Paris open its doors to Tech StartUps

France in a bid to lure start ups into basing themselves in the country has launched the French Tech Ticket programme which offers startups from around the world money, French residency and incubation. Successful applicants will receive EUR12,500 (US$13,880) per founding team member, fast-tracked French residency, mentorship and incubation including workspace, and help in integrating into French life. Applications opened today and can be made online; however only the first 500 applications will be taken into account. The programme is open to startup founders from anywhere in the world, and is aimed at encouraging more tech startups to set up and run their businesses in France. Teams can have a maximum of three founders, one of which may be French. According to Axelle Lemaire, Minister of State in the French Government, the programme intends to “bolster France’s appeal in the face of global competition and consolidate its position as one of the leading innovative nations”. The Minister claimed Paris is the ideal place to trial the initiative, given that it is “the European startup capital”.