News from World Summit AI 2019 – Axionable Opens an Artificial Intelligence Research Lab in Montréal

France-based Axionable, which specializes in data and artificial intelligence (AI) strategies for business, is taking advantage of Co-founder and CEO’s Gwendal Bihan’s presence at the World Summit AI to announce the opening of a laboratory in Montréal. The company plans to hire some 50 new employees over the next two years—a rate of growth comparable to that of its Paris team since it began operations in 2016—to carry on the lab’s activities, which will focus exclusively on applied research and implementing AI projects.

“Opening a facility in Montréal was a natural choice for us,” said Bihan. “The city is now one of the top global centres of AI research. We are eager to work alongside the world’s most renowned researchers and to be part of a booming ecosystem that includes industry leaders as well as promising start-ups.”

A business that caters to businesses
Axionable helps its clients and partners harness the full value of their data through best practices in AI and the latest industry innovations, including image and video analysis, natural language processing, stand-alone devices, predictions and recommendations. The company’s expertise focuses on banking and insurance, media, distribution and industry applications.

The company also offers businesses a full range of support services, from needs identification to delivering AI solutions that have a real impact on their performance and business models. Axionable’s mission is to provide lasting, responsible solutions that take ethical and societal issues into account.

Axionable has already started talking with potential partners in the Montréal ecosystem and taken steps to recruit the necessary talent, particularly experts in AI (automatic learning, deep learning), information technology and communication. Their mandate will be to define and implement effective and responsible AI and data strategies for the company’s clients in Europe and North America.

“We are undertaking this international expansion phase not long after the company was founded, and it would not have been possible without the support of organizations like Montréal International, Investissement Québec and Business France. This is a wonderful opportunity that will enable us to pursue our phenomenal growth, and it marks the dawn of a very exciting new era for the entire team,” added Bihan.

Montréal International, Greater Montréal’s economic development agency, welcomes the arrival of this new AI player that will strengthen a one-of-a-kind collaborative ecosystem and support the digital transformation of Québec businesses. “Quite a number of foreign companies are investing in the area. The team has supported over 30 AI projects in the past two years, totalling $500 million. Montréal stands out not only due to its concentration of deep learning researchers, but also by how much consideration it gives to the social and ethical impacts of AI,” said Hubert Bolduc, President and CEO of Montréal International.

“It is with great enthusiasm that we welcome Axionable’s arrival in Montréal, a development that speaks to the solidity of Montréal’s AI ecosystem,” stated Investissement Québec President and CEO Pierre Gabriel Côté. “This new lab will provide further stimulus for the technological revolution taking place in Québec and create a great many highly specialized jobs. We are proud to have played a role in showcasing the advantages of choosing Montréal for this key player in the AI industry and to have provided help and guidance with investing here.”

“The Québec government is pleased to welcome Axionable’s arrival in Québec,” said Nadine Girault, Minister of International Relations and La Francophonie. “The government is working to increase its economic influence abroad in order to attract more direct investments like the one announced today. We will continue to build on these successes.”

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SOURCE INVESTISSEMENT QUÉBEC