POLICE FEDERALE BELGE

Their core work

The Belgian Federal Police is Belgium's national law enforcement agency, contributing operational expertise and real-world policing requirements to EU security research. In H2020 projects, they serve as an end-user validating tools for digital forensics, counter-terrorism intelligence, cybercrime investigation, and border security document fraud detection. Their involvement ensures that research outputs — from AI-driven evidence analysis to autonomous reconnaissance systems — meet the practical needs of frontline law enforcement across Europe.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

Early projects (2018–2019) focused on intelligence-led policing: knowledge discovery, OSINT, spatial-temporal prediction, and counter-terrorism early warning systems. From 2020 onward, the focus shifted decisively toward operational technology: autonomous robotics for dangerous situations, AI for detecting manipulated identity documents, and AI-powered tools against cybercrime and online child exploitation. This trajectory shows a move from analytical intelligence tools toward field-deployable AI systems and specialized crime-fighting technologies.

Moving toward AI and autonomous systems for frontline policing — expect growing interest in responsible AI, real-time decision support, and ethical AI governance for law enforcement.

How they like to work

The Belgian Federal Police participates exclusively as a partner, never as coordinator — consistent with their role as an end-user providing operational requirements and validation rather than managing research. They work in large consortia (129 unique partners across 7 projects, averaging ~18 partners per project), which reflects the scale of EU security research calls. Their broad partner network suggests they are a sought-after end-user voice rather than a repeat collaborator with a fixed set of research partners.

Extensive network of 129 unique partners across 27 countries, spanning nearly all EU member states. This breadth reflects their role as a valued law enforcement end-user in large, pan-European security consortia.

What sets them apart

As a national police force, they bring something academic partners cannot: real operational context, access to authentic use cases, and authority to validate whether a tool actually works in the field. Their participation signals to the European Commission that a project has genuine end-user commitment, not just theoretical relevance. For consortium builders, having them on board strengthens both the proposal's credibility and its path to real-world deployment.

Highlights from their portfolio

• INTREPID
  Their largest-funded project (EUR 264,450) combining autonomous robotics, extended reality, and tactical reconnaissance — an unusually hands-on operational technology scope.
• GRACE
  Applies federated learning and computer vision to combat child exploitation — a sensitive domain where law enforcement end-user input is critical for ethical and effective tool design.
• STARLIGHT
  A flagship project on AI sovereignty and resilience for European law enforcement, addressing the strategic question of technological autonomy in policing.