Prophesee, a Parisian startup, is investing €15 million with the support of the State via France 2030 to become the world leader in Neuromorphic AI and integrate its metavision technology into potentially 1.3 billion smartphones.
For her, the Olympics began well before the opening ceremony. But what is this “neuromorphic Artificial Intelligence” in which France is investing and which has been deployed on the Olympic playing field?
To put it simply, it is a new technological advancement that draws inspiration from the functioning of the human brain to improve the efficiency and speed of computer systemsThis technology, which strives to model biological neural networks, is particularly promising for embedded applications, including autonomous cars and smartphones.
Making video surveillance cameras smart
The Paris 2024 Olympic Games, which are about to begin, will undoubtedly be the initial favorite playground for this brain-based AI, with full-scale tests of the use of Neuromorphic sensors in smart security cameras, allowing them to detect and analyze unusual movements in real time, thereby reducing energy consumption while increasing the accuracy of intrusion detections.
€15M to create neuromorphic sensors, made in France
In the global competition being played out around AI, The world leader in this technology based on the duplication of the neural network is called Prophecy and he is French !
On the eve of the opening of the Olympic Games, the Parisian company, which employs 350 engineers and already has offices in China, the US and Japan, announced an investment of 15 million euros to develop a new generation of neuromorphic sensors, manufactured in FranceThis project, called PERSEPHONE, is co-financed by the French State as part of the “Embedded AI” program of France 2030, managed by Bpifrance.
The main objective of this project is to Generalize the integration of neuromorphic AI in mobile phones, enabling significant progress in terms of:
- image quality,
- low energy consumption,
- speed of processing and confidentiality of data.
Unlike traditional technologies, this approach does not require cloud processing and storage, as everything is done locally on the device. Prophesee aims to integrate its technology into potentially 1.3 billion smartphones!
Pixel-by-pixel analysis down to thousandths of a second
If Prophesee's Metavision sensors are going to revolutionize mobile photography, it's because they focus only on movements in a scene, pixel by pixel, analyzed every thousandth of a second. Each pixel acts like a neuron, activating autonomously depending on the detected movement. This activation, called an “event”, makes it possible to synchronize the image sensor with the neuromorphic sensor to extract movement information on a microsecond scale. This technology helps correct image blur in all conditions and produce super slow motion and smooth videos., while opening new perspectives for the detection of gestures and movements.
A French nugget, precursor of AI
Luca Verre, CEO of Prophesee, emphasizes that this financing " confirms Prophesee's technological leadership " He adds that this initiative, carried out in partnership with key players, aims to " to bring out the next generation of embedded neuromorphic AI for the mobile phone market ".
Paul-François Fournier, Executive Director in charge of Innovation at Bpifrance, believes that "Prophesee is one of the technological gems that identified the potential of embedded AI very early on." He adds that this project, supported by the national strategy for AI of France 2030, concretely demonstrates France's ambition to remain at the forefront of global technology.
With Persephone, Prophesee will strengthen its position as a key player in neuromorphic AI and further propel France to the forefront of technological innovation.
