Disruptive Schools on BFM TV
Tech & Co. panel with Zak Allal (Singularity University), Kwame Yamgnane (École 42) and Mathilde Pech (Khan Academy France)
Source: YouTube, BFM Business, Tech & Co. Conducted in French.
About this Segment
Hosted by Guillaume Paul on BFM Business Tech & Co., this evening segment opens with the question of "disruptive schools", institutions breaking the traditional French education model. The panel brings together three educators alongside journalist Pascal Samama to discuss what these alternative schools offer that the national system cannot.
Zak Allal represents Singularity University, the Silicon Valley institution backed by Google and NASA. Kwame Yamgnane represents École 42, the free coding school founded by Xavier Niel. Mathilde Pech represents Khan Academy France, brought to France by Bibliothèques Sans Frontières.
What the Panel Covers
Selecting on passion, not credentials
All three institutions reject standard CV and diploma filters. Zak describes Singularity's selection lens, past candidates have included a Brazilian stand-up comedian and someone who climbed the seven highest peaks. The common ingredient is what he calls a "spark", drive that traditional academic success rarely captures.
Singularity University and exponential technologies
Zak frames Singularity as an innovation hub teaching disruptive technologies, AI, robotics, nanotechnology, digital fabrication, and applying them to global societal challenges. He notes that thanks to a $1.5M Google grant in January, the program is no longer financially gated, opening doors for talent from anywhere from Algeria to the projects of Marseille.
Why French industry giants are paying attention
Zak observes that Coca-Cola, Hershey's, and even UNICEF have joined Singularity's partner network. The panel debates whether French education must transform to produce digital-native citizens rather than industrial-era workers, and whether the bac, designed as an individual exam, still trains the right skills for collaborative digital work.
Complement vs. competitor
All three guests resist framing themselves as opponents of the national system. Khan Academy positions itself as a tool for teachers; École 42 says its mission is to give a path to the ~150,000 French students who leave the system each year without a diploma; Singularity sees itself as ecosystem-building rather than degree-granting.