At the Cirque d’Hiver Bouglione in Paris,
From the “France Cerfa” denounced by Yannick Jadot to the controversies over the Health Data Hub, from digital sovereignty to diversity in the digital sector, the baroud of presidential candidates in the deep end of tech has not revolutionized digital election promises. But had the merit of transforming the pretenders to the Elysée into TED conference speakers, microphone screwed to the ear and in perpetual motion. On the program: five minutes of pitch and ten minutes of questions and answers for the main contenders for the Elysée Palace or their spokespersons facing the representatives of the associations gathered in the Convergences Numériques collective.
Apart from “the last minute defection of the RN”, specifies Marianne Tordeux, director of public affairs at France Digitale, who took care of organizing the event, Valérie Pécresse, Yannick Jadot, Nicolas Dupont-Aignan, Bertrand Lachaud, representative by Jean-Luc Mélenchon, Eric Zemmour, Cédric O, representing the candidate Macron, and Anne Hidalgo followed one another in the very sumptuous setting of the Cirque d’Hiver, Wednesday evening. On the round stage, a very codified rout, a gong that sounds if a candidate is too long, spotlights aimed at the chosen one of the moment. In short, the talk show the American style so dear to tech players has taken place.
Many ideas, few directions
To launch the game a smiling LR candidate appears. Carbon-neutral data centers in 2030, the Health Data Hub which must give way to a “Green Data Hub”, coding from the 5th grade and the return of mathematics until the end of high school, Valérie Pécresse goes on without a hitch and won a great success on the applause meter. Follows Yannick Jadot, as borrowed in his attitude as in his remarks. Alternately accusatory – “You are an energy-consuming sector” – and enticing – “we do not have digital sovereignty today, we have to work in this direction” – the EELV candidate borders on the fake not. But phew, fifteen minutes have passed: he suffered, the audience too.
To a Nicolas Dupont-Aignan, a past master in the art of punchline- but who has probably still not digested the vaccine pass, “this abomination”, nor really realized that “the coal revolution”, it does not speak to many people – succeeds Bertrand Lachaux, LFI deputy, for Jean-Luc Mélenchon. A tackle to Gafam here, another to offshore data centers there, and the elected representative of Seine-Saint-Denis invites those responsible for the tech world to recruit all “talents”: “50% of gamers are female gamers today in France”.
The pitch exercise, revealing
All presidential candidates are not equal in the exercise of the pitch. Eric Zemmour has shown this well, confusing, for example, cryptocurrencies and blockchain. Almost fearful when he arrived on the stage, the far-right candidate directly attacked with “You are as fascinating as they are disturbing”. Not the most beautiful effect for the officials who faced him and did not fail to scratch him. But Eric Zemmour then picked up the slack, returning to his favorite terrain: national sovereignty and immigration.
Who is the best to create the start-up nation of tomorrow?
Then came the time for start-up Cédric O, given a standing ovation when he arrived on stage, who pitched in less than five minutes the desired orientations for a potential second term for Emmanuel Macron. Not to mention continuity, he hammered, on the model of an old ad for Mercurochrome, the word “massier”, just to further establish the popularity of the president in the “start-up nation” that he carries. since five years. On the other hand, the rest will be without him: the Secretary of State for Digital Transformations has confirmed that he will return, after the presidential election, to the world of tech. Applause again. A ola? Not yet, but whistles of admiration here and there.
To conclude, Anne Hidalgo took the stage to talk about the digital divide, economic benefits, education and “human at the center”. Nothing revolutionary, nor very concrete. A candidate program, in short. If the Health Data Hub crystallized some tensions – Cédric O, who knew he was expected on the issue, waded before getting out of it with the attack: “Those who promise a sovereign national or European cloud tomorrow are liars” –, the evening did not give birth to any real surprises. In terms of “spreading ideas”, dear to TED conferences, the results are meager, but “the tech world was able to feel what the candidates had in their stomachs on subjects that were little discussed”, greets Marianne Tordeux . Or didn’t?