Atos Logo PNG
Software that makes you feel like a fish in water in the digital environment. This is the key idea the Atos logo conveys through the improvised letter “O.” This letter evokes many associations, including a resemblance to a scaly underwater dweller. Admittedly, the similarity between the two is symbolic.
Atos grew out of two French IT companies, Sligos and Axime. Sligos was formed in 1972 through the merger of Cegos Informatique and Sliga, a Crédit Lyonnais subsidiary. In 1973, French banks chose Sligos to build the processing infrastructure for Carte Bleue, a national bank card system. Working with payments helped Sligos become one of France’s key IT players.
Axime was established in 1991 following the merger of Sodinforg, Segin, and SITB. Under Bernard Bourigeaud, the company worked in electronic transaction processing, software development, and systems integration. It won a contract to support quotation and clearing systems for the Paris Stock Exchange. It later formed a joint venture with Société des Bourses Françaises, which Euronext later acquired.
In 1997, Axime and Sligos merged. In September, the new company took the name Atos, reportedly inspired by Athos from “The Three Musketeers” as a reference to reliability and partnership. Bourigeaud became CEO and led the group until 2007. In 2000, Atos merged with Origin B.V., formed from BSO and Philips’ IT division. The group became Atos Origin, with over 27,000 employees and more than €3 billion in revenue. In 2001, it became the official IT partner of the Olympic Games.
The company then expanded through acquisitions. It bought KPMG Consulting units in the UK and the Netherlands in 2002, SchlumbergerSema in 2004, and Siemens IT Solutions and Services in 2011, after which it returned to the Atos name. Later deals included Bull in 2014, Xerox’s IT outsourcing business in 2014, and Syntel in 2018. In 2019, Atos exited Worldline. By early 2024, its debt exceeded €4.8 billion, and the group went through financial restructuring under creditor oversight.
Meaning and History
Although the official founding date of this organization is considered 2000, its history dates back four years. Thus, in 1996, two IT-sector companies were merged into a single entity: Dutch BSO and Communications & Processing (Philips C&P). As a result, Origin BV was formed. In 1997, two French specialized platforms, Axime and Sligos, merged. As a result of this merger, Atos was born.
In 2000, the new IT companies merged to form the world-famous Atos Origin Corporation. Two years later, it bought KPMG Consulting, and two years after that, it bought SchlumbergerSema. Her next major acquisition was Siemens IT Solutions and Services, which she finally took over in 2011. There were many more acquisitions and mergers throughout its career to expand its technology base and reach.
Subsequently, the French company reverted to the shortened version of its name, Atos. As for the visual identity mark, it was changed only once. This was directly related to the return of the former name. The first and second emblems are radically different, indicating a significant strategic shift by the corporation toward more modern technologies.
What is Atos?
Atos is a French IT company specializing in software, cybersecurity, big data management, cloud computing, and integration systems. It has been around since 2000 and operates under several names worldwide. They are Unify, Atos Healthcare, Canopy, Atos|Syntel, Groupe Bull, and others. The company is headquartered in Bezons (France).
2000 – 2011
The debut logo combined the company name with an image of a blue-orange fish with a black mask on its front and a striped tail. This is a surgeonfish, one of the ocean’s dangerous inhabitants. It has very sharp fins that cut the surface like a metal blade, which is why it is called a “razorfish”. She is also a warrior: she fiercely defends her territory against everyone, even members of her own species, and does not let anyone in. It was used in the emblem of a French IT company whose function is to ensure cybersecurity.
To the left of the surgeon fish, positioned diagonally, was the name of the corporation. The phrase “Atos Origin” was typed in needlepoint red font. The width of the letter feet was uneven: bold in some places and thin in others. The text was grouped into two lines. The top line was occupied by the word “Atos” and the bottom line by “Origin.” They were slightly offset relative to each other and were not aligned on either edge.
2011 – today
The rebranding was a watershed moment in the history of the Atos logo as it became radically different. It reflected technology and elegance, reflecting a purely French approach to style choices. In 2011, the company shortened its name again, leaving only one word in the emblem. It is set in a smooth font with rounded corners and a minimum of sharp angles, noticeable only in the letter “A” in the upper intra-letter space and in the serif zone below. In other cases, the angles in the characters are either straight, obtuse, or absent altogether. In addition, the first and last letters are uppercase, while the center letters are lowercase. There is a connection between the letters “t” and “o”.
Font and Colors
The modern version of the logo contains only one word, with no additional background or framing. This indicates the company’s desire for minimalism and specificity. The letter “o” encrypts a single graphic image: looping, the element goes to the next symbol when writing. It represents two interconnected figures: an ellipse with sharp ends and a crescent moon positioned at an angle. The negative space between them resembles a sideways-lying tree leaf. The fish in the first emblem symbolizes two factors. The first is a high degree of defense of one’s sphere (usually a quality that distinguishes the surgeonfish). The second is the concept of “feeling like a fish in the water,” that is, to move freely and without fear in the Internet space.
In the debut Atos logo, the text is set in Garamond Nova Pro Light, whereas the current one uses a modernized version of Vezus Serif Bold, with sharper corners rather than rounded ones. The corporate palette is also diverse, comprising blue, orange, black, red, and white. But in the current emblem, the designers limited themselves to blue and white.