Illuminating biotech in the City of Light: Inside Paris’s thriving ecosystem

Paris is known for many things, from romance to art to world-beating croissants. But perhaps one of its lesser-known attributes is that it is a thriving Hub for Biotech and Life Sciences. In fact, the Paris region, also known as the Île-de-France region, is one of the largest biotech clusters in Europe, with strong academic and industry collaborations, significant investment, a growing number of biotech companies and startups, and a strong big pharma presence.

In this article, we discover what makes Paris’s biotech hub so successful.

Paris: A “dynamic and structured” biotech ecosystem

According to Medicen Paris Region – the competitiveness cluster dedicated to healthcare in the Île-de-France region – the Paris region has established itself as Europe’s leading health innovation hub. This leadership is no accident but the result of a well-orchestrated blend of scientific excellence, entrepreneurial dynamism, and public commitment. 

Indeed, the biotech and life sciences sector in the region is one of the most dynamic and structured ecosystems in Europe, supported by a high density of public and private stakeholders, a world-class academic foundation, with leading universities like Paris Saclay University, Sorbonne, and PSL, state-of-the-art research and development (R&D) facilities, and a strong capacity to generate breakthrough innovations. 

Thanks to attributes like these, the region is home to numerous companies that have chosen to operate within the biotech and life sciences sector. In fact, more than 1,400 companies, including around 1,000 startups and small- to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), operate across the region, innovating in fields such as biotherapies, digital health, and medical devices.

It also happens to be favored by many big pharma companies and offers a strategic location for the likes of Sanofi, Servier, and Ipsen, all of which are French giants that have their headquarters in the Paris region. 

Additionally, the Île-de-France region accounts for more than 100,000 industrial jobs in the health sector – including nearly 6,000 in biotech R&D – representing more than one-third of the national workforce in this field. This concentration of expertise fuels top-tier R&D, with close collaborations between startups, hospitals, and academic laboratories.

The region’s visibility is also driven by ambitious public policies, with the Smart Health 2024–2026 strategy being a prime example. Built around the five key areas of bioproduction, oncology, surgical innovation, neuroscience, and women’s health, it also includes digital health and artificial intelligence (AI). The ambition here is clear: to make Île-de-France a full-scale testing ground capable of supporting innovations from lab to industrialization. 

In some areas, Île-de-France is even a pioneer. In bioproduction, for instance, the region actively supports the creation of shared platforms for startups, bio-foundries, and training programs tailored to industrial needs. By taking the lead, it builds replicable models and elevates the entire French health sector.

When it comes to therapeutic areas, the region currently specializes in several, with oncology leading the way, both in terms of project volume and maturity, and cardiology and immuno-inflammation following not far behind. Meanwhile, when it comes to technologies, biotech companies in the Île-de-France region are especially active in gene and cell therapy development. These projects show a high success rate, reflecting the region’s expertise in these complex and promising approaches.

There is growing momentum in projects combining biotech and AI, whether it be new molecule discovery or biological modeling.

In this context, biotech in Paris is not an emerging field but a strategic, structured, and fast-accelerating sector; the ecosystem continues to expand, supported by a culture of collaboration and a clear regional vision: to establish Île-de-France as a European leader in the health of tomorrow.

A popular biotech hub for venture capital funding and foreign investment 

Naturally, funding and investment activity are leading indicators of a successful biotech hub. Fortunately, with such a popular biotech and healthcare scene, Paris has managed to secure the largest amount of venture capital (VC) funding in healthcare within the European Union (EU) in recent years. In fact, just looking at the last three years, healthcare companies in the Paris Region have raised more than €4 billion ($4.64 billion), according to Healthcare Business International. 

Among some of the most recent examples of Parisian healthcare-focused biotech funding players, it is worth mentioning that Sofinnova Partners, the European venture capital firm with headquarters in Paris, just raised €165 million ($180 million) in March through “substantial backing” from the likes of Amgen, Bristol Myers Squibb, and Pfizer Ventures. 

In fact, companies in the Île-de-France region generally attract a significant amount of foreign investment. This can be seen when it comes to certain strategic partnerships between French biotechs and foreign organizations.

