Recently, the Dutch government announced its first framework agreement with a European cloud provider. The message behind that decision is clear: Digital sovereignty has moved from policy discussion to active procurement criterion.

For organisations operating drones in security, public safety, critical infrastructure and defence, that shift matters. And it raises a question that more and more procurement teams are starting to ask: where is your drone software actually built, who controls the data, and what does that mean for drone data sovereignty in high-stakes operations?

The market reality

The drone software market is growing fast. So is the number of platforms competing for the attention of serious operators. But when you look at the landscape of enterprise-grade drone operations software, the picture is striking: almost every significant player is non-European.

That matters for European organisations in ways that go beyond preference. Data processed through non-European platforms may be subject to foreign jurisdiction. Operational data from police forces, border protection agencies, energy companies and defence-adjacent organisations can carry significant sensitivity. Livestreaming of incident response, security monitoring or infrastructure inspections adds another layer of sensitivity. Video feeds from active operations represent some of the most time-critical and confidential data an organisation handles. This is especially relevant for organisations managing counter-drone operations, where detection feeds and security video must remain within a trusted operational environment. Routing that data through infrastructure outside European jurisdiction carries risks that many organisations have not yet fully considered. Choosing software built outside Europe means accepting that the infrastructure underpinning your missions sits outside your regulatory control.

AirHub is different. As a European drone company, we have built a drone operations platform in Europe, funded by European investors, and operating under European law. That is the foundation of how we build and how we operate, and it shapes every decision we make.

What European means in practice

Being European means that your operational data stays within the European legal framework. It means that the software underpinning your drone missions is not subject to foreign surveillance legislation. It means that when Europe sets new standards for data governance, interoperability or security, we are already building to meet them, because they apply to us too.

It also means that we understand the operational environments our customers work in. The Belgian Police, Dutch Customs, Portuguese Bombeiros, and infrastructure operators across the continent are not edge cases for us. They are our core market. These are precisely the public safety organisations that need GDPR compliant drone software as a baseline requirement, built to operate within European law from the ground up.

This includes organisations deploying drone-in-a-box solutions across Europe, such as DJI Dock, for automated, persistent monitoring of critical sites. For these deployments, where a drone operates autonomously and continuously captures sensitive operational data, the question of where that data is processed and stored is especially acute.

Thomas Brinkman, co-CEO and co-Founder of AirHub:

"There is a clear and growing need for trusted software in mission-critical drone operations. European organisations are increasingly asking not just whether a platform works, but whether they can trust who built it, where their data goes, and what framework governs it. As a European company, we are built to answer those questions."

Funded by Europe, built for Europe

AirHub's recent €4.4 million Series A round was backed entirely by European investors: Keen Venture Partners, RunwayFBU, Lumaux and LUMO Labs. The funding is being used to further strengthen the AirHub Drone Operations Center and expand into MilHub and SecHub, two new products designed for defence and security operations That reflects a growing recognition in the European investment community that sovereign, trusted technology for security and critical operations is a strategic priority.

Keen Venture Partners, whose €200 million European Defence Space and Security Fund is Europe's first dedicated defence fund, sees AirHub as part of a broader effort to strengthen European technological independence. Giuseppe Lacerenza, Partner at Keen Venture Partners, described AirHub as "well positioned to become an important software player" as Europe increases its focus on resilience, security and technological autonomy.

Thomas Brinkman:

"This funding helps us accelerate AirHub's growth as a European software company serving organisations that operate in high-stakes environments. We see a clear need for trusted, mission-critical drone software that helps teams execute drone missions securely, effectively and at scale, while strengthening Europe's ability to rely on its own technology in critical operations”

The conversation is shifting

The Dutch government's move toward European cloud infrastructure is one signal among many. Across Europe, procurement teams, policymakers and operational commanders are reconsidering their technology dependencies. Europe's new drone and counter-drone action plan makes this shift explicit, placing data sovereignty and trusted technology at the centre of European resilience strategy. The question of where software is built, who owns the underlying infrastructure, and what legal framework governs the data is moving from the margins of procurement discussions to the centre.

For drone operations specifically, this shift is long overdue. Drones have become embedded in policing, border protection, infrastructure security, emergency response and increasingly in defence-adjacent operations. The software that runs those missions deserves the same scrutiny as any other critical operational technology.

AirHub was built with that scrutiny in mind, because it is the right foundation for the work our customers do.

If you want to understand what European drone operations software looks like in practice, book a demo with our team.

Frequently asked questions

Is AirHub a European company?
Yes. AirHub is headquartered in the Netherlands and operates under European law. The company is funded entirely by European investors and builds its software in compliance with GDPR and European data governance frameworks.

Why does it matter that drone software is European?
Drone operations in public safety, security and critical infrastructure generate sensitive data, including livestreams, flight logs and operational patterns. Software built outside Europe may be subject to foreign jurisdiction and surveillance legislation. Choosing European software is a step toward ensuring that data governance, legal oversight and compliance requirements align with the EU framework, rather than being subject to foreign jurisdiction.

What sectors does AirHub serve?AirHub serves public safety organisations, security providers and critical infrastructure operators organisations across Europe and beyond. Customers include Dubai Police, Belgian Police, Portuguese Bombeiros, Dutch Customs, Shell and Boskalis.