Well, there are attempts, especially in France, to pick national champions in different industries and concentrate public funding on them to build up companies

Well, there are attempts, especially in France, to pick national champions in different industries and concentrate public funding on them to build up companies that are relevant on the international stage. This has also been tried on a (somewhat) European (but still French-dominated) scale with Airbus and Arianespace. But I think most other European governments view these kinds of activities rather suspiciously.