Airbus Partners with Scaleway to Accelerate AI and Defence Cloud Infrastructure
Overview of the Airbus and Scaleway Partnership
By Leo Marchandon and Gianluca Lo Nostro
July 16 (Reuters) - 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.
Scope and Objectives of the Agreement
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.
Accelerating AI Deployment
"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.
Military and Aviation Applications
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.
Digital Sovereignty and Security Considerations
Selection Criteria for Scaleway
DIGITAL SOVEREIGNTY
Jestin said Airbus selected Scaleway after assessing more than 150 technical and legal requirements.
Legal and Technical 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 Focus on Digital Sovereignty
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.
Future Plans and Programme Scope
Migration Timeline and Scale
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.
Financial Details
Airbus did not disclose the value of the agreement.
(Reporting by Gianluca Lo Nostro and Leo Marchandon in Gdansk; editing by Matt Scuffham)
