Musée des arts et métiers

What Musée des arts et métiers does

The Musée des arts et métiers (MuAM) is a public science and technology museum located in the 3rd arrondissement of Paris, housed in the former priory of Saint-Martin-des-Champs at 60 rue Réaumur. Founded in 1794 as part of the Conservatoire national des arts et métiers (Cnam) during the French Revolution, the museum curates and exhibits thousands of historical inventions and scientific instruments organized into seven thematic domains — Scientific Instruments, Materials, Construction, Communication, Energy, Mechanics, and Transport. Iconic holdings include Clément Ader's aircraft, Lavoisier's laboratory, and the Lumière brothers' first cinematograph.

The museum operates a portfolio of visitor-facing products built around its permanent collection: temporary exhibitions (currently 'Zeus, chef-d'œuvre d'artisans' with Sanofi, December 2025–March 2026), guided tours and demonstrations (Foucault pendulum, live activations), audioguides, age-appropriate workshops for children and families, school programs, mobile applications, the digital 'Conservatoire numérique des Arts et Métiers,' and an email newsletter. Distribution occurs through walk-in admissions, the Tickeasy online ticketing platform, and group bookings for schools, corporate, and adult groups. Marketing channels span the official website and five social media platforms.

Commercially, the museum sells admissions at €12 full price and €9 reduced, with free access on the first Sunday of each month and Friday evenings (6pm–9pm); summer family activities are priced at €6 per child and €15 per adult. As a government state entity under Cnam, the museum is publicly funded by the French state, does not publish revenue figures, and has no venture, private equity, or public market ownership. Operations are led by Michèle Antoine (Directrice du MuAM), with Bénédicte Fauvarque-Cosson as Administratrice générale of the parent Cnam.

Name

Musée des arts et métiers

Legal name

Conservatoire national des arts et métiers (Cnam)

Website

https://arts-et-metiers.net

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Musée des arts et métiers is a Paris-based public science and technology museum operating under the Conservatoire national des arts et métiers (Cnam), serving general visitors, families, and school groups with permanent collections of historical inventions, temporary exhibitions, and educational programming.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Science and Technology Museum

NAICS

Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (7121), Museums (712110)

akta.pro primary industry

Science & Technology Museums (THAJADAD)

Keywords

• Science and technology museum
• Cultural heritage preservation
• Educational museum programs
• Historical scientific instruments
• Temporary exhibitions programming

Headquarters

HQ city

Paris

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

The Musée des Arts et Métiers is a publicly funded science and technology museum in Paris that preserves and exhibits thousands of historical scientific instruments and inventions spanning the 18th century to the present. Its core offerings include the permanent collection organized into seven thematic areas (Scientific Instruments, Materials, Construction, Communication, Energy, Mechanics, Theatre of Automata, Transport), rotating temporary exhibitions, guided tours and demonstrations, educational workshops for children and families, school programs, audioguides, mobile applications, and a digital conservatory providing online access to digitized collections.

