[Designing Genopole, a new concept and actor for science, technology and innovation policy in France].

At the dawn of the 20th century, the economic dynamics of modern biotechnology in the USA was coming from scientific and industrial centres. These bio parks combined the development of academic knowledge with innovating industrial and biomedical activities using public and private fundings. In France, the goal of competitiveness within a knowledge-based economy focusing on life sciences, led the government to change its institutional schemes supporting innovation. The creation of Genopole in Evry in 1998 institutionalizes a bifurcation in Science and Technology public policy to diffusion-oriented instruments. This centre of excellence connected together heterogeneous partners and resources around large scale facilities and the implementation of a technological and logistic support to stimulate start up companies. Although the dynamics created by Genopole for both the knowledge base and commercialisation in genomics is a unique outcome of a public/private combination and national/local process, this experimental intermediary institution generated new bridges between science and society.