Asia’s first trusted AI programme launches in Singapore

Thales’ acceleration in trusted AI has reached Asia with the launch of cortAIx SG. On 30 May, Thales and the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the launch of cortAIx SG to extend the Group’s global AI programme to Asia, and further accelerate on AI research and industrialisation. 

With more than 100 products integrating AI, Thales already develops and deploys trusted AI-powered systems in complex and challenging environments. Building on this foundation, cortAIx SG will serve as an accelerator, identifying critical challenges and developing high-impact AI solutions for Thales business units across Singapore and the broader Asia region. 

The cortAIx initiative aims to drive the ethical and effective adoption of AI in Singapore in alignment with Singapore’s National AI strategy, especially for the civil and defence ecosystems. The cortAIx SG centre is expected to strengthen Thales’ R&D capabilities and long-term innovation footprint in Singapore. It will be driven by key initiatives such as enhancing utilisation of knowledge and sensor suites to aid planning and decision support; increased operational efficiency; and human-autonomy teaming.

Thales is also strengthening its strategic partnerships in Singapore with the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS), Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA), and Home Team Science & Technology Agency (HTX) across aviation, defence, plus public safety and security. The developments position Thales Singapore as a hub for AI leadership and joint innovation.

The enhanced collaborations include an expanded innovation partnership with HTX focused on AI, border security, quantum, and cybersecurity technologies, as well as the creation of a joint Avionics Lab with CAAS—supported by Changi Airport Group, International Centre for Aviation Innovation (ICAI), SATS, and Singapore Airlines—to drive next-generation avionics solutions.

Thales and HTX signed a master agreement for strategic partnership on innovation in 2020. The partnership has been extended for another three years to:

- Establish a joint-lab focused on AI-enabled technologies, local capability development and the formation of best practices for trustworthy AI within the local context; 

- Enable technology insertion through agile collaboration, testing and technology experimentation aligned to HTX’s evolving needs. Thales will support HTX in translating early-stage technical solutions into concrete systems that can be integrated into HTX’s homeland security programmes to drive rapid innovation and early adoption;

- Jointly develop a shared research and development (R&D) strategy and future technology roadmap relevant to public safety and security, bringing together HTX, Thales, academia and startups, across five critical technology frontiers: AI, brain-computer interfaces (BCI), cybersecurity, quantum technologies and space.

CAAS, Changi Airport Group (CAG), ICAI, SATS, Singapore Airlines (SIA) and Thales signed a MoU on 29 May to foster greater innovation and collaboration at the aviation ecosystem level. Under this MoU, the partners will work together to identify key challenges to solve and undertake joint innovation projects to develop solutions, which could include:

- Air traffic optimisation, by combining airlines’ flight operations and cockpit data with air traffic management information. AI-enabled algorithms can detect and predict holding patterns within a particular radius around Changi Airport, helping manage congestion and leading to reduced flight delays.

- Digitalising and optimising the data shared between airlines, air traffic management and airports. Data from sensors in the aircraft, like cameras or inflight entertainment systems, can provide real-time, automated data to complement current data streams like video content from ground infrastructures. Enhancing these with AI models can help airlines, air traffic managements and airport operators improve collaborative decision making.

A joint Avionics Lab in Singapore with CAAS, the first of its kind for Thales outside France, represents a significant milestone in deepening Thales’ avionics capabilities in Singapore and the region while strengthening Singapore’s position as a hub for aviation technologies. The Avionics Lab will serve as a vital platform for collaborative innovation between the aviation ecosystem in Singapore and Thales, to co-develop and test cutting edge concepts grounded in real-world operational scenarios. 

The Avionics Lab complements an existing AIR Lab to optimise air transport operations in the region. The AIR Lab was jointly set up by CAAS and Thales in 2019 to work on cutting-edge air traffic management solutions.

