French tech startup Mistral AI has signed a $110 million deal with shipping giant CMA CGM to build custom AI tools for its shipping, logistics, and media operations. The five-year partnership will focus on speeding up customer service and improving fact-checking in the company’s media outlets.

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Mistral will work directly with CMA CGM teams in Marseille and at Grand Central, the company’s media headquarters in Paris. They’ll develop new AI tools to handle email questions about shipping routes, process claims more quickly, and help employees manage documents and customer requests more efficiently.

CMA CGM handles about one million emails a week. Company Chairman and CEO Rodolphe Saadé said the goal is to make the new tools work within 6 to 12 months. “This partnership with Mistral AI marks a decisive step in the transformation of CMA CGM through artificial intelligence,” Saadé said.

Founded in 2023, Mistral is one of Europe’s top AI startups and has gained attention as a homegrown rival to U.S. players like OpenAI. Mistral CEO Arthur Mensch said the company expects a tenfold jump in sales between December 2024 and December 2025. CMA CGM is one of its investors.

This deal pushes CMA CGM’s total AI spending to €500 million. The company has already teamed up with Google on a separate $150 million AI agreement and has invested in other AI firms like Poolside and Dataiku. In 2023, CMA CGM also helped launch the nonprofit research lab Kyutai.

“In this period of uncertainty, I think it’s a good thing for two French groups to announce this partnership,” Saadé said, referring to recent tensions between Europe and the U.S. over AI rules and trade.