The NATO Science for Peace and Security (SPS) Programme recently convened researchers – along with national representatives and NATO subject-matter experts – to demonstrate security-related applications of unmanned and autonomous systems, and to chart future cooperation in the field.
At Unmanned Valley, a testing facility for unmanned systems located in the Netherlands, the SPS Programme hosted a series of live demonstrations of SPS-supported research. Project teams demonstrated air- and land-based systems with real-world applications, including search and rescue missions and demining efforts.
Demonstration of the SPS-supported project “Unexploded Ordinance (UXO) Identification and Classification for Ukraine (MINESEYE)” on 16 July 2026 at Unmanned Valley in the Netherlands
The demonstrations opened an SPS-hosted cluster workshop on unmanned and autonomous systems, which included two days of expert-level discussions on the broad range of innovative SPS research projects that are currently exploring both the applications of such systems and their specific challenges and vulnerabilities. Sessions focused on decision-making systems, advanced sensing and navigation, and the reliability of systems operating in challenging conditions. Participants compared results across their projects, identified shared technical challenges and discussed opportunities for future collaboration.
During the same event, SPS also held the third SAPIENCE competition, the final round of a top-down SPS-supported project focused on multi-platform autonomous unmanned systems. SAPIENCE challenges teams of young researchers to develop Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) able to autonomously perform search and rescue tasks without satellite positioning. On 14 and 15 July, teams from City St George’s, University of London (United Kingdom); the University of Klagenfurt (Austria); the University of Alabama in Huntsville (United States); and host Delft University of Technology (the Netherlands) put their systems through a simulated disaster zone spanning indoor and outdoor settings.
Winners of the 3rd NATO SPS SAPIENCE competition from City St. George’s, University of London (United Kingdom) on 15 July 2026 at Unmanned Valley in the Netherlands
In this competition, the UAS had to cooperate autonomously, communicating and dividing tasks among themselves; sense and avoid obstacles, terrain and one another without human correction; and interpret what they found, identifying survivors and delivering different supplies depending on urgency. Together, these capabilities define the difference between a prototype and a system a responder could depend on in the field.
Over recent years, the SPS Programme has supported a substantial number of projects focused on unmanned and autonomous systems. Cluster workshops allow the Programme to connect these projects around a common theme and build a broader picture of the field. Activities such as SAPIENCE and this week’s cluster workshop bring together teams from across the Alliance and NATO partner countries, applying scientific cooperation to concrete security needs.
Top Photo: NATO SPS team with a representative from the Unmanned Valley testing facility
Source: NATO