ChatGPT maker OpenAI to launch subsidiary in Paris as city aims to become AI hub - report

OpenAI is opening a subsidiary in France as the company tries to establish itself in Europe, according to local media. 

The ChatGPT-maker’s office will be based in Paris and called OpenAI France, according to the business publication L’Informé, which cited official company creation documents.

The subsidiary will "commercialise, sell and distribute software products" and research and development for these products.

Euronews Next has contacted OpenAI for confirmation of the news but did not receive a reply at the time of publication. 

The California-based company catapulted onto the technology scene in 2022 with its generative artificial intelligence (genAI) software. The company is reported to be raising $6.5 billion (€5.8 billion) in a funding round that would value OpenAI at over $150 billion (€134 billion). 

France's aims of becoming a tech powerhouse

OpenAI opened offices in London and Dublin last year, as the company has made no secret that it seeks to boost its presence in Europe. It has also recently hired several Paris-based recruits such as Julie Lavet, to lead lobbying in Europe.

French President Emmanuel Macron has said he wants Paris to transform "from the City of Light into the City of AI". 

The French government has climbed onto the global AI stage thanks to its initiative to support innovation and start-ups, which the country has been heavily investing in since 2017.

"Talent is not only returning, but some of it is no longer leaving, and today we even have major international companies coming to invest in France," French Digital Minister Mariana Ferrari told Euronews Next in May.

Mistral AI is one of France’s success stories. The start-up was founded in 2023 by former Meta and Google engineers and has since raised almost €6 billion. 

H is another Paris-based AI start-up working on new models and has soared in valuation. Its co-founders previously worked at Google DeepMind.