Choose France Summit 2025

Launched in 2018 by President Emmanuel Macron, the Choose France Summit was conceived as a bold initiative to promote France’s economic appeal to international investors. Reviving the spirit of the Strategic Council for Attractiveness created in 2014 on the initiative of former Socialist president François Hollande, Choose France was designed to reinforce France’s attractiveness on the global stage. The event is held annually at the prestigious Château de Versailles, bringing together over 200 leaders from the world’s largest corporations alongside French government ministers and regional officials.

The 2025 edition of the Choose France Summit, placed under the theme « France, a land of creativity », marked a new milestone with the announcement of 53 investment projects totaling a record €40.8 billion in commitments – a near threefold increase from the previous year. This 8th edition focused especially on strategic sectors. Artificial intelligence stood out as a key theme, with major investments totaling €20.8 billion set to materialize commitments made during the February 2025 AI Action Summit in France – including projects by Canadian firm Brookfield and U.S.-based Digital Realty. Other industries were just as active, with investments announcements in the mobility of tomorrow, renewable energies, creative and cultural industries, connected healthcare, cosmetics, logistics or the circular economy. Across the different projects, the government estimates the creation of 13,000 direct and indirect jobs.

Macron’s Flagship Event

Over eight editions, the summit has become a flagship event for Emmanuel Macron, not just for business diplomacy, but also politically to highlight the pro-business reforms implemented under his leadership. One could consider that Emmanuel Macron’s strategy is bearing fruit : in 2024, for the sixth consecutive year, France ranked as the leading destination for foreign investment in Europe, ahead of the UK and Germany, according to EY’s European Attractiveness Survey.

Indeed, backing these investment announcements is a comprehensive and long-term effort by Emmanuel Macron’s successive governments to make France more business-friendly and innovation-driven. At the heart of this strategy is the “France 2030” plan, a €54 billion investment roadmap launched in 2021 to support emerging technologies and ecological innovation. Complementing this is a tax and regulatory framework that has been significantly simplified since 2017. The corporate tax rate has been progressively reduced to 25%, in line with European averages, while generous tax credits have been introduced for R&D, industrial decarbonization, and strategic production. The state has also reformed and accelerated procedures for industrial project authorizations, cutting delays and administrative burdens, as well as simplifying industrial land securing and setup.

Building on this success, the Government is considering launching a Choose France Summit dedicated to French companies in Fall 2025.

From Promises to Scrutiny 

Yet « Choose France » is not without controversy. Behind the high-profile announcements, critics point to the initiative’s limited impact on job creation – particularly in the industrial sector – at a time when plenty of layoffs and restructuring plans are piling up across the country. Many of the investments, they argue, are simply extensions of existing sites, rather than new projects. Opposition parties have also raised concerns about public subsidies being granted without conditions in terms of job creation or ecological transition objectives. Meanwhile, President Macron’s strong backing of pro-business reforms, from the scrapping of the wealth tax to changes in labor laws, continues to fuel his label as « President of the rich ».

Additionally, with Emmanuel Macron lacking an absolute majority in Parliament and mounting concerns over public finances and the country’s soaring debt, conservative political factions are poised to make fiscal restraint a top priority. As debates over the 2026 budget loom this autumn, we can expect agressive pushes for deep cuts in government spending. It remains to be seen whether public subsidies to businesses can be sustained under these conditions.

Extending the Vision: From Choose France to Choose Europe

As the Choose France Summit affirms the country’s position as a leading destination for industrial investment and innovation, it also reflects a broader European ambition to remain competitive on the global stage – not only in economic terms, but also in scientific and technological leadership. In this context, and as global powers like the United States and China are ramping up their investments in research, innovation and industrial policy, Europe is stepping up efforts to assert its position as a world leader in science and technology.

Choose Europe for Science was unveiled at the Sorbonne University in May 2025 by President Macron and President von der Leyen as a direct response to President Trump’s sweeping cuts in federal research funding and his rhetoric against universities — a move designed to turn an American brain drain into a European gain. President Macron declared « Here in France, research is a priority, innovation is a culture, and science is a boundless horizon. Researchers from around the world, choose France, choose Europe! ». This program aims to attract top international researchers – particularly those affected by restrictive immigration or funding policies in the United States – by offering a package of long-term contracts, relocation incentives, and prestigious « super-grants ». Backed by €500 million in EU and national funding over the period 2025–2027, the initiative seeks to strengthen Europe’s scientific sovereignty while upholding academic freedom, openness, and excellence.

In parallel with investment attraction through Choose France, this new initiative reflects a broader European ambition: to turn the continent into a global destination for cutting-edge research, at a time when talent competition is as strategic as capital investment. Together, these efforts form part of a coordinated response to ensure that Europe remains not just economically competitive, but intellectually and scientifically at the forefront of global innovation.