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Euronews
4 days ago
- Euronews
Microsoft to make Notre-Dame ‘digital twin' in Europe AI push
Notre-Dame Cathedral took five years to rebuild after the devastating fire, but a digital duplicate would have been much easier, Microsoft's president Brad Smith noted last November. On Monday, he announced that the theory was being put to the test and stated that the Cathedral, built in 1345, would be getting a digital twin. The digital replica of Notre-Dame is being created with the French culture ministry's heritage institute and the start-up Iconem. It combines advanced imaging with artificial intelligence (AI) to produce the digital twin. The aim is to 'preserve permanently in digital form every detail of Notre Dame, ensuring that its structure, story, and symbolism are protected and accessible for generations to come,' Brad Smith, the president of Microsoft, said in a blog post. The digital twin would be donated to the French State and 'can be used by preservationists and be displayed in the future Musée Notre Dame de Paris,' he added. The project will also digitise historic opera sets and millions of artefacts with leading French cultural institutions, such as 1,5000 cinematic model sets from shows at the Opéra National de Paris between 1800 and 1914. Microsoft the aim is the project is to make the collections accessible to as many people as possible, via interactive experiences on its platform The precise budget and completion date for the project are not yet known, but Smith told French media that the operation would take at least a year to complete and will probably cost several million dollars. The project follows a partnership with the Vatican to digitise St. Peter's Basilica. Microsoft also announced on Monday that it would expand its innovation centres in Strasbourg to boost the development of Europe's languages in AI models, especially underrepresented European languages, to make the technology more inclusive. Microsoft's Windows currently includes 90 languages, including the 24 official European languages, as well as Basque, Catalan, Galician and Luxembourgish. The American company aims to develop its languages and enrich its stock of multilingual data by collecting data from sound recordings left on the GitHub platform. Microsoft said that it would then host and make the data 'broadly accessible' on the platform Hugging Face. 'The European project' Microsoft is trying to build its brand in Europe and announced earlier this year a plan called European Digital Commitments. The company said its aim is to expand AI and cloud infrastructure, strengthen digital resilience and data privacy protections, enhance cybersecurity, and support Europe's digital sovereignty and broader economy. However, Europe is also trying to push for its own sovereign cloud infrastructure and is championing its own AI large language models (LLMs) to become less dependent on Big Tech companies. This includes, for example, multilingual text data from GitHub and voice data sets. MOIC and GitHub will partner with Hugging Face, a popular collaboration platform for AI model development, to host and make the data broadly accessible.
Sky News AU
10-07-2025
- Health
- Sky News AU
What Brigitte Macron really said to Princess Kate after snubbing her husband French President Emmanuel Macron revealed
A lip reader has revealed what Brigitte Macron said to Princess Catherine after she snubbed her husband, French President Emmanuel Macron. Mrs Macron ignored Mr Macron after the President disembarked his jet at RAF Northolt in West London on Tuesday, ahead of their UK state visit. Mr Macron waited for his wife at the bottom of the steps of the jet with his hand outstretched for her to take as she made the short journey down. However, Mrs Macron opted instead used the handrail to guide herself, and her husband, left hanging, had no other option but to drop his hand. The Macrons were immediately greeted by Prince William and Princess Catherine at a Ceremonial Welcome. Footage of the interaction showed the President shaking the Princess of Wales' hand before giving Kate, who stunned in a dusty pink Christian Dior jacket, British-designed hat, and a tulle skirt, an air kiss on her hand. 'Thank you. Thank you very much. Thank you… It's good to see you,' he said to the British royal couple, lip reader Jeremy Freeman told the Mirror. As Brigitte greeted Catherine, she told the Princess it was 'so good to see' her and 'you look great', perhaps in reference to her cancer battle. The exchange comes after Kate likened her cancer recovery to a 'rollercoaster' as she opened up about her health journey to patients at a cancer support centre in Colchester Hospital in Essex. '(When) treatment's done, then it's like, 'I can crack on, get back to normal again', but actually, the phase afterwards is really, you know, difficult,' she said earlier this month. 'You're not necessarily under the clinical team any longer, but you're not able to function normally at home as you perhaps once used to.' On Tuesday evening, the Princess of Wales attended a state banquet for the Macrons, which marked her first appearance at a banquet since her cancer treatment. According to a palace insider who spoke to The Daily Beast, courtiers were relieved to see the Princess of Wales attend the dinner. 'Kate has saved the day,' the source said. It is understood Catherine's attendance at the banquet was only confirmed shortly after 6 p.m. local time, about 90 minutes before she arrived at Windsor Castle with the Prince of Wales. Catherine entered the banquet hall in a dazzling caped red dress designed by Sarah Burton, her royal wedding dress designer for Givenchy. The Princess of Wales coordinated the gown with the priceless Queen Mary's Lover's Knot Tiara. The French State visit is set to continued on Wednesday, with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer hosting Mr Macron. The meeting consisted of Britain proposing a 'one in, one out' arrangement for migrants seeking asylum through the English Channel, given small boat crossings in the UK are at a record high, but the leaders are yet to make any agreement. The visit marks the first time a European Union head of state has visited the UK since then-French President Nicolas Sarkozy in 2008.
