Octave Klaba’s big project is in the process of being implemented. The founder of OVH has completed the creation of a new entity called Synfonium, which aims to build a “European champion in cloud-based services”. Under the Synfonium umbrella we find Shadow, the cloud PC service that the entrepreneur acquired in April 2021, and Qwant.
Octave Klaba in 2019. Image Web Summit (CC BY)
It’s no surprise that Octave Klaba has had her eye on the search engine for some time. He has confirmed today the takeover of 100% of Qwant by Synfonium with the help of the Caisse des Dépôts (which holds 25% of the company’s capital). He also conquers the entire capital of Shadow.
After Shadow, the founder of OVH wants to take over Qwant and create a “European Champion”.
The strategic details of this new adventure will be revealed at the beginning of the school year, but the idea is to “integrate the entire EU tech ecosystem” where we will find “the search engine, free services, the collaboration suite, etc.” Social login, but also the services of our tech partners.” The services offered through Synfonium will be “free and paid” and aimed at the general public and business customers.
Octave Klaba has no illusions: “The road is long, complex and expensive”, and he does not know whether the road will ultimately be a success. But the game is worth the effort as today “there is a real expectation to have this platform in the cloud SaaS EU that respects our values and our European laws”.