Le Chat, which usually means “the cat” in English, is now the name of the French competition from Mistral AI to ChatGPT, Gemini and DeepSeek. TechRadar describes it as “smart and speedy.” Here’s the link to Le Chat if you would like to give it a try.
Now you know how to say “cat” in French, you should know that “Mistral” is the name of a powerful wind that blows through my hometown in the south of France usually in March. It is a wind so powerful that it has its own name…which makes me think that it’s a great name for the French AI giant.
Individuals or a team of up to 3 students may create and submit an entry. A single entry that is created by more than 3 students will be disqualified from prize contention.
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Entries must be uploaded and submitted online. After uploading to your choice of video host such as YouTube, Google Drive, Dropbox, or WeVideo, students must submit the link to their video via their completed online Entry Form, anytime through the end of the day on April 30, 2025.
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Prize recipients will be determined by judges selected by French Tech for Teens and the judges’ decisions will be final. Winners will be announced in late May, 2025.
Let’s start with a little history. In the early 1980’s, France was a pioneer in telecommunication technology. Before the internet, there was the Minitel! Here it is in all its glory:
The Minitel is a 100% French creation. This little monitor that looks like a computer was simply connected to a telephone jack and allowed millions of French people to benefit from online services.
To learn more, here is a good article about its creation.
Voici mon entretien avec Sealia Thevenau, experte en développement durable et start-ups françaises. Sealia donne des conseils précieux aux jeunes et des exemples concrets à propos des atouts et des défis de la technologie française aujourd’hui. Merci beaucoup, Sealia!
Here is my interview with Sealia Thevenau, expert in sustainability and French start-ups. Sealia gives precious advice to teens and concrete examples of advantages and challenges of French technology today. Thank you very much, Sealia!
French Tech for Teens is a project inspired by La French Tech. But what is La French Tech?
I love this logo with the origami red rooster. Genius! The rooster is the symbol of France, but the origami suggests global relevance. In my hometown of Montpellier in the south of France (where I was born and raised), there are often big marketing stickers on the city trams that advertise this logo. This was my first exposure to the idea of La French Tech.
La French Tech is an administrative service of the French government. The mission of La French Tech is to support the structure and growth of the French start-up ecosystem in France and abroad.
Take a look at the history of La French Tech from the link above. La French Tech was created in 2013. In 2015, the French government provided a budget of 15 million euros for “the creation of international hubs, presence at events.”
Going back to the link above, I found the answer to my question!
“What is the French Tech Mission? * The French Tech Mission was set up in 2013 to support the structuring and growth of the French start-up ecosystem, both in France and internationally. It is responsible for implementing public policies aimed at start-ups and federating this ecosystem nationally and internationally.”
I live in Orlando, Florida. La French Tech is not yet in Orlando, but there is La French Tech Miami that is only 3h30 from me.
There is also a chapter of La French Tech in my hometown of Montpellier, France, where I was born and raised: https://lafrenchtechmed.com/ .
That is an impressive federation of hubs of La French Tech, from the south of France to Florida. Bravo La French Tech !
* @LaFrenchTech I corrected the little typo there 🙂
Voici mon entretien avec Damien Marchat, consultant en développement web qui fait aussi de la recherche en IA. Damien donne des conseils précieux aux jeunes et des informations très intéressantes et utiles à propos de l’importance de la technologie française aujourd’hui. Merci beaucoup, Damien!
Here is my interview with Damien Marchat, web development consultant who also does research in AI. Damien gives precious advice to teens and very interesting and useful information about the importance of French technology today. Thank you very much, Damien!
I know it isn’t French technology, but I can’t stop thinking about the impact this may have on foreign language learning. Is it possible (or will it be possible one day) to really understand another culture without being able to speak the language of its people? I can’t imagine how I could understand people in Florida if I never learned English. But I do see the usefulness of the Flip6 for international travel.
French Tech for Teens 