Business Wire
08-07-2025
- Business
- Business Wire
AFYREN Receives €4 Million in Grants for AFYREN NEOXY and Starts New Performance-Driven Investment Strategy
CLERMONT-FERRAND, France & LYON, France--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Regulatory News: AFYREN (Paris:ALAFY), a greentech company offering industrial customers bio-based, low-carbon products through its unique fermentation technology based on a circular model, today receives €4 million in grants for AFYREN NEOXY and starts a performance-driven investment strategy to reinforce AFYREN's forward-looking industrial model. Grant received at a pivotal moment for AFYREN NEOXY The funds granted are part of the 'France Relance' initiative by Bpifrance to support strategic investments in critical sectors. This subsidy represents the second installment of an €8 million package, of which €2 million was previously granted to AFYREN NEOXY at the launch of the program in June 2021. This new payment comes at a key moment in AFYREN NEOXY's industrial development. This one-of-a-kind biorefinery has recently entered its industrial ramp-up phase, with the goal of producing and marketing several hundred tons of products in the second half of 2025 1. The funds will be partially used to consolidate AFYREN NEOXY's current achievements by funding ongoing adjustments to the plant as part of its reliability program, plus other strategic investments to enhance the plant's performance and optimize operations. AFYREN NEOXY Optimization Strategy AFYREN has identified improvements which, with an additional investment of around €20 million, would enable the company to increase production capacity to 20 kt —a 20% increase compared to the initially planned 16 kt— and raise projected EBITDA to €14 million, representing a 40% increase over current forecasts of €9 million. To support the planned investment and the ramp-up of AFYREN NEOXY, AFYREN may draw on part of its available cash, estimated at around €27 million as of end-June 2025, while ensuring it maintains sufficient financial flexibility for operations. Other sources of financing 2 may also be mobilized, with the aim of preserving a balanced and sustainable financial structure. This optimization strategy would enable the AFYREN Group 3 to reach breakeven with its very first plant, with AFYREN's proportional share of EBITDA from the AFYREN NEOXY plant covering the holding company's annual cash consumption. Nicolas SORDET, CEO of AFYREN, declares: " This public support from the French State reinforces our forward-looking industrial model, serving both the ecological transition and economic sovereignty. It comes at a pivotal moment in AFYREN's history: after having validated our technology at industrial scale, we are now entering a phase of operational optimization and commercial acceleration. This subsidy enables AFYREN NEOXY to consolidate its achievements and initiate our investment strategy aimed at significantly enhancing the plant's performance and shortening the critical path to the Group's overall profitability." About AFYREN AFYREN is a French greentech company, founded in 2012, focused on providing innovative, sustainable solutions to reduce reliance on fossil-based resources. AFYREN's proprietary, nature-inspired fermentation technology valorizes local biomass from non-food agricultural co-products to produce 100% biobased, low-carbon carboxylic acids. The company's sustainable solutions address decarbonization challenges in a wide variety of strategic sectors, including human and animal nutrition, flavors and fragrances, life sciences, materials science, plus lubricants and technical fluids. AFYREN's competitive, plug-and-play, circular technology enables manufacturers to adopt sustainable solutions without modifying production processes. The company's first industrial plant, AFYREN NEOXY, a joint venture with Bpifrance's SPI fund, is based in the Grand-Est region of France, serving primarily the European market. AFYREN is also pursuing a project in Thailand with a global leader in the sugar industry and is building its presence in the Americas, based on existing distribution agreements. At the end of 2024, AFYREN employed 130 people across sites in Lyon, Clermont-Ferrand and Carling Saint-Avold. Committed to continuous innovation, the company invests 20% of its annual budget in R&D to further develop the range of sustainable solutions. AFYREN is listed on Euronext Growth ® Paris since 2021 (ISIN code: FR0014005AC9, ticker: ALAFY). For more information, visit and follow us on LinkedIn. Financial calendar 1 See press release dated June 17, 2025: 2 Including the portion already secured but not yet drawn down from the loans obtained in Q4 2024 and Q1 2025 (see press release dated January 8, 2025: ) and the grants already secured for the benefit of AFYREN NEOXY (final payment form the CBE-JU for AFTER-BIOCHEM and additional payment from the 'France Relance' plan) 3 Defined here as AFYREN holding company and AFYREN NEOXY based on a 51% equity interest
Broadcast Pro
21-06-2025
- Business
- Broadcast Pro
Eutelsat announces $1.56bn capital increase
