Upside #29 - Le Summit, Le Chat, Le $100bn

LP Blind Spots
LP in Asia with 3000 managers but only 3 in Europe—why?
European VC viewed as a "blind spot" by many investors in Asia and the US.
The need for European investors to bridge the perception gap.

Deep Dive: The France AI Summit
Focus on "Inclusive and Sustainable AI."
100 countries in attendance, 61 signed the agreement—but UK and US did not.
Discussion around ethics, accessibility, and the role of global AI governance.
JD Vance’s speech highlighted US dominance and reluctance to align with EU directives.
Debate: Was it the right call for the UK not to sign?

EU’s €50B AI Investment
US announced $500B AI initiative; France followed with €109B.
Comparison between Macron's AI plan, UK AI strategy, and Bidenomics.
The importance of aligning private investment with government funding.

Mistral’s ‘Le Chat’ AI Model
French AI company Mistral launched "Le Chat."
Designed for speed but criticised for lacking depth and innovation.
Open-source AI as Europe's potential advantage in the global AI race.

AI Corner
GPT-4.5 expected within weeks, the last non-chain-of-thought model.
Grok 3 by XAI (Elon Musk) in development, set to challenge OpenAI’s dominance.
Open-source AI progress making Europe a contender in the AI space.

Interest Rates and UK Economic Outlook
Bank of England’s 25 bps rate cut—will it impact startups and investments?
UK growth forecast halved to 0.75%.
Concerns about stagflation, job losses, and productivity decline.
Can AI be the key to unlocking efficiency in government services?

AstraZeneca Vaccine Plant Withdrawal
UK government cut state aid from £90M to £40M.
AstraZeneca chose to invest elsewhere. Ble.
A significant loss for Liverpool’s economy and UK biotech sector.

Deal of the Week
Tines (Ireland) raises $125M Series C, becoming a unicorn.

Final Thoughts
Optimism about UK and European innovation despite economic hurdles.
Encouraging bold policy decisions and strategic AI investments.
"Let's start doing."