EICACS: Advancing European Air Combat Through Collaboration, AI, and Engagement
As the European Initiative for Collaborative Air Combat Standardization (EICACS) enters its final year, the project continues to accelerate its mission: strengthening Europe’s defense landscape through interoperability, standardization, and technological innovation.
At the heart of this initiative lies a powerful truth, as emphasized by Konstantinos Grapsas, Project Officer of the European Defence Fund, during the 2nd Annual EICACS Event hosted at Dassault Aviation’s headquarters in Paris:
“Collaboration is the backbone of Europe’s defence.”
This message resonated with all attendees, highlighting the role of cooperation across national borders as the strategic engine driving the future of European air combat capabilities. The event brought together project partners and stakeholders to assess technical progress and align priorities, reinforcing EICACS’s contribution to a more secure and sovereign Europe.
Pushing Technical Boundaries Through AI Research
EICACS continues to be active in the global research community. In May 2025, Thibault Lahire from Dassault Aviation represented the EICACS ecosystem at ICLR 2025 in Singapore, presenting a paper titled:
“Towards a Better Use of Importance Sampling for Deep Neural Networks Training.”
The work proposed a novel metric to evaluate sampling quality and examined how smarter data selection interacts with optimization processes—key insights for future AI-enabled mission-critical systems. This builds upon Thibault’s earlier participation at NeurIPS 2024 in Vancouver, where his contributions in multi-agent reinforcement learning further advanced EICACS’s collaborative research agenda.
Project Coordination and Progress Review
In March 2025, EICACS held its 2nd Annual Event, and just two months later, in May 2025, the Project Management Team gathered again in Torino, hosted by Leonardo. These regular sessions ensure alignment across all work packages, focusing on both strategic direction and practical execution.
Discussions in Torino emphasized the importance of cross-functional planning and coordination as the project moves toward final deliverables. The hospitality and collaboration facilitated by Leonardo contributed to a productive environment that propelled progress forward.
Engaging Audiences Across Europe and Beyond
To foster transparency and outreach, EICACS continues to actively engage its broader audience through LinkedIn. From polling followers on key defense topics to sharing event highlights and research outputs, the project’s digital presence strengthens its connection with stakeholders, experts, and citizens alike.
Follow the EICACS LinkedIn Page to stay up to date with videos, events, research milestones, and insights from across the consortium.
A recent example is the release of the "What is EICACS?" explainer video, which provides a clear and concise overview of the project’s objectives and the role it plays in the future of European defense. Watch the video here.
EICACS is more than a project—it is a pan-European effort to define how nations can work together toward a technologically advanced, interoperable, and sovereign defense future. As its final year unfolds, the consortium continues to demonstrate that collaboration is not just a method—it’s a strategic strength.
Co-funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Commission. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.