Nearly a year after thieves stole eight 19th-century crown jewels from the Galerie d'Apollon, the Louvre's new president-director, Christophe Leribault, says he is building a "culture of security" across the world's most-visited museum, while seeking funds for a sweeping renovation. Leribault, appointed in February 2026, laid out the programme in an interview with the Financial Times. The October 19, 2025 robbery, in which two burglars took jewellery associated with Queen Marie-Amelie, Queen Hortense, Queen Marie-Louise and Empress Eugenie and valued at 88 million euros, exposed deep weaknesses. A French culture ministry investigation found a long-term underestimation of the structural risk of theft and intrusion, insufficient security equipment, particularly for external surveillance, and called for changes to governance, procedures, equipment and staff training. Only 39 percent of the museum's rooms had video surveillance, and of an 83 million euro security master plan just 3 million euros had been committed at the time of a Court of Auditors review, even as 105.5 million euros went to acquisitions between 2018 and 2024. A confidential report dated August 29, 2025 had flagged vulnerabilities about six weeks before the heist, Le Monde reported. The stolen jewels remain missing. The museum has since accelerated work: additional surveillance, perimeter protection, improved access points and stronger security coordination, under a security master plan now estimated at 80 million euros. The Galerie d'Apollon reopened to visitors on July 22, 2026 with its precious objects removed, returned to a ceremonial function. Security is being folded into the far larger "Louvre - Nouvelle Renaissance" modernisation, estimated at 1.1 billion euros, which includes a new entrance and a dedicated space for the Mona Lisa, alongside upgrades to visitor flows, climate resilience and ageing infrastructure. Leribault warns that criminal groups are using increasingly aggressive methods, making the security overhaul inseparable from the museum's reinvention.