Finnish technology company Nokia has been selected to lead PROACTIF, a robotics and unmanned technology project funded by the European Union's Chips Joint Undertaking.

The project involves a consortium of 42 European technology companies from around 13 countries with a focus on critical infrastructure surveillance and emergency management in Europe.

The project aims to strengthen Europe's technology resilience and leadership in enterprise control systems (ECS) technologies and support the autonomy of the European drone and robotics industry.

Nokia said the project will transform how emergency situations and critical infrastructure are managed in Europe by developing cutting-edge, cost-efficient, eco-efficient, safe, and cybersecure unmanned vehicle (UxV) systems to address European civil security needs.

The project is expected to generate around €90 million in revenue by 2035 through the launch of 50 products. Around 15 new industry patents will be launched through the project.

The project will develop nine advanced technology building blocks and five state-of-the-art UxV platforms, with an emphasis on interoperability, autonomy and rapid deployment to meet Europe's societal and market needs.

Additionally, Nokia said the project will lead to dozens of new collaborations, hundreds of new jobs, and over €40 million of additional investments.

"Nokia's extensive expertise has helped establish drone technology best practices and transform drones into daily helpers for public safety and mission-critical operations. We are honoured to lead this project," said Thomas Eder, head of embedded wireless solutions at Nokia. "By collaborating with leading organisations, this initiative will address critical challenges in security and sustainability, delivering real-world benefits for society."

---