Airbus to roll out AI across French Armed Forces information systems
Image from an Airbus 2024 news story showing digital coastal surveillance system Spationav being used to monitor the French coastline. (Airbus)
Airbus has been awarded a contract worth up to EUR50 million (USD58.188 million) by the French Defence Procurement Agency (Direction Générale de l'Armement: DGA) for the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) components into weapons and various information systems in use by the French Armed Forces, according to a 10 December Airbus press release.
The initial phase of the contract will include developing the French digital coastal surveillance system Spationav with “AI elements”, as per the release. The AI aspect of the system's development will enable automated merging of surveillance data from satellite systems and Spationav.
Airbus has been developing and maintaining the Spationav system for the French Navy since 2002. In October 2023, Airbus secured a seven-year contract for the Spationav system, which includes routine maintenance; evolution of the system such as incorporating new sensors, AI, and cloud-based technology; and analytics with data from different types of unmanned systems and satellites. The Spationav system is based on Airbus' maritime surveillance and reconnaissance system Styris. Spationav includes sensors and cameras positioned across 105 sites along France's 6,000 km coastline, as per a 13 October 2023 Airbus press release. Airbus advertises Styris as monitoring 40,000 km of coastline globally.
The new contract announced in December will cover information systems delivered by Airbus Defence and Space and Airbus Helicopters. Airbus and the DGA are also collaborating with the Ministerial Agency for Artificial Intelligence in Defence (Agence ministérielle de l'intelligence artificielle de Défense: AMIAD) as part of the agreement. AMIAD was established by France's Ministry of the Armed Forces on 1 May 2024 to guarantee sovereign control over AI technologies.
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