emlyon business school announces a partnership with Mistral AI, a pioneering French startup in artificial intelligence. Together, the two institutions are launching a series of initiatives to integrate artificial intelligence into training and research, with a common goal: to support businesses in their ongoing transformations.

Mistral AI, founded in France in 2023 by three French entrepreneurs, is a fast-growing artificial intelligence company. In just two years, the startup has established itself around the core principles of open-source, efficiency, and privacy, with the ambition to develop a new generation of large language models that challenge the traditional Silicon Valley approach. Leveraging significantly lower development costs than the industry average, Mistral AI has built highly competitive models and launched Le Chat—a generative AI tool that runs 13 times faster than ChatGPT while requiring only one-fifth of OpenAI’s training costs—positioning it among the fastest models available on the market today.

Two unprecedented B2B and B2C training programs designed for professional audiences

This partnership includes the creation of two distinct training programs starting in 2026:

• The first will take the form of a certification program aimed at the general public, combining technical contributions provided by Mistral AI with content on managerial transformation designed by emlyon.
• The second training will be an unprecedented B2B executive offer, co-constructed by the two partners and aimed at managers and executives. It will aim to provide them with the keys to understand AI usage and integrate it effectively into their activities, decisions, and the transformation of their organization.

A pioneering business school in AI

This partnership is part of a long-standing AI strategy committed by emlyon, which translates into an overall investment of 14 million euros each year, representing 10% of the school’s activities.

emlyon is a pioneering business school in AI with:

• A dedicated Institute (Artificial Intelligence and Management Institute – AIM) bringing together about fifteen professor-researchers;
• Two research centers (QUANT for quantitative methods in management sciences and MTCI for digital innovation in marketing);
• About ten training programs dedicated to AI (such as the Bachelor of Science in Data Science for Responsible Business, the Master in Data Science & Artificial Intelligence Strategy, various MSc programs around Data Science or Data Analytics, and several continuing education programs);
• The integration of mandatory AI modules across all programs.

A global strategy supported by concrete uses

This ambition is also reflected in the pedagogy, where teachers integrate AI into their methods. Some examples:

• Guillaume Coqueret, finance professor at emlyon and head of the QUANT research center, uses language models (LLMs) to generate educational grading benchmarks;
• Aurélien Baillon, economics professor at emlyon and coordinator of the Malakoff Humanis chair on the mental health of TPE/PME leaders, tests an AI assistant designed to support students struggling with mathematical concepts.

Moreover, emlyon places particular importance on the anthropological consequences of AI and on developing reflexivity among students regarding new technologies while recruiting professors at the intersection of social sciences and AI.

This partnership will also benefit the school’s students starting in 2025, with several initiatives put in place within existing curricula to familiarize them with professional uses of AI. Collaborative projects, hackathons, and experiments will complement emlyon's training, with the support of Mistral AI teams. In addition, an internal, secure artificial intelligence platform called LuminAi was deployed in 2025 to all staff and will be open to students starting in September 2025.

Isabelle Huault

Dean and Executive President of emlyon business school

This partnership with Mistral AI reflects our desire to train students and leaders capable of driving major transformations related to artificial intelligence. By partnering with a French technological player, we are choosing an AI aligned with the school’s values.

Audrey Herblin-Stoop

Vice President of Public Affairs at Mistral AI

This partnership with emlyon enables us to bring our technological expertise closer to those who will shape the uses of tomorrow. Training both students and professionals is essential for firmly anchoring artificial intelligence in the French economy and society