What Happened
European Defence Budgets Reach Record Levels Amid Innovation Push
Europe’s defence budgets are at record levels, yet most spending still goes towards conventional, crewed systems rather than drones, autonomous systems, and artificial intelligence. Experts criticise the lack of investment in innovative systems, citing the need for more spending on research and development. XPONENTIAL Europe, a leading trade fair for autonomy and robotics, highlights the opportunities for cooperation and innovation in the defence industry. According to the Kiel Institute for the World Economy, only around 12 per cent of defence spending goes towards ’new-paradigm’ systems, with only four per cent spent on autonomous systems. This was first reported by European Security & Defence.