This year was a big moment for science and technology (S&T) within NATO. On July 1, 2025, the Alliance designated Steen Søndergaard as its new Chief Scientist, taking over from Dr. Bryan Wells in order to bring a fresh approach to NATO’s S&T efforts. At the 2025 NATO Summit at The Hague, the Allies agreed to raise defence spending to five percent of GDP annually by 2035, a major step for the Alliance. Facing growing political and security challenges from Russia, China, and Iran, NATO is stepping up strategic planning and investing in projects that help keep the Alliance strong, ready, and able to defend itself in a complicated global security environment. For example, China’s rapid progress in AI and quantum computing, and Russia’s ongoing cyber-attacks, have shaped NATO’s focus on new tech and defence.
Investment in S&T is more important than ever, as cybersecurity threats and emerging technologies continue to transform security. NATO’s Science and Technology Organization (STO), the world’s largest defence S&T network, helps NATO maintain a technological edge through planning and sharing of knowledge. The Alliance’s ability to bring together experts, resources, and partners from member countries, universities, and companies is a key advantage that supports innovation and rapid responses to new challenges. At the same time as the Summit, Defence Ministers endorsed a new S&T Strategy emphasizing the importance of S&T within the Alliance. This Strategy aims to help NATO get ahead of aggressors by integrating scientific knowledge and new technologies across all Alliance activities.
The Strategy lays out a plan for allocating resources and fostering cooperation on key S&T projects. It focuses on selecting the right topics, people, and skills to build the S&T community. It also aims to protect NATO’s knowledge base by balancing openness with caution, which guides collaboration with external partners. Lastly, enhancing teamwork across the Alliance to ensure S&T efforts are fast, focused, and strong.
Following this strategy, NATO moves forward with initiatives such as the Science and Technology Trends (STT) reports, including the S&T Macro Trends Report for 2025 to 2045. This report builds on previous findings to show how shifts in S&T are influencing strategic decision-making at NATO and beyond. It connects research to practical application and highlights key trends shaping NATO’s S&T, such as emerging areas of competition, the race for AI and quantum technologies, biotech breakthroughs, resource gaps, increasing public distrust, and growing reliance on interconnected technology.
The rising distrust in institutions is a significant concern, especially following the COVID-19 pandemic. A November 2023 OECD report found that 44 percent of people had little or no trust in their national governments, while only 39 percent expressed moderate or high trust. This lack of trust makes it easier for malicious actors to spread false information and deepen divisions across NATO countries. This challenge affects Canada, who has dealt with foreign election interface and many member states and is exacerbated by mis/disinformation campaigns from NATO adversaries. Here, NATO must advance technology while also working to build trust through better communication, media literacy, and transparency.
Looking specifically at Canada, the Online News Act demonstrates why this trend matters. Passed in 2023 to support Canadian journalism and information networks, the Act requires major platforms to pay fees for linking to Canadian news on social media. While Google reached a deal with the federal government, Meta blocked news content on its platforms in Canada. The Media Ecosystem Observatory (MEO), run by McGill University and the University of Toronto, found that nearly 57 percent of Canadians still use Facebook as a news source. This situation raises important questions about the reliability of information on these platforms and how limits on access could allow mis/disinformation to spread more easily.
Adding to this concern, the Hogue Commission’s recent report highlighted ongoing challenges around mis/disinformation in Canada, calling for stronger efforts to combat false information and protect public trust. These combined issues make clear that addressing mis/disinformation is crucial to safeguarding Canada’s information landscape and supporting NATO’s broader resilience and security goals.
Canada’s example shows that investing in projects strengthening NATO’s ability to handle these trends can give the Alliance a real edge. These investments help NATO anticipate and counter threats before they materialize. At the same time, NATO must balance the risks and opportunities presented by new and disruptive technologies. Former NATO Chief Scientist Dr. Bryan Wells, in discussions with former Deputy Assistant Secretary General Dr. Jamie Shea, emphasized that investing in emerging technologies is key to maintaining NATO’s strategic advantage. NATO maintains a public list of priority tech areas, including autonomy, AI, quantum technologies, space, energy storage, and biotech, which require ongoing support.
As noted, NATO Allies have committed to raising defence spending to five percent by 2035. Canada is playing a key role through projects aligned with NATO’s objectives. Canada hosts one of the Innovation Hubs for NATO’s Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic (DIANA), collaborating with NATO and the UK to advance new technologies. Canada is also planning the Bureau of Research, Engineering, and Advanced Leadership in Science (BOREALIS), which will focus on technologies with both civilian and military applications. This underscores the delicate balance NATO must maintain between driving technological.
Unlike the usual focus on the US, Canada is making strong moves to invest in NATO and demonstrate leadership in S&T. Recognizing Canada’s role, alongside NATO’s investments in emerging tech and cybersecurity, highlights the Alliance’s strength in strategic foresight, something that deserves greater recognition. Cybersecurity, in particular, is central to many NATO S&T projects, protecting critical systems and safeguarding information as threats escalate. Looking ahead, NATO’s success in S&T depends on maintaining flexibility and readiness, building innovation networks capable of rapidly addressing new challenges and keeping the Alliance ahead. NATO is making tangible progress toward its core missions of collective defence, crisis management, and cooperative security, preparing to lead in an increasingly complex and technology-driven world through critical S&T initiatives.
Disclaimer: Any views or opinions expressed in articles are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the NATO Association of Canada.
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