Airbus has selected Scaleway, the French cloud provider, as its sovereign cloud partner following a competitive evaluation that tested technical capability, operational resilience and European legal safeguards in equal measure.
Under the contract, Scaleway will provide cloud infrastructure for selected enterprise applications across aircraft design, engineering, manufacturing and enterprise operations. The scope targets workloads that require protection from non-European extraterritorial legislation — a factor that has become a formal procurement criterion for strategic European organisations managing sensitive industrial data.
Airbus ran a formal tender process, assessing providers across three dimensions: technical capabilities covering cloud services, interoperability, scalability and AI readiness; operational excellence across security, resilience, service continuity and integration with the company's existing multi-cloud environment; and legal and governance requirements including European jurisdiction, data protection and immunity from foreign legislation.
Scaleway's platform will operate on European infrastructure using open technologies, integrating with Airbus's existing ecosystem rather than displacing it. The structure positions the contract as a complement to the aerospace group's multi-cloud approach — each workload placed in the environment best matched to its technical, operational and regulatory requirements.
"Artificial intelligence is redefining how the world's most advanced industries design, manufacture and operate. Unlocking its full potential requires digital infrastructure that combines world-class performance with trust, openness and long-term control. We're proud that Airbus has selected Scaleway to help build this next chapter of its cloud strategy and to demonstrate that Europe can deliver sovereign cloud capabilities at the highest international standards."
Damien Lucas, CEO, Scaleway
Catherine Jestin, Executive Vice President Digital at Airbus, described the move as part of the company's broader commitment to digital sovereignty:
"This collaboration marks a significant milestone in our broader commitment to European digital sovereignty. By integrating a trusted, high-performance cloud environment that keeps our critical data assets shielded from foreign extraterritorial laws, we are ensuring that our digital infrastructure keeps pace with our aerospace innovation, while maintaining control and resilience of our industrial operations."
Catherine Jestin, Executive Vice President Digital, Airbus
Scaleway is part of Iliad Group, France's largest independent telecoms operator. Airbus employs more than 134,000 people across 13 countries in civil and defence aerospace.
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