Imec, Europe's chip research powerhouse, signs €50m pact to build technology for Belgium's armed forces

01/11/2026
6
Abstract illustration of a silicon wafer with glowing circuit traces merging into radar sweep rings and signal waves

Leuven-based imec, which for decades kept its distance from military work, will receive €10m a year for five years from Belgium's new defence-innovation agency ODIN to develop jam-resistant battlefield communications and drone-detecting sensors. The defence minister calls it historic; the money is modest and the first results are years away.

Imec, the Leuven research centre whose labs help shape the world's most advanced chips, has signed a five-year partnership with the Belgian Ministry of Defence, marking a sharp turn for an institute that long declined military work.

Defence Minister Theo Francken (N-VA) and imec chief executive Patrick Vandenameele signed the agreement on Friday at the military barracks in Heverlee, near Leuven, VRT NWS and the Belga news agency reported. Imec will receive €10m a year from ODIN, the defence innovation and industry organisation the federal government set up earlier this year with a budget of €3.7bn over ten years. Over the full term that comes to around €50m.

The first projects are concrete. According to Belga, imec will start with secure battlefield communications that an enemy cannot jam, and with small radar and laser systems that can detect incoming drones. In its own press release, imec lists sensors, artificial intelligence, secure connectivity and reliable positioning as the core fields, alongside PhD tracks and advanced research programmes to build up defence expertise. Imec will also act as a technical expert in national and international defence and security forums, building on what it calls its "recently strengthened" aerospace and security activities.

"With imec we have a trump card that nobody else has," Francken said at the signing, according to VRT (translated). He called it "a historic day for the army" (translated).

A cultural shift at imec

The deal is notable less for its size than for what it says about imec. VRT noted that the institute, which employs more than 6,500 people and reported revenue of €1.2bn in 2025, was for decades reluctant to take on military applications or work with the defence industry.

"The turnaround within imec went much more smoothly than expected," Vandenameele told VRT (translated). "Every employee understands that using the best technology to defend ourselves belongs in the better world we are striving for. That has changed very strongly because of recent geopolitical events."

Speaking to regional broadcaster ROBtv, he was blunter: a few years ago defence work "was not allowed, but that has now been reversed by our environment" (translated). Business daily L'Echo framed the deal as a further sign of Flanders' pivot towards the defence sector.

Modest money, long timelines

The sums should be kept in proportion. At €10m a year, the ODIN funding is less than 1% of imec's annual revenue, and only a sliver of ODIN's own €3.7bn envelope. Neither side has said when Belgian troops might use anything that comes out of the programme. Vandenameele warned that research and development take "years", adding that "the shortest possible timeframe for chip technology is two years, assuming all the research has already been done", according to Belga.

Imec will only develop the technology. Start-ups or established defence companies would handle production, and Francken said Belgian firms would get "maximum priority" when it comes to commercialisation, Belga reported. The partners have not published details on how intellectual property, export controls or ethical review will be handled.

For Europe's tech sector, the agreement is another marker of how quickly the line between civilian deep tech and defence is blurring. Imec sits at the centre of a global chip research network that includes the world's leading semiconductor companies, which makes its willingness to serve a national military a significant shift, even if the opening budget is small.

Sources

Recent

AI-written question floods are swamping Swiss authorities, and officials say they are unprepared

Echelon to pay TikTok €100m after second Dublin data centre is shelved

Leading European Quantum Companies to Watch

Germany hands Vishay €215m for a 300mm power-chip fab in Itzehoe

Imec, Europe's chip research powerhouse, signs €50m pact to build technology for Belgium's armed forces

01/11/2026
6
Abstract illustration of a silicon wafer with glowing circuit traces merging into radar sweep rings and signal waves

Leuven-based imec, which for decades kept its distance from military work, will receive €10m a year for five years from Belgium's new defence-innovation agency ODIN to develop jam-resistant battlefield communications and drone-detecting sensors. The defence minister calls it historic; the money is modest and the first results are years away.

Imec, the Leuven research centre whose labs help shape the world's most advanced chips, has signed a five-year partnership with the Belgian Ministry of Defence, marking a sharp turn for an institute that long declined military work.

Defence Minister Theo Francken (N-VA) and imec chief executive Patrick Vandenameele signed the agreement on Friday at the military barracks in Heverlee, near Leuven, VRT NWS and the Belga news agency reported. Imec will receive €10m a year from ODIN, the defence innovation and industry organisation the federal government set up earlier this year with a budget of €3.7bn over ten years. Over the full term that comes to around €50m.

The first projects are concrete. According to Belga, imec will start with secure battlefield communications that an enemy cannot jam, and with small radar and laser systems that can detect incoming drones. In its own press release, imec lists sensors, artificial intelligence, secure connectivity and reliable positioning as the core fields, alongside PhD tracks and advanced research programmes to build up defence expertise. Imec will also act as a technical expert in national and international defence and security forums, building on what it calls its "recently strengthened" aerospace and security activities.

"With imec we have a trump card that nobody else has," Francken said at the signing, according to VRT (translated). He called it "a historic day for the army" (translated).

A cultural shift at imec

The deal is notable less for its size than for what it says about imec. VRT noted that the institute, which employs more than 6,500 people and reported revenue of €1.2bn in 2025, was for decades reluctant to take on military applications or work with the defence industry.

"The turnaround within imec went much more smoothly than expected," Vandenameele told VRT (translated). "Every employee understands that using the best technology to defend ourselves belongs in the better world we are striving for. That has changed very strongly because of recent geopolitical events."

Speaking to regional broadcaster ROBtv, he was blunter: a few years ago defence work "was not allowed, but that has now been reversed by our environment" (translated). Business daily L'Echo framed the deal as a further sign of Flanders' pivot towards the defence sector.

Modest money, long timelines

The sums should be kept in proportion. At €10m a year, the ODIN funding is less than 1% of imec's annual revenue, and only a sliver of ODIN's own €3.7bn envelope. Neither side has said when Belgian troops might use anything that comes out of the programme. Vandenameele warned that research and development take "years", adding that "the shortest possible timeframe for chip technology is two years, assuming all the research has already been done", according to Belga.

Imec will only develop the technology. Start-ups or established defence companies would handle production, and Francken said Belgian firms would get "maximum priority" when it comes to commercialisation, Belga reported. The partners have not published details on how intellectual property, export controls or ethical review will be handled.

For Europe's tech sector, the agreement is another marker of how quickly the line between civilian deep tech and defence is blurring. Imec sits at the centre of a global chip research network that includes the world's leading semiconductor companies, which makes its willingness to serve a national military a significant shift, even if the opening budget is small.

Sources

Recent

© European Tech On Heels - 2026
Made with
Web Wings