Eric Truant

Today, I had the pleasure of hosting Dexter Docherty in my class at PSIA - Paris School of International Affairs, Sciences Po. He shared with the students the OECD’s work on AI futures. In times as uncertain as ours, foresight is no longer optional — it is both a space to explore and a skill to master. The next generation of leaders will need not just technical expertise, but the ability to think in unconventional ways and to prepare for multiple possible futures. Here are some insights I’m taking home on how to build forward-thinking institutions and train our anticipatory muscles: 1. Design for inter-generational thinking. Break down hierarchies and invite perspectives from those closest to emerging realities — they often see more clearly, free from organizational inertia. 2. Balance polarities. As F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote: The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in mind at the same time. In AI, multiple futures are equally possible. Instead of “either/or” thinking, we must learn to think in terms of “both/and.” 3. Ask basic questions to uncover deep biases. Machines can synthesize data, but they cannot capture diplomatic nuance or unspoken preferences. Leaders add the most value by brokering a common language for disagreement — because alignment is, above all, a human process before it is a technical one.

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I was delighted to participate in two panels at IPEM this year—one on “How AI is rewriting the PE playbooks” alongside Gaël Gibert from Advent and Guillaume Princen from Anthropic, and another on “Investing in the AI revolution” with Lauriane Requena from KKR and Astrid Moullé-Berteaux from Headline. At Seven2, we see AI not as a buzzword, but as a true industrial revolution—akin to electricity in its transformative potential. The real opportunity for private equity isn’t in chasing the next unicorn, but mostly in helping established companies harness AI to drive operational excellence and margin expansion. Our focus is on the “boring” but powerful applications of AI: automating repetitive tasks, optimizing processes, and leveraging proprietary data to revisit business models and create defensible advantages. The question for investors is not whether AI will change the landscape, but whether you want to own the companies before or after that transformation. We’re building the next generation of AI-enabled market leaders and keep an eye on AI-native companies that combine robust AI applications with high-value services. These businesses are particularly attractive for LBO: they already generate EBITDA, have a clear and growing role in supporting traditional companies to adopt AI, and are resilient against being displaced by hyperscalers. Stay tuned for more on how we’re putting this vision into action. #IPEM #PrivateEquity #AI #ValueCreation #Seven2

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Excellent essai d'Aaron Benanav de l'université Cornell. «The present frenzy surrounding artificial intelligence will not last forever. As the limitations of generative AI become clearer, and as the economic returns on massive corporate investments fail to materialize at the expected scale, the speculative bubble will inevitably burst. When that moment comes — as it did after the dot-com crash, and again after the robot hype of the 2010s — we will face a critical choice. We can resign ourselves to another cycle of technological disillusionment, or we can ask more fundamental questions about how technology might genuinely serve human needs. If we are to meet the challenges of the coming decades — from the climate crisis to the conclusion of the demographic transition to the pursuit of lives of greater freedom and meaning — we will need not more speculation about machines that will save us, but deliberate, collective action to shape our technological futures. The task ahead is not merely to anticipate what AI will do to us. It is to determine what we, as societies, intend to do with AI. We must insist that technological development be measured not by shareholder returns, but by its contribution to building a more just and humane world.» https://lnkd.in/eazVZCuD

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🇪🇺 2 new Large-Scale Pilots are starting this fall: APTITUDE for citizens on the move, WE BUILD Consortium for business trust. 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁’𝘀 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲 • 𝗔𝗣𝗧𝗜𝗧𝗨𝗗𝗘 = 𝗖𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘇𝗲𝗻 & 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗹: Coordinated by France, 110+ partners across 11 countries. Tests Digital Travel Credentials (DTC), a secure, app-based travel document, plus hotel check-ins and wallet payments. • 𝗪𝗘 𝗕𝗨𝗜𝗟𝗗 = 𝗕𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 & 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗰𝗲: Led by the Netherlands & Sweden, ~200 organisations in 27 countries. Focus on Organizational Identity, Know Your Business (KYB), and digital Power of Attorney. • 𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝗶𝘁 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: Final 24-month phase → 2026 wallets → 2027 obligations. Longer-term target: 80% citizen adoption by 2030. Which path do you expect to scale faster first: citizen mobility or B2B identity? 👇 #EUDIWallet #eIDAS2 #DigitalTravelCredentials #OrganizationalIdentity

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