VivaTechthe French trade fair for new technologies, took place from May 16 to 18 for its 4th edition at Paris expo Porte de Versailles.
Known as the meeting place for start-ups and leaders to showcase their innovations and developments technology.
Once again this year, exhibitors and visitors were able to attend conferences, take part in hands-on workshops and live experiences within the show.
The VivaTech trade show is already world-renowned.
The tourism sector at VivaTech
9,000 start-ups were present, of which only 50 or so represented the tourism sector.
We have selected 6 start-ups from the Travel & Tourism category:
There was Aeromobil, a specialist in flying cars for urban travel, Archistoire which is an immersive discovery app based on hybrid reality, My little adventure a B2B2C and B2C engine of inspiration for leisure activities to do at destination, Scapade a platform that allows users to connect with each other to discover a new city, and perhaps make new friends, U2Guide, a useful experience booking solution for travelers concerned about their impact on the environment.
And the last start-up we’ve chosen to present to you is Future tourism, a start-up that uses artificial intelligence to simplify sustainable travel, it works by providing information on traveler flows and then offers a recommendation engine.
All the more reason to imagine what tomorrow’s tourism will be like…
Meanwhile, at the show, SNCF announced its new investment fund: 574 invest.
This is a new project for the group, dedicated to start-ups specializing in the mobility of the future.
Having their own investment fund will enable SNCF to be more autonomous, no longer going through funds, and to provide support, advice and protection to young companies.
They are particularly keen to invest in AI and telecommunication technologies.
Good feedback was also received from the Centre Val de Loire region’s stand, which was accompanied by the region’s innovative players.
The region proposed two main themes on its lab: public services and the historical know-how of its local companies, inspired by the 500th anniversary of the Renaissance which marks the region this year.
On their stand, you could discover start-ups with innovative projects for the region.
Augmented reality was in the spotlight, along with robots.
However, robots are still a subject of widely divergent opinion in the tourism industry.
Transportation of the future
It was impossible to miss them, and this year they were omnipresent.
For example, there was HoverTaxi, whose grand ambition is to become the Uber of flying cars.
Regulations are currently being drawn up in Europe, but should be finalized by 2022.
The European Union considers that the necessary infrastructures will have been put in place and air corridors created.
At the show, we were able to observe a rather strange blue helicopter, the HoverTaxi.
It’s an aircraft equipped with 8 rotors that can accommodate a pilot and a passenger and fly 200 meters above the ground.
Its main advantages: it’s silent and non-polluting.
However, the battery is still limited, but HoverTaxi is working on this.
Start-up Lillium was also on hand to present its flying car.
They were proud to announce that the first take-off was a success.
The electric aircraft can accommodate up to five passengers and travels at 300km/h.
To be able to fly these flying cars, the start-up is awaiting authorization from the European Aviation Safety Agency and the US Federal Aviation Administration.
Topics covered
The place of women in the digital industry was a topic addressed at several conferences, as women are under-represented in this sector.
Several women were invited to talk about their successes with the “Eu Prize for Women Innovators”.
Four women received awards.
Some thirty companies, including Orange and Salesforce, signed the manifesto encouraging the integration of women into the digital sector.
The theme of “smart cities” was also discussed.
We can see that certain innovations contribute to sustainable development, such as e-Tree, a connected solar tree.
This was followed by a series of conferences and events questioning the meaning of innovation and its contribution to the common good.
All these trends apply to the tourism sector, with sustainable tourism and enhanced safety immediately springing to mind as subjects in which technology can play a fundamental role.
VivaTech 2019 in review
The show set a record with 124,000 visitors, compared to 45,000 at the start of VivaTech in 2016.
What’s more, this year Hall 1 and Hall 2.2 were occupied for the occasion.
Exhibitors were 22.5% more than in 2018, proving that the show is growing fast.
Some of the big names present included: Jeck Ma, Chairman of Alibaba, Ginni Rometty, Chairman of IBM, Usain Bolt, Jimmy Wales, founder of Wikipedia…
We look forward to seeing you next year at VivaTech’s 5th edition, with the same format: Saturday open to the general public and 2 days reserved for professionals.
