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Analysis

August 14, 2025

Inside Mistral’s push into the Middle East

French AI darling strikes deals in Saudi Arabia, the UAE and more


Peng Xiao, CEO of G42, Mistral AI cofounder Arthur Mensch, and Eric Xing, president of MBZUAI

French startup Mistral is the darling of Europe’s AI ecosystem, billed as the continent’s leading chance at creating a home-grown company to rival US and Chinese dominance. 

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Daphné Leprince-Ringuet

Daphné Leprince-Ringuet is a senior reporter for Sifted, based in Paris. She covers French tech and writes Sifted's AI and Deeptech newsletter . You can find her on X and LinkedIn

Freya Pratty

Freya Pratty is Sifted's associate editor. She covers UK tech and leads Sifted's investigations. Follow her on X , LinkedIn and Bluesky

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