Airbus picks Iliad’s Scaleway for AI, defence work in sovereignty push
FILE PHOTO: The Airbus logo at the company’s pavilion during the 55th edition of the International Paris Air Show at the Paris-Le Bourget Airport, in Le Bourget, near Paris, France, June 20, 2025. MOHAMMED BADRA/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
Read a summary of this article on FAST.
Get bite-sized news via a new
cards interface. Give it a try.
Click here to return to FAST
Tap here to return to FAST
FAST
July 16 : Airbus said on Thursday it had signed a multi-year agreement with Iliad-owned Scaleway to provide cloud infrastructure for sensitive industrial and defence applications, supporting the deployment of AI tools developed with French startup Mistral.
The European planemaker said Scaleway would host critical applications spanning aircraft design, engineering, industrial production and corporate operations. Airbus signed a partnership with Mistral in May to co-develop customised AI tools for aerospace and defence.
“The fact that the Mistral models are already deployed on Scaleway infrastructure will allow us to accelerate our AI approach,” Airbus Chief Digital Officer Catherine Jestin told reporters.
Airbus plans to use Mistral’s technology for military applications and certified aviation systems, areas where the company wants European partners to handle intellectual property, research and development, and sensitive data.
Guess Word
Crack the word, one row at a time
Buzzword
Create words using the given letters
Mini Sudoku
Tiny puzzle, mighty brain teaser
Mini Crossword
Small grid, big challenge
Word Search
Spot as many words as you can
DIGITAL SOVEREIGNTY
Jestin said Airbus selected Scaleway after assessing more than 150 technical and legal requirements.
“The second set of criteria concerned legal requirements, in particular the much-discussed protection against the kill switch and against the application of extraterritorial laws,” she said.
European governments and companies have increasingly focused on digital sovereignty as AI becomes embedded in critical infrastructure, defence and industrial operations. The European Commission last month proposed a Cloud and AI Development Act aimed at expanding domestic cloud and computing capacity.
Airbus will migrate around 70 critical applications to Scaleway by the end of 2028, with the broader programme potentially covering up to 900 applications over the next five to six years.
Airbus did not disclose the value of the agreement.
Source: Reuters
Sign up for our newsletters
Get the CNA app
Stay updated with notifications for breaking news and our best stories
Get WhatsApp alerts
Join our channel for the top reads for the day on your preferred chat app
Get bite-sized news via a new
cards interface. Give it a try.
Click here to return to FAST
Tap here to return to FAST
FAST
About The Author
