Preligens Is Safran.ai

September 9, 2024

Preligens, a French AI and specialized software company, is now part of Safran Electronics & Defense which is a unit of the Safran Group. I spotted a report in Aerotime. “Safran Accelerates AI Development with $243M Purchase of French-Firm Preligens” reported on September 2, 2024. The report quotes principles to the deal as saying:

“Joining Safran marks a new stage in Preligens’ development. We’re proud to be helping create a world-class AI center of expertise for one of the flagships of French industry. The many synergies with Safran will enable us to develop new AI product lines and accelerate our international expansion, which is excellent news for our business and our people,” Jean-Yves Courtois, CEO of Preligens, said. The CEO of Safran Electronics & Defense, Franck Saudo, said that he was “delighted” to welcome Preligens to the company.

The acquisition does not just make Mr. Saudo happy. The French military, a number of European customers, and the backers of Preligens are thrilled as well. In my lectures about specialized software companies, I like to call attention to this firm. It illustrates that technology innovation is not located in one country. Furthermore it underscores the strong educational system in France. When I first learned about Preligens, one rumor I heard was that on of the US government entities wanted to “invest” in the company. For a variety of reasons, the deal went no place faster than a bus speeding toward La Madeleine. If you spot me at a conference, you can ask about French technology firms and US government processes. I have some first hand knowledge starting with “American fries in a Congressional lunch facility.”

Preligens is important for three reasons:

The firm developed an AI platform; that is, the “smart software” is not an afterthought which contrasts sharply with the spray paint approach to AI upon which some specialized software companies have been relying
The smart software outputs identification data; for example, a processed image can show an aircraft. The Preligens system identifies the aircraft by type
The user of the Preligens system can use time analyses of imagery to draw conclusions. Here’s a hypothetical because the actual example is not appropriate for a free blog written by a dinobaby. Imagine a service van driving in front of an embassy in Paris. The van makes a pass every three hours for two consecutive days. The Preligens system can “notice” this and alert an operator.

I will continue to monitor the system which will be doing business with selected entities under the name Safran.ai.

Stephen E Arnold, September 9, 2024

Written by Stephen E. Arnold · Filed Under AI, Business strategy, intelware, News

Comments

Got something to say?

Search the site
Subscribe to Beyond Search
Feature archive
News archive

Stephen E. Arnold monitors search, content processing, text mining and related topics from his high-tech nerve center in rural Kentucky. He tries to winnow the goose feathers from the giblets. He works with colleagues worldwide to make this Web log useful to those who want to go "beyond search". Contact him at sa [at] arnoldit.com. His Web site with additional information about search is arnoldit.com.