Indra Leads Development of Autonomous AI Agents to Strengthen European Military Cyber Defence

Indra Advances Autonomous AI Agents for Military Cyber Operations in Europe

The digital transformation of battlefields and emerging threats like drones have increased both risks and opportunities in military cyberspace operations. Automation in air, land, and naval systems plays a growing role, demanding faster decision-making with less human intervention.

The AIDA (Artificial Intelligence Deployable Agent) project, funded by the European Defence Fund with a €32 million budget, is developing an environment to assemble, train, configure, test, deploy, and operate autonomous AI agents. These agents aim to detect, analyze, and respond to cyber threats independently or assist human operators, thus shortening decision cycles and gaining an edge over adversaries.

Role of Intelligent Agents in Digital Battlefields

Intelligent agents will support various combat functions through cyberspace, including movement, intelligence, fire control, sustainment, command and control, protection, and information management. They will either act autonomously or aid human decisions, improving operational efficiency in the digital theatre.

Indra stands out as a key partner and the sole Spanish company in the consortium, which comprises 28 organizations from 15 EU countries. The company leads the development of the core technology infrastructure that enables deployment, monitoring, and recovery of these agents via a flexible and resilient platform.

IndraMind: The Backbone of AI Agent Deployment

Indra leverages IndraMind, its intelligence platform designed for critical multi-domain operations, to develop these autonomous capabilities securely and with sovereign control. Indra will provide cyber situational awareness, integrate agent functions with command and control workflows, and coordinate the project’s sole military cyber operations demonstration.

This demonstration, hosted in Spain, will evaluate how these AI agents enhance the Spanish cyber combat system (SCOMCE), offering practical insights into their operational value.

Integration into a European Cyber Mosaic

Indra’s centralized platform will allow these autonomous agents to operate independently or as part of a broader, collaborative cyber mosaic. This mosaic features distributed, swarm-like capabilities within European military networks, ensuring seamless interoperability and a comprehensive view of cyber defense activities.

Indra also leads the EU-GUARDIAN project, which focuses on building this cyber mosaic framework. Initial proof of concept tests are scheduled for late 2025, with AIDA’s contributions expected to be essential.

From Network-Centric to Decision-Centric Warfare

Military operations have shifted from network-centric to decision-centric approaches, where cognitive superiority and speed in decision-making determine battlefield advantage. Automation, distributed action, continuous learning, and AI are critical to maintaining this edge.

The AIDA project explores how AI and automation can enhance cyberspace operations as the fifth domain of warfare, creating challenges for adversaries by complicating and slowing their decision cycles.

European Collaboration for Advanced Cyber Defence

AIDA is the first European Defence Fund initiative aligned with NATO’s Autonomous Intelligent Cyber Defence Agent (AICA) concept. It brings together 28 companies from 15 countries to boost Europe’s AI defense capabilities and strengthen the competitiveness of its defense industry.

Indra’s involvement in AIDA reflects its broader commitment to advancing Europe’s military cyber capabilities. The company has led major projects such as ECYSAP, Europe’s largest cyber situational awareness program for defense, and continues to drive innovation through EU-GUARDIAN and ECYSAP EYE.

These initiatives contribute to Europe’s sovereignty and operational readiness in digitized conflict zones, positioning Indra as a key player in European cyberspace programs.