High Tech Campus and Start-up Incubators A magnificent environment The 7-hectare area is situated on a plateau of scrubland with magnificent views overlooking the Étoile massif in the south and the Sainte-Victoire mountain in the east. A pine forest borders the northern edge of the land, and a craggy peak appears in the west of the site as an emblematic landmark.

Excellence The goal of the programme is to set a high standard of excellence, by creating a site dedicated to entrepreneurship and innovation: a site unique in France that is internationally reputed, acts as a magnet for the campus and projects its influence outside.

The qualities of the landscape must be highlighted everywhere and maximised to promote the site’s extraordinary environment. Both the location of “thecamp” and the architectural design of its large expanse are based on an imaginary triangle formed by the site’s three major identifying features: the forest in the north, the Sainte Victoire mountain in the east, and the rocky peak in the west.

The canvas structure The structure should be regarded as a ‘territory’, a huge mineral outgrowth rising out of the forest floor and housing the various project facilities. Here and there vast shafts – akin to gigantic crevices – bring light, plant life and the countryside into the heart of the building. Though not accessible, the ‘territory’ is inhabited below.