The artificial intelligence in defense market was valued at US$ 6.9 billion in 2022 and is expected to reach US$ 13.2 billion by 2028; it is expected to register a CAGR of 11.7% from 2023 to 2028.

As global geopolitical tensions have persisted over the last few years, various affected nations plan and take measures to improve and recapitalize their defense budget and strategies. Changes in the modern warfare system have been urging governments across the world to allocate high funds for respective military forces. Budget allocation enables military forces to procure advanced technologies and equipment from domestic and international manufacturers. Also, soldier and military vehicle modernization practices are increasing across numerous countries. Owing to the growing need to strengthen military forces with advanced technologies, armaments, artilleries, and vehicles, defense forces across the world are investing substantial amounts. A continuous urge to deploy new technologies in combat and noncombat operations by the defense forces is boosting defense spending worldwide along with that technology in artificial intelligence in defense market mainly provides robotic assistance on the battlefield, which will enable forces to maintain or expand warfighting capacity without increasing manpower.

Businesses are rapidly embracing advanced Artificial Intelligence in defense solutions and services to reduce unforeseen production delays and gain a competitive advantage. Several macroeconomic factors globally created a severely hostile environment for businesses. The COVID-19 pandemic caused severe disruptions, which led to huge losses for several industry verticals. Political factors in Europe, the Middle East, and South America negatively affected different industry verticals in various ways. Severe economic downturns in several countries decreased consumer spending on discretionary or optional goods. Concerning such factors, enterprises are taking up different measures to remain competitive by reducing capital expenditure. Such initiatives enable company to capture artificial intelligence in defense market share.

Hence, enterprises are adopting technologies that can reduce their production downtime and support continuous manufacturing activities. Availing Artificial Intelligence in Defense can aid organizations in reducing costs while maintaining a competitive edge. Studies claim that an offshore oil and gas company can use Artificial Intelligence in Defense solutions to reduce downtime by 20%, leading to a production increase of more than 500,000 oil barrels annually. Such advantages are expected to boost the artificial intelligence in defense market growth during the forecast period.

Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Artificial Intelligence in Defense Market Growth

Russia, France, Italy, Germany, Spain, and the UK are among the worst-hit countries in Europe, considering the count of COVID-19 cases. The region witnessed a significant decline in revenue from several industries as the government authorities imposed stringent containment measures. This significant decline in revenue negatively impacted the growth of artificial intelligence in defense market.

The COVID-19 outbreak has heavily impacted the economies across Europe. However, despite the pandemic, the use of artificial intelligence increased in the defense sector as government spending on improving defense systems remained unaltered in 2020 and 2021. According to SIPRI, military spending in Europe was US$ 293,097.5 million in 2019, and it increased to US$ 306,483.2 million in 2020. However, the lack of raw materials due to the disruption of the supply chains led to the closing of production facilities, which to some extent, negatively affected the artificial intelligence in defense market growth in 2020.

European Union states AI is likely to play a key role in defining the competitiveness and productivity of European countries over the next several decades, with early adopters gaining enormous social, economic, and geopolitical benefits. The European Defense Agency aims to strengthen its research and development (R&D) operations related to AI capabilities for military applications, further boosting the strategic autonomy of the region. According to SIPRI, the military expenditure of Europe increased from US$ 306.48 billion in 2020 to US$ 331.34 billion in 2021. Such increased spending fosters the growth of artificial intelligence in defense market.

The artificial intelligence in defense market is categorized on the basis of component as hardware, software and services. The software segment drives the artificial intelligence in defense in the 2022 and is expected to continue its dominance until 2028. Software is the most important component of artificial intelligence products used in defense operations. Its demand is expected to surge which will lead to the surge in demand of artificial intelligence in defense market during the forecast period due to the significant rise in digitalization across the military & defense sector. Technological developments in the field of AI are allowing companies to produce powerful AI software and related software development kits. Computer systems with AI software are deployed to perform complex activities. This equipment combines inputs from hardware systems and runs them through an AI system to produce an intelligent solution. AI software is crucial in improving the IT architecture by preventing security breaches, which is driving the artificial intelligence in defense market growth for the software segment.

Fujitsu, Lockheed Martin, Honeywell International, Safran, BAE Systems plc., IBM Corporation, Leidos, Charles River Analytics, Inc., General Dynamics Information Technology Inc, Shield AI, SparkCognition, Inc., Thales Group and Raytheon Technologies Corporation are a few key artificial intelligence in defense market players.

The overall artificial intelligence in defense market size has been derived using both primary and secondary sources. To begin the research process, exhaustive secondary research has been conducted using internal and external sources to obtain qualitative and quantitative information related to the artificial intelligence in defense market. The process also serves the purpose of obtaining an overview and forecast of the artificial intelligence in defense market size with respect to all market segments. Also, industry participants and commentators have conducted multiple primary interviews to validate the data and gain more analytical insights. Participants in this process include VPs, business development managers, market intelligence managers, national sales managers, external consultants, such as valuation experts, research analysts, and key opinion leaders, specializing in the artificial intelligence in defense market.