Eutelsat to execute $1.56bn capital increase by year-end to advance its strategic vision and long-term goals. Eutelsat has announced a Contemplated capital increase of $1.56 bn, anchored by key reference shareholders, to secure the execution of long-term strategic vision. Eutelsat is one of only two global operators with active commercial LEO (Low Earth Orbit) fleets and with a clear differentiation, being the only one exclusively focused on the B2B and B2G markets. While the global satellite connectivity market is expected to increase by 12% per annum between 2025 and 2029, the global LEO B2B connectivity market, valued at over $2.1bn in 2025, is expected to grow at a 28% CAGR through 2029 and multiply its current size fivefold over the next eight years, offering significant short to long-term growth potential. Eutelsat, the only GEO-LEO operator, and the only European operator with a fully operational LEO network, uniquely positioned to capture the momentum in the connectivity market. Eutelsat is contemplating raising $1.56bn of capital by way of (i) a reserved capital increase of 716m at a price per share of 4 corresponding to a +32% premium to the 30-day-VWAP of the shares as computed on Euronext Paris (the Reserved Capital Increase), which would be subscribed by the French State via the Agence des Participations de lEtat (APE), Bharti Space Limited, CMA CGM, and Le Fonds Stratégique de Participations (FSP), and (ii) a rights issue of 634m (the Rights Issue), which would be subscribed for their rights by the above investors. Prior to the approval of the Reserved Capital Increase by Eutelsats shareholders, the APE will acquire the shares of the Company currently held by Bpifrance Participations, at a price per share equal to the subscription price of the Reserved Capital Increase. Consequently, the Board member representing Bpifrance Participations would be replaced by a representative of the French State. This capital increase would represent a pivotal step in Eutelsats strategic and financing roadmap, enabling the execution of its strategic vision. Coupled with a dedicated debt refinancing plan, this capital increase will reinforce the Companys financial flexibility by accelerating its deleveraging and support investment in its existing Low Earth Orbit (LEO) capabilities and the future IRIS² constellation. On the back of the forthcoming capital increase, Eutelsat would reduce its leverage to c. 2.5x4 by year-end FY2025-26, and would be well placed to tap debt capital markets, raise export credit financing and extend its bank debt maturities in order to fully cover the financing needs of its medium-term plan. Jean-François Fallacher, CEO of Eutelsat Group, said: Eutelsat enters a new chapter, centered on the deployment of LEO, a major innovative and technological revolution for the Satellite industry. Thanks to its differentiated GEO-LEO positioning and global coverage, Eutelsat is ready to become a central player in the development of the European sovereign space of tomorrow. I welcome the contemplated capital increase which will give Eutelsat the requisite financing to implement its strategic roadmap. I am grateful for the support of the French State and the ongoing commitment of our other anchor shareholders Bharti, CMA CGM and FSP and thank them for their confidence. Eric Lombard, Minister for the Economy, Finance and Industrial and Digital Sovereignty, stated: 'The French State is proud to contribute to strengthening Eutelsats capital structure and support the company at pivotal stage of its development. This transaction reflects our strong commitment towards a major player in satellite connectivity a strategic sector at the heart of Europes digital sovereignty while fostering remarkable potential for technological innovation and sustainable economic growth. Through this transaction, France reaffirms its determination to build, together with the company and its European partners, a competitive, resilient, and sovereign space industry, particularly around the IRIS² programme, which is a key pillar of our strategic autonomy. 'We are convinced that the companys solid fundamentals its recognised expertise in geostationary orbit, its innovative solutions in low Earth orbit, its committed team, and its ambitious vision are the foundations for lasting success. Eutelsat is opening a new chapter in its history, and the State will be fully present to help write it alongside the company.'
Al Jazeera
20-06-2025
- Business
- Al Jazeera
Niger to nationalise uranium mine operated by French state-affiliated firm
Niger plans to nationalise a uranium mine operated by French nuclear firm Orano as it continues to pivot away from former colonial ruler, France. The company, which is 90 percent owned by the French state, said on Friday that Niger's military rulers' planned nationalisation of the Somair mine was part of a 'systematic policy of stripping mining assets', threatening to take legal action over the move. The military government – which came to power in a 2023 coup, pledging to review mining concessions – had said a day prior that it intended to take control of the Somair mine, accusing Orano of taking a disproportionate share of uranium produced at the site. Orano holds a 63 percent stake in Somair, while Niger's state-owned Sopamin owns the remainder, but the government said that Orano had taken 86.3 percent of production between the mine's launch in 1971 and 2024. 'Faced with the irresponsible, illegal, and unfair behaviour by Orano, a company owned by the French state, a state openly hostile toward Niger since July 26, 2023 … the government of Niger has decided, in full sovereignty, to nationalise Somair,' the authorities said on Thursday. Wave of nationalisations Niger's military leaders have turned their back on France since taking power, seeking closer ties with Russia instead. In 2024, Niger removed Orano's operational control of its three main mines in the country: Somair, Cominak and Imouraren, which has one of the largest uranium deposits in the world. On Friday, Orano said it intended 'to claim compensation for all of its damages and assert its rights over the stock corresponding to Somair's production to date'. Orano, which has been operating in Niger for 50 years, is involved in several arbitration processes with the country. Last month, it sued the Nigerien authorities after the disappearance of its director and the raiding of its local offices. Niger's decision to nationalise Somair comes amid a wave of mine nationalisations across West Africa, notably in Mali and Burkina Faso, both of which are governed by military governments.
