Matthieu SOMEKHCEO - ZEBOX

Matthieu Somekh has an engineering degree in optical technology andbusiness creation and has been working towards entrepreneurship since his PhD. In 2006, he participated in the creation of the project Manlight. He took over the management of the optical fiber laser business unitdedicated to industrial applications. The adventure has lasted for more than 2 years. As a next step on his journey of becoming an entrepreneur, Matthieu Somekh decided to join the Ecole Polytechnique for about 10 years. He started by promoting academic research on optical and laser technologies. Then, for almost 4 years, he held the position as Director of Entrepreneurship and Innovation with the mission of selecting, encouraging and developing creative projects at the heart of an ecosystem of excellence. After that, he created the XUP accelerator and the incubator, which today contribute to the development of ambitious and renowned projects. He also developed the school’s investment fund. In 2017, he contributed to the creation of France is AI, an initiative of which he was president for 2 years. It aims to identify the connection between the actors in artificial intelligence locally but also internationally. Together with other members, he organizes an annual event on artificial intelligence that brings together more than 2000 people, including leading figures from all over the world. To go further in the support of entrepreneurs developing solutions with cutting-edge technologies such as artificial intelligence, Blockchain, Iot, he became CEO of ZEBOX. ZEBOX is an international incubator and accelerator of innovative startups founded on the initiative of Rodolphe Saadé, chairman and CEO of CMA CGM in 2018 and focused on two fields: transport, logistics, mobilities and industry 4.0. Its mission: bridging the gap between startups and big corporate by helping them to co-innovate and grow together.