Saint-Cloud – November 08, 2026 -- Dassault Aviation has flight-tested two new sovereign artificial intelligence algorithms on the Rafale fighter, and both have matured enough to qualify for upcoming Rafale upgrades.
Dassault and Thales/cortAIx split development of the two algorithms
Dassault's own engineers developed the first algorithm. The second was built in collaboration with Thales/cortAIx.
Dassault describes the work as part of a broader effort to put controlled, supervised AI in the cockpit in support of the human crew. The company says the flights again demonstrate its ability to integrate AI into combat systems.
Data quality and embedded resource limits define the engineering challenge
Dassault names three constraints specific to military aviation. The first is the availability and quality of operational data, whether real or simulated. The second is capturing and combining domain expertise. The third is frugal use of resources on an onboard platform under heavy constraints.
Dassault ties these requirements to its decades of experience as an industrial architect and integrator of complex systems. The company reported 2025 revenue of €7.4 billion and about 15,000 employees.
Rafale evolutions are the next step for the tested functions
Dassault has not disclosed the algorithms' specific functions, performance data, or an integration timeline. It states that both have reached a maturity level that makes them eligible for the next Rafale evolutions.