NATO has awarded a €200 million contract to Accenture and Leonardo to develop a secure, resilient cloud platform designed to unify data sharing and operations across the military alliance.

Key Points

• The seven-year project, known as the Protected Business Network, will serve approximately 29,000 users across NATO.
• Accenture and Leonardo will design and manage a multi-cloud environment to replace fragmented legacy systems with standardized digital services.
• Leonardo will integrate its proprietary AI multi-agentic platform and Zero Trust security architecture to enhance cyber defense capabilities.
• The contract reflects a strategic shift toward European-led defense software development, reducing reliance on non-European technology providers.

Why it Matters

This initiative signals that modern military readiness is increasingly dependent on software-driven interoperability and secure, cloud-based data infrastructure. By prioritizing European contractors, NATO is asserting greater sovereignty over its critical defense technology and digital supply chains.