French Naval Group and Thales have signed a strategic partnership to ensure “artificial intelligence sovereignty” in critical defense systems. Under the agreement, Naval Group acquired a 20% stake in cortAIx France, Thales’ artificial intelligence initiative, and joined its management.
The Era of Artificial Intelligence in Defense Accelerates
This unprecedented alliance aims to accelerate the integration of artificial intelligence technologies into naval systems and to enable armed forces to respond more rapidly to the needs of the modern battlefield. At the core of the partnership lies the protection of algorithmic sovereignty and the safeguarding of sensitive military data.
Naval Group will transfer its deep experience specific to the naval environment to the initiative by integrating artificial intelligence experts from its Digital Center of Excellence in Ollioules into the cortAIx France teams.
cortAIx: Avrupa’nın Yapay Zeka Üssü
Launched by Thales in 2024, cortAIx brings together more than 800 experts across five centers worldwide. Thales’ “European leadership in critical systems artificial intelligence patents,” achieved through its R&D investments over the past decade, will be extended to the naval defense domain through this new partnership.
Strategic Development in Five Areas
Under the cortAIx umbrella, the two defense giants will focus on developing trusted artificial intelligence solutions particularly in the following areas:
- Collaborative Combat Capabilities: Enabling operators to manage multiple systems simultaneously and simplifying complex surveillance missions.
- Decision Support Systems: Analysis of strategic and tactical data at the speed of light.
- Electronic Warfare: Reducing the cognitive load on operators through the automation of signal identification and analysis reports.
- Training and Simulation: Optimizing operational readiness through realistic scenarios.
- Logistics and Maintenance: Anticipating operational needs and maintenance requirements in advance.
Naval Group Chairman and CEO Pierre Éric Pommellet evaluated the partnership with the following words: “This strategic partnership represents a major acceleration for the future of engineering and naval systems, in which artificial intelligence is playing an increasingly important role. We will push the boundaries of innovation toward a sovereign and controllable artificial intelligence to build tomorrow’s naval warfare.”
Thales Chairman and CEO Patrice Caine emphasized that the cooperation would provide operational superiority, stating: “This collaboration between two major defense players will give our forces an advantage against increasingly complex threats, while keeping humans at the center of control.”
Source: C4Defence / Thales
