A new entrepreneur has joined **Hexa**, a startup studio based in Belgium. His name is Antoine Durieux, co-founder of **Alkemics**, a platform designed to assist distributors in managing their suppliers. **Alkemics** was acquired in 2021 by the American company **Salsify**. The French entrepreneur has now become a Partner at **Hexa**, with the aim of launching startups focused on software for critical industries—sectors like energy, aviation, and defense, where the stakes are high and failures are not tolerated. This work is part of "Start," a long-standing program for launching young companies, popularized by **eFounders**, which aims to create a dozen new businesses each year. Critical industries often rely on software that has not been significantly updated in decades. These systems are typically on-premise, certified, and fragile, and their maintenance can be costly. As **Matthieu Gombeaud**, CEO of **Hexa**, explains, "These buyers do not convert based on a demo." This means that convincing customers to switch to new software solutions is a complex and slow process, requiring deep trust and proven reliability. After leaving **Alkemics** in 2023, Antoine Durieux advised several **SaaS** (software as a service) companies targeting critical industries, such as **Sirona**, **Hiboo**, and **Elax**, helping them with their go-to-market strategies. He became particularly interested in sectors such as the nuclear industry, maritime transport, and sovereign cloud computing. At **Hexa**, he wants to focus on key sectors where Europe has a strong position, such as energy, space, aviation, maritime, and defense. "These companies make the world run, fly, and function. None is more decisive for our way of life, and almost none has yet been touched by AI," Durieux says. He believes that an outsider can have a significant impact in these areas, both on the environment and on the protection of democracies. With this vision, Antoine Durieux is currently overseeing the creation of two companies. The first is **Integrity**, an on-premise AI coding assistant for critical code bases that cannot leave the company's infrastructure. The second is **Encore**, a marketplace for used GPUs and data center equipment, allowing companies to run AI in their own cloud. These projects reflect **Hexa**'s growing influence as a hub for French tech figures in Belgium. The studio has hired several notable entrepreneurs, including **Thibault Chassagne**, co-founder of **Virtuo**, **Raphaël Vullierme**, co-founder of **Luko**, **Maxime Brousse**, co-founder of **Selency**, and **Tanguy Goretti**, co-founder of **Cowboy**, who became the first CTO of the startup studio.