Lyon-Grenoble Tech Corridor: France’s Deep Technology Hub
The Lyon-Grenoble corridor is France’s deeptech capital, anchoring the nation’s semiconductor, biotech, and advanced materials industries. The cluster houses STMicroelectronics, CEA-Leti (Europe’s premier nanotech institute), and a growing AI/ML research ecosystem.
Semiconductor Cluster
STMicroelectronics (€17B revenue, 50,000 employees globally) has its main European fab in Crolles, near Grenoble. With GlobalFoundries, STMicro is investing €7.5 billion to expand 300mm wafer production, supported by the EU Chips Act and France 2030. Soitec (Grenoble, SOI wafer technology) supplies Apple, Qualcomm, and Samsung.
Research Infrastructure
CEA-Leti: 1,900 researchers, 3,100+ patents. World leader in MEMS, photonics, and advanced packaging. ESRF (European Synchrotron): world’s most powerful X-ray source. ILL (Institut Laue-Langevin): leading neutron research facility. Université Grenoble Alpes ranks in global top 100 for engineering.