Announced in April this year, the DSTA and Thales have set up a joint lab for AI-enabled technologies which can augment combat systems currently in use by the Singapore Armed Forces to efficiently handle drone threats. The lab will work on joint projects, the first of which is related to counter-unmanned aircraft systems (C-UAS) and advanced sensors. 

These initiatives form the core of Thales’s AI strategy in Singapore and touch on key sectors aligned with the National AI Strategy 2.0. These collective partnerships will see Thales grow its pool of AI experts in Singapore to over several dozen in the next three years, adding to the Group’s global cortAIx network of 800 highly-skilled AI and data specialists. 

“The launch of cortAIx SG by Thales will add new capabilities to Singapore’s growing AI and innovation ecosystems, and builds on Thales’s longstanding presence in Singapore. We look forward to the impactful AI-enabled solutions cortAIx SG will develop in partnership with our ecosystem for Singapore and the region,” said Cindy Koh, Executive VP, EDB.

"Thales is honoured to be working with our strategic partners in Singapore to bring new technologies to the fore, whether in aviation, in public security or to help reinforce national defence and sovereignty. Being able to announce the launch of cortAIx SG this week, in the presence of Ms Clara Chappaz, French Minister Delegate for AI and Digital Affairs and Ms Josephine Teo, Singapore’s Minister for Digital Development and Information and Minister-in-charge of Smart Nation and Cybersecurity, is a true recognition of our role as a technology leader, notably as France and Singapore celebrate 60 years of bilateral cooperation.

"CortAIx SG will be a valuable asset to help our customers and partners embrace the vast opportunities AI has to offer, deploying it as a force for good, in support of Singapore’s National AI Strategy. We are excited at the prospect of bringing our leading technology, talent and research to deliver AI solutions that are ethical, transparent, explainable and effective,” said Philippe Keryer, Senior Executive VP, Strategy, Research and Technology, Thales. 

Thales also stated that it is committed to work with the Singapore government and ecosystem to grow domain and technology capabilities in Singapore, bringing together cutting-edge technology, talent and research to AI solutions that are ethical, transparent, explainable, and operationally effective.

In 2024, Thales set up cortAIx, which brings together the company’s AI capabilities in research, sensors and systems. At the time, Thales said cortAIx is the AI accelerator that will equip armed forces, aircraft manufacturers and all critical infrastructure operators with highly secure solutions to provide them with more efficient data analysis and decision support, while considering constraints such as cybersecurity, embeddability and frugality that are related to critical environments.

Thales is a global provider of technology for the defence, aerospace, as well as the cyber and digital sectors. Its portfolio of products and services addresses challenges around sovereignty, security, sustainability and inclusion. The company has been in Singapore since 1973, where it is now a major hub with 2,000 employees across aerospace, defence, cybersecurity, and digital identity (CDI). 

The country hosts Thales’ largest CDI manufacturing centre, avionics manufacturing and maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) centre, and R&D labs, including the AIR Lab with CAAS, a joint lab with HTX and the CINTRA research unit with NTU and CNRS. Recent investments include the Thales Singapore Defence Hub, a Co-Lab with DSTA, and centres of excellence in air traffic management and public security. 

The announcements were made on the occasion of French President Emmanuel Macron’s state visit to Singapore, with some agreements signed on 29 May and others during the France–Singapore Frontier Technologies Forum on 30 May. The news in Singapore follows an MoU ceremony in Vietnam between Nicolas Bouverot, VP of Thales Asia, Dr Doan Ha Thang, Director of the Vietnamese Space Committee and Tran Dinh Toan, Vice Chairman & Deputy CEO of OSB related to Education, Applications and Innovations in Space Sciences & Technologies.

Signed during President Macron’s visit to Hanoi on 27 May, the collaboration will focus on jointly developing and deploying training and education initiatives on the potential of space sciences and technology for socioeconomic development and protection, sovereignty, and national security, one of the key pillars of the Vietnamese Space Strategy 2030.