Like a snap of the fingers of Thanos, the iconic villain of the Marvel universe, and poof, Digital. Disappeared, Jean-Noël Barrot, who nevertheless continues his rise in the honorary course, taking the portfolio of Europe. Also gone is the ministry and its prerogatives: an extended team, a seat on the Council of Ministers and at interministerial meetings. Digital, during the reshuffle, once again became the business of a simple state secretariat, as before 2022 and the appointment of François Bayrou’s protégé to the MoDem.
A demotion therefore, despite the importance taken by the subject in recent years, between the rise in power of artificial intelligence (AI), its preponderant place in the France 2030 investment plan, the debates on the question of sovereignty , or psychosis around screens. Even more so, if we look at the profile of her replacement. The centrist party keeps control of the position and has not found a better leader than Marina Ferrari, 50, discreet secretary at the Finance Commission. Laurence’s cousin – the CNews journalist – sometimes got up from her seat, in the hemicycle, to talk about housing or land use planning. Never quantum, blockchain or optical fiber. Should we be worried? After all, Jean-Noël Barrot only had a background as an economics researcher, also industrious, but whose initial curiosity for digital technology did not extend beyond Excel spreadsheets.
The strength given to the position can, in this case, prove to be important: Barrot was thus able to challenge Musk and Gafam, develop rather good relations with French Tech, and draft a law (SREN, passed last October). However, Marina Ferrari has neither the technical and cultural background of Cédric O or Mounir Mahjoubi, his predecessors at a similar rank, nor the position to shine. What does this say? The executive has apparently turned the page on the “start-up nation”; French Tech, a teenager, has more autonomy. And perhaps deep down, the biggest digital issues like AI have become so important that they need to be handled on the upper floor. In Bercy, at Bruno Le Maire’s. Or even, directly from the Elysée. Emmanuel Macron has tended, in recent times, to keep the best announcements for himself. At least, that’s surely what the French Tech ecosystem is hoping for today, as a cover-up.