Orange has become one of the four founding partners of a yet-to-be named joint venture based in France, which will aim to build a digital and open ecosystem dedicated to e-health. The operator has teamed up with pharmaceutical group Sanofi, consulting firm Capgemini and insurer Generali to fund the new project, with an initial investment of EUR 24 million shared equally among the founding partners.
Orange described the scale of the project as unique in Europe, saying that the multidisciplinary ecosystem will attract around a hundred European start-ups, in addition to several other players in the e-health sector, such as universities, hospitals, and patient associations.
The joint venture is working on a digital platform that should become operational in June, with the ambition to share data and expertise in compliance with regulations and ethical standards. It will also open a physical base in Paris, due to go live in December, consisting of multiple laboratories focused on research, testing, and data, as well as the study of ethical and economic issues.
The platform and labs will be linked to the 'PariSante Campus' initiative unveiled in December 2020 by the French ministries responsible for health and research, due to open this year at the site of the Val-de-Grace military hospital in the heart of Paris.
