Fresh off of an ambiguous acquisition, the Le Meur’s are in the papers again, having announced the Le Web Paris theme “The Internet of Things.” The event, set to take place the 4th-6th of December, has long since been hailed as one of the top European events for global entrepreneurs & investors. Early bird tickets have come and gone, but the normally €2,200 tickets are still just €1,690 through October 15th, and with the event having sold out all 3,500 tickets last year, it’s best to act quickly.

The Internet of Things – France’s forté

The internet of things, the term used to described objects connected via an internet through which they can transfer data, could not be more suitable of a theme. LeWeb has often picked themes which were at their peak relevance in the startup ecosystem, such as  LeWeb London’s “faster than real time” theme or LeWeb Paris ’11 SoLoMo themed conference.
This year’s themes will likely see Global apple store connected device leaders Square and Nest at the event, and likely PayPal as well,who recently announced their Square-Killer deal in France with McDonalds, long-time rival of Square client and newest investor Starbucks. But here’s something you may not have been aware of: 3 of the top 6 selling Apple connected devices are made by French startups. The Parrot AR Drone, a long-time startup event celebrity hovering over conference halls, and two hardware products made by French startup Withings. Their Wifi Body Scale allows you to track your weight by sending you updates on your weight to your iPhone, with their Smart Blood Pressure Monitor providing similar health tracking help. Withing’s Smart Baby Monitor also tops the Top Sellers charts on Apple’s store.
While we often give French love on The Rude Baguette, I bring this point up because last year’s LeWeb Paris featured very little French showcasing. While I don’t feel LeWeb should uniquely feature French companies, a top tier European event taking place in Paris, which gathers global interest every year, and is run by French-born entrepreneurs, it would do well to remind people what other amazing French-born entrepreneurs are doing in the city of lights.
To be expected as well at LeWeb this year will be connected device celebrities like health startup FitBit, who’s various connected devices have latched on to runner’s shorts and minds for the past few years. Additionally, I’ll expect Sphero, the iphone-controlled ball, which went viral in April after President Obama gave it a try, to be showing off what the next US President has to look forward to.