Air Booster

Christophe Fourcaud: The Man Whose Company Turns Hot Air Into Energy


Can a story about warm buttocks really spark a breakthrough that could change the future of the climate?
Yes. Really. But not in the way you might think — and it’s best to let Christophe Fourcaud tell it himself. He’s still laughing about it today.


“Airbooster was born after a winter trip to the beach with a friend. The sun was shining that day. We sat on the fenders of our cars and bet on how warm our backsides were.
Using a thermal camera, we saw that some parts of the car body — the more vertical ones — were hitting 60°C.”


An ordinary person might just find it funny that their rear end can get warm on a car in the middle of winter.
But Christophe, a thermodynamics enthusiast (and, as it turns out, a man of many other passions — we’ll get to that), saw something more.
That heat was free, and with the right idea, it could be useful.

When a Building’s Facade Becomes a Radiator


Imagine that instead of a car, you have a building with a metal facade.
Even in winter, when the sun comes out, those walls collect heat — no matter how cold the air is outside.
If you channel that heat into the building’s ventilation system, you can naturally raise the temperature indoors without turning on the heating.


That observation led Christophe to found Airbooster in 2018, a company where he now serves as CEO.
Airbooster equips shopping centers, offices, industrial sites, logistics hubs, and farms.


“Some clients want to cut their energy bills,” Christophe explains.
“Others want to protect against heat waves or lower their carbon footprint.”


In any case, the need is clear.
French law now requires all commercial buildings over 1,000 m² to reduce their energy consumption by 40% by 2030.

Efficient in Both Summer and Winter


In this context, Airbooster’s solution is remarkable: it can reduce heating costs by up to 83% — while avoiding thousands of tons of CO₂ emissions.
And the best part?


“It’s low-tech,” says Christophe. “We simply fill the ribs in the metal cladding to make it work. Our technology helps businesses stabilize and secure their energy costs.
It can even prevent layoffs when gas and electricity prices spike.”


Airbooster systems can recover up to 600 Wₜₕ per square meter, roughly four times more efficient than photovoltaics.


And in summer? Skeptics might think it overheats buildings. But actually, the opposite happens:
At night, the cladding cools down, and in the morning, it delivers fresh air indoors.

A Curious Mind With a Taste for Challenge


So how did Christophe get here?
Because, let’s be honest — this didn’t all start with warm car panels and laughter.


Born in Bordeaux, Christophe began his career far from thermodynamics.


“After high school, I studied photography and spent ten years at the Space Imaging Center for the Ministry of Defense, working on satellite and fighter jet images.”


But learning is an obsession for him.
When something sparks his curiosity, he dives in — completely.
He trained in IT project management, began teaching in computer engineering schools, then became a director and even founded Sup Info Bordeaux.
At the same time, he trained in… truffle farming. Yes, really.


And of course, he didn’t stop there. He created a truffle farm near Bordeaux, and in 2010, filed a patent in photovoltaics.
Listening to him, you quickly realize he’s a kind of Swiss Army knife of innovation.


“I’ve always been curious,” he smiles. “Maybe it’s a serious condition — but I live with it!”


Still, Airbooster was yet to come.

The Birth of Airbooster


After developing a solar power plant in Dordogne and returning briefly to school management, Christophe had an intuition:
what if vertical surfaces could be used to harness the sun’s heat more effectively?


That intuition was fueled by his roots.


“My grandfather was one of the first to farm organically after the war. My parents followed the same path. I grew up believing that the planet matters and must be protected.
I wanted to stop running private schools — I needed my work to have meaning again.”


He was 49 — old enough to have experience, young enough to start over.
And, in his spare time, he had been studying thermodynamics just enough to talk with PhDs in the field.


He partnered with Mathieu Dessans, now Airbooster’s Technical Director (“He’s basically a co-founder,” Christophe says).
With the help of the Bordeaux Techno West incubator, Airbooster gained structure and R&D support.


“I’m creative,” Christophe admits, “but pretty chaotic. The incubator gave me a framework.”


Within a few years, the company had its own facility, equipped with laser-cutting tools to build its products — and business was booming.

Scaling Up


Airbooster’s clients now include API Distribution (beekeeping equipment) and even the RATP, which is testing the solution for a maintenance building in Montreuil.
Another project with the UIMM near Bordeaux transformed one of their facades:


“We converted 220 m² of wall into active surface.
That’s like installing 160 electric heaters — except when the sun shines, it’s free.”


With 80 studies underway and a consumer product launch planned for 2025, Airbooster is growing fast.


And in 2021, it caught the eye of Team for the Planet (TFTP).
After a year of talks, TFTP invested €1.5 million, helping Airbooster scale from 3 to 11 employees, with more hires on the way.


The company has since earned France’s Green Tech label (2023) from the Ministry of Ecological Transition.

A Relentless Optimist


Christophe admits he works long hours — arriving at 7:30 a.m. and leaving around 8 p.m. — but he’s careful not to demand the same from his team.


“I studied management for eight years to get better. People are the core of everything.
You have to motivate them, make them proud. My job is to give energy — an impulse.”


As CEO, is he demanding?


“Yes,” he admits. “But I love teaching.”


And is he a good manager?


(Smiling) “Let’s just say I’ve probably gotten less bad at it over time.”


At heart, Christophe is an incurable optimist — both about people and the planet.


“In middle school, teachers thought I was stupid. But that didn’t stop me from building a photography lab in my bedroom. Humans can achieve amazing things — it’s just a shame they don’t always want to.”


He believes humanity will go through a turbulent period — economic and climatic chaos — but sees a positive horizon ahead, inspired by the futurist Marc Halévy:


“In ten to twenty years, we’ll rediscover a new mindset — positive, forward-looking. I’m a medium-term optimist.”


When he’s not inventing the future of energy, Christophe goes rock climbing, hiking, or gliding — ways to stay close to the nature he’s trying to protect.
And of course, he keeps learning.


“I’m curious,” he says. As if we hadn’t already noticed.

The Moral of the Story


So next time you see someone warming their backside on a car, don’t laugh —
they might just be inventing the next innovation that helps save the planet. 🌍