Additional example, EG 427’s series B round showed that the company’s targeted gene expression technology has attracted interest from European and U.S. investors. This kind of operation confirms that the capital is now seen as a credible environment for developing breakthrough innovations with global impact. This appeal is also rooted in structural advantages: proximity to leading hospitals, a pool of scientific talent, competitive funding mechanisms, and growing infrastructure. With expanded real estate offerings for life sciences and the rise of bio-clusters like Paris-Saclay, the region offers foreign companies a complete environment – from lab to clinic.

Paris’s important role in the overall French biotech ecosystem

As a whole, France has a rich network of biotech hubs – Lyon, Strasbourg, Nantes, and Toulouse have each developed specific expertise within their local ecosystems. For example, Lyon excels in vaccines and pharmaceutical production, Strasbourg in personalized medicine, Nantes in biotherapies and tissue regeneration, and Toulouse in oncology and bioprocessing.

Paris in Île-de-France, however, stands out not for a single specialization but for its ability to unite. Rather than focusing on one segment, it acts as a national engine, structuring initiatives that extend beyond its borders. This is evident in oncology, with the rise of the Paris-Saclay Cancer Cluster – labeled a France 2030 biocluster – bringing together researchers, clinicians, biotech startups, and industry to invent tomorrow’s cancer therapies. It’s also true in bioproduction, where the region is testing open models – shared platforms, bio-foundries, third places – designed to be replicated elsewhere.

With the France Health Innovation 2030 plan, the French government has set a clear ambition to make France a global leader in health innovation. To achieve this, it requires the alignment of regional strengths, avoiding fragmentation, and accelerating cooperation – which is the mission of *Enosis Santé, an alliance launched in 2022 by France’s four main health clusters of Medicen, Lyonbiopôle, BioValley France, and Eurobiomed.

Enosis plays a strategic role. It pools regional expertise, develops joint projects, identifies systemic barriers, and acts as an operational relay for the Health Innovation Agency. In short, it builds the bridges needed between regions to accelerate the emergence of French Champions – not by pitting territories against each other, but by aligning them around shared goals: health sovereignty, innovation, industrialization, and international appeal.

In this context, Île-de-France is not a competitor but a catalyst. Its role is to spark dynamics, structure them, and make them replicable. Working in concert with other regions, Île-de-France contributes to a broader collective goal: making France a biotech and health leader in Europe.

Looking ahead: What does the future hold for Paris’s biotech hub?

Indeed, it is hard to imagine the healthtech ecosystem in Île-de-France not continuing to grow in the coming years; the momentum is still strong, and the foundations are solid.

However, according to BROTHERS & Partners Europe (a global Multi Family Office group), there are “three levers” that are essential to sustain and amplify the development of the Île-de-France hub :

1. Funding: In an uncertain economic climate, many biotechs, especially younger ones, struggle to secure the resources needed to reach critical development milestones. It’s urgent to secure public and private mechanisms tailored to their real needs (such as the R&D tax credit (CIR)).

2. Scientific real estate: While the supply of suitable spaces (labs, bioproduction, modular facilities) has grown in recent years, access remains difficult for growing SMEs. Continued efforts are needed to allow companies to scale locally without being forced to relocate or slow down.

3. Training and recruitment: A shortage of qualified professionals in key biotech roles such as bioinformatics, quality, and bioprocessing is currently hindering industrialization. A deep effort is needed to adapt initial and continuing education, in close collaboration with companies and emerging field needs.

Also, part of the region’s success will depend on the ability to design policies that are closer to on-the-ground realities, which requires active listening, flexible execution, and constant dialogue between public authorities, regions, and clusters. 

In short, the Île-de-France hub has everything it needs to continue playing a leading role in French and European biotech, But this trajectory will only be sustainable if we take the time to strengthen its autonomy and resilience. And on that front, clusters have a central role to play – as agile, committed interfaces capable of aligning ecosystem needs and carrying a long-term vision.to credits: Anthony DELANOIX

Photo credits: Anthony DELANOIX