Rarely has an economic sector been so closely associated with a political figure: The French tech ecosystem is linked to the image of Emmanuel Macron, who early on proclaimed himself a president of the so-called start-up nation. “A ‘start-up nation’ is a nation where everyone can say to themselves that they will be able to create a start-up. I want France to be one,” he said in April 2017, borrowing a slogan sometimes used to refer to Israel. But for the digital sector, the snap legislative elections with the Rassemblement National (RN, far right) leading the polls is an unnerving prospect.
The start-up nation is preparing for the end of the Macron era. “It’s a shock. We were living in a very stable period. The dissolution [of the Assemblée Nationale], is a slap in the face from Macron. It’s the end of an era,” said the founder of an artificial intelligence (AI) start-up, who was speaking on condition of anonymity at a cocktail party held by the French Tech association on June 24. Part of the start-up nation, this “archetypal center-left voter” − a Macron supporter in 2017 but disappointed since his re-election in 2022 − fears that a shake-up would call into question the public funding that tech has received since 2017.
Start-up association France Digitale published an op-ed in French business newspaper Les Echos warning against “the return of nationalism, the temptation of extremes or turning in on oneself.” It argues in favor of remaining open to foreign capital and employees. Vladimir Spalaïkovitch, founder of the start-up FitSize, recounted how the dissolution “immediately generated apprehension, even fear among the offshore developers who work for us from Tunisia.”
‘I sense pragmatism’
Alexandre Pham, of MisterTemp, said that he had organized a meeting to “analyze the impact” of the vote, wondering about the future of the 14% of non-European foreign workers in his franchise of temping agencies. “At best we’ll tread water, at worst we’ll go backward,” said Olivier Martret, of venture capital firm Serena Capital, quoted by L’Usine Digitale.
Alongside this chorus of concerns, the tech sector is also feeling a certain caution, even a wait-and-see attitude, and resigning themselves to living with the RN if it ends up governing. Many players and lobbies are reluctant to speak out publicly.
“I sense pragmatism. People are torn between their economic selves and their democratic selves: There’s a program that’s better from an economic point of view, but which is problematic democratically,” said a tech professional anonymously, reiterating the idea – already heard among leaders in other sectors – that the RN’s political program would be better for businesses than that of the Nouveau Front Populaire left-wing alliance and its “tax hikes.” “People in the sector also feel that, given the situation and democratic safeguards in place, the arrival of the RN might not create so many changes,” he added. “We’re more worried about the far left coming to power than the far right, because the RN is pro-industry,” said a semiconductor lobbyist cited by Contexte.
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