French Tech Raises €614.7M in October as Pigment Leads
French startups raised €614.7 million in October, up 4.3% year on year despite far fewer deals, with Pigment's $250 million Series E driving the total.
French startups raised €614.7 million in October, down 81.3% from September's record month, which was lifted by Mistral AI's €3 billion round. Compared with October 2025, however, the total is up 4.3%, even though the number of deals fell sharply.
Only 44 rounds were recorded, against 62 a year earlier. The result therefore rests on a handful of large transactions rather than a broad recovery, and the average ticket rose to nearly €14 million from €9.5 million. The count covers only dilutive equity rounds by startups under 10 years old headquartered in France.
Pigment sets the tone
Pigment's $250 million Series E (€222.5 million) was the month's biggest deal and accounts for 36.2% of all funds raised. The French unicorn has doubled its valuation to $2.3 billion after passing $100 million in annual recurring revenue. The money is earmarked for AI agents for business planning, R&D and engineering hires, and international expansion.
Spiko followed with €80.5 million and Elax Energie with €30 million. Together, the three account for 54.2% of the month's total. Excluding Pigment, the remaining 43 deals total €392.2 million, an average of €9.1 million.
AI everywhere, Paris dominant
AI-related companies closed 30 of the 44 deals and raised €434.1 million, or 70.6% of the total. Without Pigment, they still gather €211.6 million, 54% of the remaining amount. Seed rounds lead by volume with 28 deals but only €151.6 million. The two late-stage rounds, Pigment and Elax Energie, total €252.5 million.
By sector, IT leads with €238.1 million, though Pigment makes up 93.4% of that. Fintech is second with €98.5 million, then energy at €71 million, biotech at €45.6 million and medtech at €34.6 million.
Geography is just as concentrated: Paris and the wider Île-de-France region took €534.3 million across 28 deals, or 86.9% of the national total. The 16 deals elsewhere raised €80.4 million, with Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes at €21.7 million, Pays de la Loire at €18.7 million and Bourgogne-Franche-Comté at €13.5 million.
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