10 Years of IdEx: A Decade That Has Transformed Higher Education and Research on the French Riviera

As the winner of the 2016 Initiative of Excellence with the UCAJEDI project, Université Côte d'Azur has embarked on an unprecedented transformation of its organization, its academic programs, and its research strategy. This momentum led the international jury, at the end of the probationary period, to describe the institution as a “new model for French universities,” praising its unique ability to shape the university of tomorrow.
 

An Unprecedented Institutional Transformation

Founded as a Community of Universities and Institutions in 2015, the university took a decisive step in 2020 by becoming an Experimental Public Institution, before emerging from the experimental phase in July 2024 with the status of a Grand Établissement. This new governance model brings together university components and constituent institutions—including the Côte d’Azur Observatory, Villa Arson, and the Rosella Hightower National Center for Dance—as well as the Nice University Hospital—based on the principle of subsidiarity, alongside partners such as the CNRS, Inria, INRAE, Inserm, and the IRD.
 

Financial Results That Demonstrate the Leverage Effect

The figures for the 2022–2025 period illustrate the IdEx’s role as a catalyst:

• 20.4 million euros invested in projects generated 52.5 million euros in co-funding and grants
• €250,000 invested in preparation for European ERC grants resulted in more than €52 million in ERC funding secured at the site level
• 21.65% of funded projects contribute to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, representing 4.65 million euros in funding
• 55% of funded projects align with the IdEx’s strategic priorities

On the entrepreneurship front, out of 13 projects supported during this period, 11 startups were launched thanks to a total of €500,000 in support, subsequently raising €8.3 million in funding.
 

Artificial Intelligence: An Iconic Success Story

The history of AI at Université Côte d’Azur illustrates the IdEx’s incubation model: starting with a “Digital Challenge” center of excellence created in 2016 in partnership with Inria, the ecosystem has taken shape around an Inria-UniCA Chair of Excellence, the creation of 3IA Côte d’Azur (one of four AI institutes accredited in France as of 2019), the EFELIA Côte d’Azur program in 2022, and finally the AI Cluster accreditation in 2024. Université Côte d’Azur is now one of France’s nine centers of excellence in AI, driven in part by strong industry involvement through initiatives such as ICAIR, the SophIA Summit, and the WAICF.
 

A Strong Commitment to Scientific Diplomacy

Since the pandemic, the university has deployed an ambitious international strategy through its IdEx: participation in the COP since 2022, annual organization of a “mirror COP” on the Côte d’Azur, involvement in networks such as the UNFCCC, and membership in the U7+ alliance, which brings together university presidents from the G7 and the Global South. Since 2024, Université Côte d’Azur has served as the General Secretariat of the U7+ Alliance, succeeding Northwestern—a strong sign of international recognition, alongside strengthened partnerships with the University of Cambridge, and soon the Universities of Osaka and Ottawa.
 

A Resolutely International Academic Program

The IdEx initiative has enabled the development of 12 Master of Science programs taught entirely in English, reflecting a clear commitment to interdisciplinary and international excellence. As a true showcase of Université Côte d'Azur’s academic excellence, these programs now attract students from 111 different countries. This international outreach has been accompanied by a structural focus on pedagogy: the University Center for Pedagogical Innovation, established during the IdEx pilot phase and instrumental in the transition to remote learning during the pandemic, has become a permanent department, the Center for Pedagogical Support.
 

A Strengthened Scientific Profile

The IdEx has consolidated the campus’s areas of excellence—Earth and Space Sciences, aging, AI, cultural and creative industries, risks and resilience—while fostering the emergence of new, high-profile fields of study: flavors and fragrances, innovative materials, quantum technologies, and therapeutic innovations, among others. This momentum is driven in particular by five academies of excellence, designed as interdisciplinary hubs, and by a strong commitment to open science, marked by the award of the Open Data label and involvement in CoARA.
 

Expanded Partnership Reach

Beyond strategic partnerships with Laval University, the University of Utah, and the mirror campuses in Da Nang (Vietnam) and Podgorica (Montenegro), the IdEx supports the internationalization of its constituent units through initiatives such as the Franco-Indian Campus in Life and Health Sciences, a doctoral program in economics with Sant’Anna, and a chair on socio-environmental challenges with Costa Rica.


To mark its 10th anniversary, IdEx will host a series of events dedicated to its major programs—research, international initiatives, innovation, and education. This program will highlight the transformations underway since 2016, the achievements they have made possible, and IdEx’s lasting impact on the strategy, development, and global reach of Université Côte d’Azur. Stay tuned to discover all the highlights of this anniversary year coming soon.