XTX Markets, HEC Paris and the HEC Foundation join forces to develop innovation and entrepreneurship

XTX Markets, the global algorithmic trading firm, HEC Paris and the HEC Foundation have signed a partnership for three years focused on the school’s Creative Destruction Lab (‘CDL’), the Innovation & Entrepreneurship Center and the MSc Data for Science.

This partnership is based on 3 pillars:

• The creation of a new CDL Paris stream, Machine Learning, in addition to the Climate and New Space streams;
• Developing international collaborations with the Oxford CDL to unite the two communities of startups;
• Granting scholarships to Data Science for Business students, whose admission will be based on excellence and diversity.

“We are delighted with the incredible opportunity this gift from XTX Markets brings to the School. In line with our mission, it will provide valuable support to the student community through scholarships and strengthen the diversity of students’ profiles and backgrounds at HEC Paris. Through the new Machine Learning stream of CDL-Paris, this innovative Deeptech program for our MBA students will combine values dear to HEC: excellence, innovation and entrepreneurship,” said Olivier Sevillia, President of the HEC Foundation.

“XTX Markets is an obvious partner for HEC Deep Tech Entrepreneurship programs, as they are inherently international with the Creative Destruction Lab operating within a network of 12 international sites. Moreover, as most of the deep tech startups supported through the programs are international, having access to the two most attractive cities in Europe through the HEC Paris ecosystem will emphasize the assets of the European ecosystem for financing, business, and talent acquisition”, added Inge Kerkloh-Devif, Senior Executive Director HEC Paris’s Innovation & Entrepreneurship Center.

XTX Markets commented: "We are delighted to partner with HEC Paris and the HEC Foundation to help foster innovation and entrepreneurship through these scholarships and by helping support the innovative academic programs that HEC are planning to launch in the coming years."

The Creative Destruction Lab (CDL) is a not-for-profit seed-stage program for massively scalable science-based companies. The program takes no equity and charges no fees - it is funded through philanthropy.

The CDL’s objective-setting process enhances the performance of technical founders who learn from the insights of experienced entrepreneurs, increasing their probability of success. It offers:

• Focused mentorship from proven entrepreneurs who have founded, led, and sold significant tech companies;
• Technical advice from world-leading scientists, engineers, and economists;
• Access to top business students, who embed within the company to provide business development support;
• Opportunities to raise capital from North American and European investors.

The CDL is one of the Innovation & Entrepreneurship Center’s programs. The IEC contributes to making HEC Paris an institution of reference in the fields of innovation and entrepreneurship. The Center supports the vocation of all innovators and accompanies them in the development of their project. Its mission is to support and promote innovation; to produce and mobilize knowledge and means of action; to catalyze potential - both individual and economic - and enable them to be revealed, expressed and realized.

In 2022, the Center supported 482 startups (including 130 tech startups) and 1.9 billion euros were raised by HEC entrepreneurs.

The Data Science for Business program offers a dual expertise that is highly sought after by employers in all sectors by combining a scientific and business approach to understanding the issues and challenges of data science. It aims to train the entrepreneurs, intrapreneurs and data managers of tomorrow, who will create impactful startups, challenge established business models and drive innovation.