Thales Expands Across Three Continents With Post-AI Strategy
Thales, a 130-year-old French technology leader, is undertaking a transformative shift toward the post-AI era. The company is now prioritizing quantum technologies and boosting its R&D investments, while also deepening its strategic footprint across the United States and the Middle East. A significant focus has been placed on quantum sensing, a field poised to deliver performance improvements several magnitudes beyond those enabled by artificial intelligence.
This move coincides with what experts call the second quantum revolution. Unlike earlier advancements that enabled microelectronics and atomic clocks, this phase aims to harness phenomena such as quantum entanglement and superposition. Consequently, breakthroughs are expected in areas like sensing, communications, and computing. To stay ahead in this competitive and rapidly evolving field, Thales plans to increase its global R&D spending to €5 billion by 2028 up from roughly €4 billion underlining its commitment to innovation amid geopolitical shifts.
Middle East and US Lead Thales’ Regional Strategy
Thales is realigning its global growth strategy with a clear emphasis on expanding in the Middle East and the United States. These regions are now considered key engines of growth for the next decade. In particular, the United Arab Emirates has emerged as a pivotal market. Thales is preparing to establish its third global radar center of excellence in Abu Dhabi within the next two years, complementing existing facilities in France and the Netherlands.
This expansion supports a broader push toward long-term partnerships focused on national capability-building. The Gulf region’s appetite for sovereign technologies aligns with Thales’ approach, which emphasizes local development and high-tech knowledge transfer. As part of these efforts, the company recently secured a contract to build the airlock module for the UAE’s contribution to the NASA-European Space Agency Lunar Gateway outpost.
Post-AI Vision and Defence-Driven Innovation
While artificial intelligence remains embedded in hundreds of Thales products, the company is now preparing for the next frontier. It has deployed explainable hybrid AI across defense applications, with specific attention to safety, cybersecurity, and operational transparency. This makes AI outputs understandable and correctable a necessity in mission-critical environments such as military operations. Thales’ AI-powered reconnaissance systems for combat aircraft and autonomous mine-hunting technologies for European navies reflect this advanced integration of AI with real-world defense needs.
Meanwhile, quantum technologies are gaining momentum within the company’s product pipeline. These include Superconducting Quantum Interference Filters (SQIF) for antenna miniaturization and quantum inertial navigation systems using cold atoms. Collaborative efforts such as quantum satellite communications with SpeQtral highlight Thales’ drive to secure leadership in post-quantum cryptography, particularly amid concerns that conventional RSA encryption could soon be broken by quantum computing.
The company’s investment model reflects the unique constraints of the defense sector. Approximately 75% of its R&D funding comes from enterprise and government customers, while the remaining 25% is internally financed. This structure ensures compliance with national export laws and sustains Thales’ long-standing R&D-to-sales ratio, with the planned €5 billion investment aligning with about 6% of future revenues.