Product overview

The Musée des Arts et Métiers is a science and industry museum in Paris, operated by the Conservatoire national des arts et métiers (Cnam). The institution offers a unified visitor experience centered on its permanent collection of thousands of historic inventions spanning scientific instruments, materials, construction, communication, energy, mechanics, and transport. The product portfolio includes: the permanent collections (the core product), temporary exhibitions (currently featuring the Zeus metallic horse installation), guided tours and demonstrations (including the Foucault pendulum), audioguides, workshops for children and families, school programs, mobile applications, and the digital conservatory for online access to collections. Additional services encompass space rental, a museum shop, and the La Lettre du MuAM newsletter. Summer programs like Les Estivales provide seasonal outdoor entertainment activities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Musée des Arts et Métiers (Permanent Collections) The museum's permanent collection displays thousands of inventions across seven themed areas: scientific instruments, materials, construction, communication, energy, mechanics, and transport. Features iconic objects such as Clément Ader's airplane and the Lumière brothers' first cinematograph.
• Temporary Exhibitions Rotating temporary exhibitions complementing the permanent collection, currently featuring 'Zeus, chef-d'œuvre d'artisans' showcasing the metallic horse from the Paris 2024 Olympic ceremony.
• Zeus, le cheval métallique Monumental metallic horse sculpture from the Paris 2024 Olympic Opening Ceremony, created by Atelier blam under Thomas Jolly's direction, displayed on the museum parvis from December 2025 to January 2027. The sculpture activates every 20 minutes offering a hypnotic spectacle.
• Guided Tours and Demonstrations Educational programs including flash visits, themed guided tours, general treasure hunts through collections, and live demonstrations such as the Foucault pendulum and Zeus metallic horse.
• Workshops and Activities for Children and Families Age-appropriate educational workshops and creative activities for children ages 4-12, including 'Ça roule', 'Ça vole', automates workshops, and photography activities.
• School Programs Educational offerings for schools including guided visits, workshop sessions, and pedagogical projects aligned with curriculum standards.
• Conservatoire numérique des Arts et Métiers Digital conservatory providing access to the museum's digitized collections and archival resources for research and exploration.
• Les Estivales Summer outdoor entertainment program featuring oversized games and giant board games on the museum parvis, running from July 7 to August 2, 2026.
• Space Rental Event space rental services for private functions, corporate events, and special occasions within the museum's historic venues.
• Museum Shop On-site retail boutique offering museum merchandise, books, and souvenirs.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration8 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• À l'Adresse du jeuminorOthers · 7 July 2026The association 'À l'Adresse du jeu' animates the Les Estivales summer event on the museum's parvis, providing XXL games and family activities from July 7 to August 2, 2026.
• SanoficoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 December 2025Sanofi collaborated with Atelier blam and Musée des Arts et Métiers to present the exhibition 'Zeus, chef-d'œuvre d'artisans' from December 2025 to March 2026. The exhibition reveals the creation process of the monumental metallic horse Zeus from the Paris 2024 Olympic opening ceremony, showcasing the artisanship and technical excellence behind the artwork.
• Atelier blamcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 December 2025Atelier blam is the creative studio that designed and built Zeus, the metallic horse from the Paris 2024 Olympic opening ceremony. The studio collaborated with Sanofi and the museum to create the exhibition 'Zeus, chef-d'œuvre d'artisans' showcasing the artistic and technical process behind the sculpture.

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Deutsches Museum: Munich's world-leading science and technology museum, founded 1903. Closely comparable to MuAM in collection depth, focus on historic scientific instruments and engineering, and educational programming.
• Science Museum Group (Science Museum, London): London's flagship science and technology museum. Highly comparable in mission (history of science and technology, iconic inventions, school programs) and audience (general public, families, tourists), making it the strongest international analogue.
• Museo Nazionale della Scienza e della Tecnologia Leonardo da Vinci: Milan's science and technology museum. Comparable in thematic coverage (energy, materials, transport, communication) and educational mission; similarly housed in a historic religious building.
• Cité des Sciences et de l'Industrie: France's largest science museum at La Villette, Paris. Directly competes for school groups, families, and tourists seeking interactive STEM experiences, and shares the same Universcience / French public institutional ecosystem as MuAM.
• Palais de la Découverte: Paris-based science museum operated under Universcience. Directly competes with MuAM for science-curious visitors, school groups, and family audiences in central Paris, with overlapping collections in physics, mathematics, and invention.

Broad incumbents

• Exploratorium: San Francisco's interactive science museum. Comparable in STEM-education mission and family audience, though more focused on interactive exhibits than historical collections; represents the U.S. equivalent operating model.
• Smithsonian National Museum of American History: Major U.S. history-and-technology museum under the Smithsonian umbrella. Operates a much broader cultural portfolio but shares the science/technology heritage mandate and federally funded operating model.

Regional players

• NEMO Science Museum: Amsterdam's flagship science center housed in a historic building. Comparable in combining STEM education with interactive demonstrations and a focus on younger audiences, but serves a different geography.
• Technisches Museum Wien: Vienna's technology museum. Operates with a comparable science/industry focus and educational mandate, but serves the Austrian/German-speaking market rather than the Paris catchment.

Others

• Musée des Arts et Métiers - Numérique (Cnam Online Learning): Cnam's broader online higher-education and digital learning platform. Related as the parent ecosystem enabling MuAM's digital conservatory and adult education extension; not a direct competitor but a strategic ecosystem partner.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCiSA7rY_af5pxZSuBTtPJvg
• Facebookfacebook.com/musee.des.arts.et.metiers
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/mus%C3%A9e-des-arts-et-m%C3%A9tiers
• Instagraminstagram.com/museeartsetmetiersparis

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Musée des arts et métiers