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Open Innovation
Two Themes, One Goal: Eco-Responsibility
The six participating startups were divided into two sessions, each focusing on a key theme. The first, "Eco-Responsible Content Production and Operations", explored how companies can reduce the carbon footprint of their content, from production to distribution. Innovative solutions for optimizing creative processes and adopting more sustainable production practices were showcased.
The three startups that pitched their solutions were:
- Cutz, a simple and fast video encoder.
- deepRiver, a metadata-enhanced video compressor.
- Holli, an automated carbon and energy impact management solution for the tech and creative industries.
The second session, "Towards a More Responsible Company", focused on initiatives to help France Télévisions adopt more responsible and engaged practices. Topics included sustainable management of tools and fostering a responsible corporate culture. The three startups that pitched were:
- Noos Global, a platform engaging employees in CSR initiatives.
- Agoterra, a co-financing platform for impact-driven projects.
- Greenbids, an AI-powered solution to reduce the carbon footprint of advertising campaigns.
These themes provided an inspiring overview of available solutions to address today’s sustainability challenges for a company like France Télévisions.
Cutz and Greenbids – The Jury’s Favorites
During these two pitch sessions organized by Open Innovation, a jury composed of France Télévisions employees and a guest Nicolas Delay which is an artist committed to sustainable development was tasked with selecting their favorite startup from each session. And because they are still the best advocates for their solution, we asked them three key questions to help you get to know them better. Let’s dive in!
#1. Can you describe your business in a few words?
Cutz is a French GreenTech-certified solution, the result of over four years of R&D in collaboration with a Polytechnique Institute laboratory. It reduces the size of all types of videos—ranging from commercials to full-length films—by more than 70%, while maintaining the same visual quality with no perceivable loss. This reduction offers several benefits:
- Over 70% reduction in environmental impact (CO₂ emissions) related to video distribution.
- Over 70% decrease in electricity consumption due to reduced storage size and bandwidth use.
- Over 70% cost savings (cloud or private servers).
- On average, a 70% faster loading time, leading to better engagement and conversion rates.
Cutz is an easy-to-use solution (drag-and-drop) accessible to everyone, or available as an API for experts. Compression and encoding are fully automated. It also includes a carbon footprint tracker to measure impact and CO₂ savings, directly contributing to CSR reports based on Ademe-Afnor-Arcep methodology.
#2. How does your commitment to sustainability manifest in your business?
Our commitment is reflected in three key areas:
- Corporate policies: Implementing sustainable operational practices to minimize our carbon footprint, such as low-emission transportation, second-hand IT equipment, and extending the lifespan of all devices.
- Eco-design in product development: Partnering with infrastructure providers to reduce energy consumption and optimizing our software development processes to be more energy-efficient (fewer servers, CPUs, and memory usage). We are also signatories of the "Planet Tech’Care" charter.
- Market-wide impact: Helping partners and clients reduce their carbon footprint. In 2024 alone, Cutz has prevented 20,000 metric tons of CO₂ emissions—and this is just the beginning.
#3. Why is participating in pitch sessions like écoDAY important for your startup?
Winning the jury’s favorite award at écoDAY is crucial for Cutz. It reinforces the legitimacy and credibility of our years of R&D. France Télévisions is the largest audiovisual player in France, and their recognition validates our approach—not only in eco-design but in creating a 360° solution for low-carbon video distribution.
We hope to build a strong partnership with France Télévisions to set an example for the audiovisual industry.
3 questions for Greenbids, the jury's favorite from the second session
#1. Can you describe your business in a few words?
Greenbids was founded three years ago by Guillaume Grimbert, Adrien Delambre, and Jean-Baptiste Pettit with a mission to help advertisers optimize their ad delivery for better quality, responsibility, and efficiency worldwide. By reducing technological waste in the advertising value chain, Greenbids significantlyimproves the carbon impact of digital advertising.
#2. How does your commitment to sustainability manifest in your business?
Sustainability is at the heart of Greenbids’ mission. Our AI solutions integrate into every stage of the Ad Tech ecosystem—from brands to ad exchanges and publishers—to optimize ad campaigns for carbon efficiency,meaning better performance with lower CO₂ emissions.
#3. Why is participating in pitch sessions like écoDAY important for your startup?
It’s crucial to raise awareness about the carbon impact of advertising investments and the digital ad value chain, as this issue is largely overlooked. Events like écoDAY allow us to clarify our approach with major industry players and work together toward a more responsible advertising ecosystem.
Beyond the Pitches: Building Bridges for Sustainable Innovation
Beyond the pitch sessions, participants had the opportunity to meet directly with the startups and discuss their projects. These moments of exchange help industry professionals discover practical tools and approaches to address their everyday challenges.
Building on the enthusiasm around sustainability, France Télévisions' Open Innovation team plans to connect some of these startups with internal teams to test their solutions in real-world applications. This presents an exciting opportunity to accelerate sustainable innovation while strengthening collaboration between large corporations and startups.
