Saab’s New Initiative Takes a Bold Step Towards the Future of Collaborative Innovation
The launch of Saab’s Skapa initiative illustrates Saab’s dedication to innovative solutions and will help solve global challenges.
On April 23, 2024, Saab unveiled its latest initiative, Skapa, to helm the company’s strategy for creating advanced technology solutions. Skapa brings together experts from academia, government and industry in cross-functional collaboration to solve the most complex defense and security technology challenges facing Saab’s customers, both now and in the future. Skapa will become a catalyst for growth, spreading innovation and fostering learning.
Skapa - Swedish for “to create, to make, to shape,” - supports a creative, forward-thinking approach to technological challenges and solutions.
“Skapa is a symbol of our commitment to continuous evolution and excellence,” said Erik Smith, president and CEO of Saab, Inc. “We see the emerging threats around the world that need to be tackled, we know there is a need for new scalable solutions, and Skapa will enable new ways of thinking about problems and new ways of approaching them. We have the unique skill set, portfolio of products and people to drive the solution.”
The Skapa initiative is structured around three lines of effort: Digital and AI, Naval Autonomy and Maritime Domain Awareness.
- The Digital and AI division develops machine learning and artificial intelligence solutions to meet customer needs, such as computer vision models that track the spread of wildfires to aid emergency responders.
- Skapa’s Naval Autonomy group represents Saab in the co-development of the Unmanned Surface Vehicle program upon the Enforcer-3.1, a converted Combat Boat 90. The state-of-the-art boat features an ultramodern navigation sensor system, communication capability and maneuver software, allowing it to be fully unmanned in remote or autonomous operations modes.
- The Maritime Domain Awareness team is collaborating with Saab’s Autonomous and Undersea Systems Division to work on the cutting edge of machine learning and guided autonomy in manned and unmanned vehicles.
Saab’s Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer, Michael Brasseur, will serve as general manager of Skapa.
“Skapa is designed to deliver solutions that will keep people and society safe. We focus on real problems for real end users, accelerating our Armed Forces’ capability to meet new demands and threats,” Brasseur said.
Based in San Diego, the Skapa team is strategically located close to the region’s leading tech companies, as well as the U.S. Marine Corps and the U.S. Naval Special Warfare Command on Naval Amphibious Base (NAB) in Coronado, California.
“We are very close to our customers here in San Diego, and that’s an important part of the process,” added Brasseur. “Our location accelerates our timeline from when we first identify an opportunity for improvement to when we deliver an optimized solution for our customers.”