29.10.2025
20.03.2026
Paris, March 20, 2026
Hivest Capital, majority shareholder of Agora Makers, announces the acquisition of Kuzzle, a French developer of Hypervision, IoT, Data and Artificial Intelligence (AI) solutions, by Agora Makers.
This transaction, the sixth acquisition completed by Agora Makers since its acquisition by Hivest Capital, is in line with the build-up strategy initiated in 2023 and reflects the group’s strategy to pursue growth through external acquisitions across all its business lines, in France and internationally.
The transaction enhances the Smart City offering developed by Agora Makers and supports the structuring of an integrated, sovereign and scalable digital platform for the digital transformation of territories. Following the acquisition of Nexiode in 2024, Kuzzle represents the second software pillar of this strategy.
The acquisition of Kuzzle significantly strengthens the technological positioning of the Agora Makers group and accelerates its transition towards a higher value-added model, combining industrial assets, software and data.
A structuring transaction at the heart of a European consolidation strategy
The integration of Kuzzle brings together complementary expertise and technologies to structure an integrated and differentiated offering, positioning Agora Makers as a leading Smart City player, combining:
- design and manufacturing capabilities for public lighting solutions and urban furniture;
- IoT and Smart Lighting technologies;
- hypervision software and data platforms;
- recognised expertise in urban design and planning.
This integrated approach enables the group to increase the share of recurring activities (software, data, services) while strengthening its ability to serve large-scale public and private markets in Europe and globally.
Kuzzle, a strategic software building block for the Agora Makers platform
Kuzzle develops a sovereign, modular and open platform enabling the connection, supervision and real-time management of thousands of urban or industrial assets.
Kuzzle’s positioning in IoT and multi-domain hypervision, together with the quality of its client portfolio, confirms the robustness of its model and its natural complementarity with Agora Makers’ existing solutions.
This acquisition enables Agora Makers to strengthen its control over software, data and automation—key levers in accelerating its transformation towards a highly scalable platform model.
Strong operational synergies already in place
The complementarity between Kuzzle and Nexiode is already materialising, notably through the success achieved in the Strasbourg Smart City project, one of the largest European tenders in this field.
Through this transaction, Agora Makers further strengthens its development with the aim of:
- building a group capable of addressing complex, technology-intensive projects;
- developing a sovereign, competitive and replicable model;
- strengthening its presence in major digital infrastructure projects across Europe.
Jacques Le Conte, CEO of Kuzzle, stated: “We are delighted to be joining the Agora Makers group and to combine our expertise to accelerate our growth and scale the commercial deployment of our solutions. Together, we will create greater value for both public and industrial stakeholders by sustainably improving the operational performance of their infrastructure, in France and internationally.”
David Lelièvre, CEO of Agora Makers, added: “With Kuzzle, we are adding a high-quality software building block to our industrial expertise. We are becoming one of the few players capable of offering a sovereign platform, from lighting to software, from data to hypervision. Together, we are ready to support territories in their most ambitious urban transformation projects, in France and internationally.”
About Kuzzle
Kuzzle is a French open-source developer specialising in IoT, Data and Hypervision. Its platform enables the connection of equipment, the orchestration of data and the management of critical business operations at scale. Sovereign, open and modular, it serves the Smart City, energy, industrial, logistics and smart building sectors.
About Agora Makers
Agora Makers is an international leader in the design, manufacturing, and distribution of public lighting, smart and street furniture solutions. With an extensive portfolio of renowned brands, including Eclatec, GHM, Nexiode-Agora Connect, Metalco, Bellitalia, and CityDesign, Agora Makers combines innovation, functionality, and design to create products that enhance urban spaces. The company operates across multiple countries in Europe, South America and the Middle East, with a strong commitment to sustainability and excellence.
About Hivest Capital Partners
Hivest Capital Partners is an independent European private equity firm authorised by the French Financial Markets Authority (AMF). In the context of buyout or expansion projects, Hivest Capital Partners invests in SMEs with revenues between €50 million and €500 million. The private equity firm aims to help companies reach their full potential through improved operational performance and ambitious growth strategies.
Participants
Buyer:
- Company – Agora Makers: David Lelièvre, Laetitia Carpentier, Louis Morante
- Investor – Hivest Capital Partners: Cédric Lépée, Barthélemy Grave, Roland Hillion
- Legal advisor – Racine: Maud Bakouche, Edouard Cluet, Polina Loyko, Ruth Mbitumueni, Quentin Cournot, Lauriane Delisle, Guillaume Thuleau
- Financial advisor – BMA: Rémi Laberenne, Augustin Enfrin, Nour Guezguez
- Tech & IT advisor – Eight Advisory: Bechir Aissi, Adrien Kessel, Etienne Maneval
- Strategy advisor – Jean-Christophe Fuzzati, Maylis Cancelloni, Sibylle Pichon
- Insurance advisor – Marsh: Nhat-Minh Tran
Seller:
- Company – Kuzzle: Jacques Le Conte, Sophie Coquin
- Legal advisor – Fieldfisher: Jean-Baptiste Van de Voorde, Romane Dhalleine, Romane Soret
