The future of space depends on collaboration
The International Space Summit will bring together around 100 delegations at the Grand Palais on September 9 and 10, 2026, to discuss European space sovereignty. Nicolas Frouvelle, from Sopra Steria’s space subsidiary, CS Group, lays out the current challenges facing the sector with a clear thesis: autonomy will depend on the ability of stakeholders to pool their technologies rather than duplicating efforts separately.
When we think of space innovation, we generally imagine a one-way trajectory: from satellites down to Earth. Examples abound – the GPS in our smartphones, satellite imagery enhancing crop forecasts, or weather predictions anticipating storms. However, this view only tells half the story. “Space benefits other areas, but these areas also bring value to space,” says Nicolas Frouvelle, Head of Space Marketing and Communication at Sopra Steria’s space subsidiary, CS Group. The concept of cross-fertilisation is a key topic on the Summit’s agenda and could significantly influence Europe’s space autonomy as the sector becomes increasingly open to private players.
Geopolitics as a driving force
According to Frouvelle, this isn’t a disruption but an acceleration. Space has emerged as a crisis management tool, from the Russian-Ukrainian front to Iran, and industry players now weigh as heavily as government agencies in major technological decisions. CS Group has anticipated this shift by constantly enhancing software and data exchange security.
The financial outlook, however, has cooled. After years of enthusiasm for a new space model inspired by the US venture capital ecosystem, several European startups have shut down, unable to make an approach built of American funding levels work with far less capital. “We didn’t take risks, but we can see some startups had interesting approaches,” observes Frouvelle, adding that cultural differences matter: in the US, trust leans toward the private sector; in Europe, it’s the opposite.
One algorithm, two applications
This cautious approach influences daily development, making cross-fertilisation crucial. “We developed AI for Earth observation to analyse soil monitoring data. Some algorithms were later repurposed for space surveillance,” explains Frouvelle. Similar logic applies to infrastructure: distributed cloud and edge processing solutions originally designed for telecom now manage satellite constellations.
The economic rationale is clear. In a sector fragmented across nations and agencies, reusing proven building blocks reduces risk and shortens timelines, an advantage over American and, soon, Chinese competitors with massive economies of scale. This principle goes beyond software. Sopra Steria’s presence at the Summit alongside Air Liquide illustrates the point. A longstanding supplier of industrial gases, Air Liquide has become a key player in European launch systems by supplying propellants for Ariane and Vega and managing fluid distribution at Europe’s spaceport in French Guiana. “An excellent example of cross-fertilisation,” says Frouvelle, drawing a parallel with Sopra Steria’s expertise in cybersecurity and systems integration.
The quiet battle for ground segment
This is where a major transformation is happening. Embedded AI is changing everything. “We used to do almost everything on the ground. Now, many processes are performed autonomously on board,” explains Frouvelle. This prompted CS Group to partner with Italian embedded AI specialist AIKO to create what he calls “true digital continuity between ground and orbit, connecting control centres, stations, and satellites.”
Once secondary, this expertise is now a primary question in discussions: “When we engage with the military or industry, they immediately ask about AI, edge computing, and secure cloud,” says Frouvelle, noting that CS Group has offered open architectures for seven or eight years. Digital continuity strengthens Europe’s space value chain: an algorithm integrated into a French ground system can be deployed on a German satellite and used in a European service – an approach similar to IRIS², the secure European constellation driven by a consortium stronger together than fragmented against global competition.
Opening up without losing control
Pooling capabilities requires sharing data from multiple sources, raising trust concerns. CS Group’s answer is simple: traceability. “You need to prove: this result comes from these datasets,” explains Frouvelle. “It enables us to exclude compromised sources and rebuild a clean repository.” The approach echoes the US GPS system, complemented by a military-grade signal: depending on use, CS Group can adjust data precision and security, even shutting off a source if needed. One example: satellite positioning, once dependent on US GPS, can now rely on Europe’s Galileo system. This ability to combine and substitute space data sources is a key strength of CS Group’s open architecture, designed for diverse space applications.
It’s this open, flexible, and resilient approach that led CNES to select CS Group for the STREAMS programme, aimed at enhancing France’s space surveillance and collision-avoidance capabilities. A core goal is enabling partners to connect and share resources within a common environment without rebuilding existing elements – accelerating innovation and boosting France’s space ecosystem.
What a summit can change
Frouvelle’s assessment of the sector is blunt: in France and Europe, space remains fragmented, with everyone working solo – at the expense of global competitiveness well within reach. That’s what he expects from the Summit: less as a symbol and more as a catalyst. “We need to establish a federation of players working together to deliver sustainable, scalable, open, and competitive solutions on the global market,” he says, adding that the sector’s future will not be built alone.