI ethics and promoting the creation of an independent ecosystem, it would be advantageous to strategically seek joint R&D and joint business models with local partners. Rather than entering the market alone, companies with a cooperative structure with the French government, local governments, the European Union, and the French Tech Community are more likely to be evaluated highly, and actively utilizing support programs provided by our government, such as KOTRA, can help secure a local network.

In addition, Mr. B, a French startup investment expert who was met at the event, advised in an interview with KOTRA Paris Trade Center that “startups participating in Vivatech need to set targets they want to meet through the event in advance and prepare items and messages that match those targets.” This means that there will be a big difference at the event between companies that have thoroughly researched the European market in advance and those that have not.

Lastly, although the European market seems like a single market, it is essential to have a ‘localization strategy’ as each country has distinct languages, laws, and consumer tendencies. In fact, at this event, pitching materials written in French, joint booth operation with local companies, and cases of collaboration with local influencers attracted the attention of investors, showing that beyond simple product promotion, cultural understanding and market adaptability are also being evaluated. Accordingly, it would be advantageous to prepare English/French parallel promotional materials, regulatory response roadmaps, and customized product strategies for each market in advance to systematize the entry strategy.