Facebook and Microsoft have a new address in Europe, along with 1000s of new startups. Its the worlds biggest startup campus in Paris. A perfect location for new entrants to flaunt their stuff.
It opened on 29th June in Paris’ 13th arrondissement. The former railway depot known as la Halle Freyssinet, the 34,000 sqm space will accommodate more than 1,000 startups and have Facebook and Microsoft setup base already. Who would miss this opportunity. Both Facebook and Microsoft have opened their Artificial Intelligence Units here.
The building is a historical monument from the 1920s that is converted into a massive workspace for startups. The original building was used as a freight station and now it’s become a workstation. Can you see now where we get the name Station F from? Our architect, Jean-Michel Wilmotte, transformed the building but kept a lot of the original architectural elements. It has a very industrial look and feel, including the original concrete and shipping containers that have been transformed into meeting rooms.
Roxanne Varza
.Around 3,000 odd people are going to work in this mammoth building. President of France Emmanuel Macron and other officials visited this grand opening.
While Station F was originally built during 1920 by Eugène Freyssinet, it was scheduled to be destroyed in 2011. But, in 2013, Niel acquired the building, renovated it from the ground up and turned it into a gigantic startup campus – 34,000 sqm.
A few years later, the massive building is still there, but with thousands of desks, giant walls of glass, bright lights and beautiful Mediterranean trees.
It looked nothing like this. It was an abandoned train station with dark ceilings
Niel
There will also be 20 VC firms with a small space there, a post office and a giant restaurant, all for the startups to use and take full benefit form. Imagine a new startup facing issues to get a certain section sorted like funds, developers, marketing etc. One roof proving the entire ecosystem for any startup to survive is a brilliant initiate by the French community.
The worlds most successful firms like Facebook, Microsoft working along side fresh entrants is bound to create fireworks.
And if the french are looking at AI then the entire world is looking at them.
Do visit again for more exciting updates on Station F.