“Our AI applications will transform the role of engineers.”

Pierre Baqué, CEO of Swiss Start-Up Neural Concept, says his technology can cut the time needed to design and bring new car models to the market.

Founded in 2018, Neural Concept specializes in artificial intelligence (AI) applications that are primarily sold to the automotive industry. Today, the startups have 80 employees in Switzerland's city of Lausanne, New York and Munich.

There were about 60 client companies and they named themselves in F1.

Swissinfo met Pierre Baqué, founder and CEO of Neural Concept, at the company's office in the Innovation Park at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne (EPFL).

swissinfo.ch: Do you simply explain what the concept of nerves does?

Pierre Baqué: Our AI applications act as an assistant or co-pilot for engineers. This allows you to develop your products more quickly, perform more iterations at a set time, and get from automated suggestions. For example, the automotive industry can reduce technology by half the time it takes to design and introduce new models into the market.

Our AI applications transform the role of engineers, but do not replace them. The challenge is to create a true symbiotic relationship between human creativity and the analytical power of AI.

Swissinfo: How does the concept of neural influence on client employment, especially in the automotive and aerospace industries?

PB: This is a very important issue for clients. AI creates significant efficiency gains. Some companies will be able to develop more products with the same number (or even more engineers), while others decide to produce the same volume as those with fewer engineers.

swissinfo:Do engineer training programs need to adapt to these new realities?

PB: Absolutely. Engineering tools are evolving, so courses need to adapt more quickly and fundamentally when computer-aided design and simulations are introduced.

swissinfo: The Swiss education system is very democratic, but in France it is very elitist and there are institutions such as the Ecole Polytechnic des Paris, where you are alumni. Did the fact that you are a French trained engineer make a difference in your way of working?

PB: The rigorous education at Ecole Polytechnic de Paris, including two-year preparatory classes, ensures students excel in mathematics, physics and other technical fields. These abilities remain throughout life, especially thanks to the intellectual discipline they have acquired. The fact that it's difficult to enter this school makes it a valuable business card. This definitely helped me get my first contract with major groups like Airbus and Saffron. These credentials also boosted the initial fundraising efforts. However, the drawback of such elitism is the low value placed on French apprentices, which are one of the great strengths of the Swiss system.

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Swissinfo: Are you affected by Swiss or foreign regulations regarding AI?

PB: The term AI covers many different realities, making all attempts at regulation more difficult. In our case, there are no laws that directly affect our work.

SWISSINFO: Nevertheless, do you want to see safeguards being implemented, especially to protect your data and ensure that AI solutions are ethical?

PB: As a citizen, I hope that the government will take steps to prevent existential risks associated with AI. I mainly consider the risk of the emergence of the ultra-gut, which is used for private purposes that are out of control or against human good. Because of these scenarios, I think it is necessary to have regulations that have similar measures to those that govern nuclear weapons. Switzerland could probably play a role here at the international level.

Swissinfo: How do you acquire new clients? And what is the reference company for you in Switzerland?

PB: It combines a variety of approaches. Direct actions from Lausanne's headquarters, sales development by a subsidiary in New York and Munich, participation in trade shows such as CES technology events in Las Vegas, and collaborations with resellers such as Cybernet in Japan. Currently, we have 60 client companies, including Safran, General Electric, Subaru, General Motors and four Formula One teams. We focus on the automotive, microelectronics, aerospace and energy sectors.

For now, there are no major Swiss clients, but ABB and Pilatus show strong potential. In a small country like Switzerland, it is natural to aim for an international market from the start.

Swissinfo: Who is your main competitor?

PB: The field of AI for science is booming today, with a variety of approaches. The concept of neurals lies far ahead in the field, making it difficult to identify direct competitors offering similar products or services. Our solutions complement computer-aided design and computer-aided engineering software developed by leading providers such as Dassault Cystame, Siemens, ANSYS and American engineering simulation companies. These companies can add virtualization capabilities to their products, but they cannot compete with the ability to add AI applications.

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Swissinfo: How do you guarantee product scalability?

Our strategy is to develop as many reusable tools as possible. Our architecture is built on three layers: a core algorithm based, a modular platform for a variety of applications, and a customizable interface for each client.

Swissinfo: raised 38 million ($48 million) in three funding rounds. What happens next?

PB: The immediate priority is to maintain and integrate technical leadership. We want to continue developing the best products to satisfy our clients and support sales growth. We are in the early stages of development. Stay in this trajectory and all options will remain open.

Swissinfo: Neural Concept currently has a team with 80 employees. How do you see the future workforce?

PB: We continue to actively recruit, especially for product development positions. The R&D team will continue to focus on Switzerland to maximize the potential for exchange, while the sales team will be built overseas, particularly in the US and Germany. They will also be hiring staff from Japan and Korea. We want to double our workforce in the medium term.

Swissinfo: AI consumes a lot of energy. What about your ecological footprint?

PB: Our ambition is to provide AI assistants to engineers and researchers and help them find technical solutions to energy and therefore ecological crises. In other words, ecological considerations are one of the main factors in our business.

Swissinfo: The concept of neurals has just been selected by the World Economic Forum as one of the pioneers of 100 technologies. What does this mean to you?

PB: We want to make a positive contribution to the development of our sector, whilst forging useful contacts, including business-level. This perception increases our profile and reliability between clients and investors.

Swissinfo: Is Switzerland a good place to build AI companies like neural concepts?

PB: Yes, especially in the case of EPFL spinoffs. The transition from the university sphere is smooth, and the area is ideal for recruiting qualified engineers, with limited competition for employers. However, at a more advanced stage of growth, there is a shortage of major local investors compared to London and New York, making it a certain difficulty to recruit ambitious and experienced sales executives. Our presence in Munich and New York is a great plus for this today.

Swissinfo: What about the fact that you are a Swiss company in your field?

PB: EPFL's spinoff status gave us the original technical reliability, but it should not fall in glory. Generally speaking, Swiss companies are known for their reliable, serious and humane approach. The country's neutrality is an advantage, especially for clients in highly regulated sectors such as aerospace, energy and defense. Furthermore, Switzerland is beginning to be recognized internationally as a “country of deep technology.” This is perfectly legal in the AI ​​field given the roles that hubs play, such as Zurich (the existence of Openai, Nvidia, Anthropic, Deep-Judge, etc.) and Lausanne (the Isomorphic, Neural Concept, etc.).

Swissinfo: Are you affected by current geopolitical issues, such as US tariffs and Switzerland-EU relations?

PB: US tariffs do not affect our services, but they directly affect our clients, especially automakers. The relationship between Switzerland and the EU has no effect on our work at this point.

Virginie ManginEdit