The final edition of the STARLIGHT project annual newsletter offers an opportunity to reflect on a journey that began in October 2021 and has spanned 52 months of close collaboration between research, industry, and Law Enforcement Agencies (LEAs) across Europe. It is a chance to reflect not only on what STARLIGHT has delivered, but on how it has shaped collaboration, practice, and thinking around responsible AI for security.
Throughout the project, the STARLIGHT consortium pursued a shared ambition: to support the responsible adoption of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in law enforcement by combining innovation with accountability, transparency, and respect for fundamental rights. Guided by its five strategic goals, Understand, Exploit, Protect, Combat, and Boost, the project progressed from identifying operational needs to delivering, testing, and validating AI-based solutions in real and near-operational environments.
Through co-development cycles, ToolFests, and pilots, the consortium jointly developed, refined, and evaluated 50 operational tools, ensuring that innovation was shaped not in isolation, but through continuous dialogue with practitioners. This work would not have been possible without the commitment of our 50 partners from 18 countries, and in particular, the 15 participating LEAs, whose sustained engagement ensured that STARLIGHT remained firmly grounded in real investigative contexts. The Final Event, held in Paris on 14-15 January, marked both the conclusion of the project and a moment of collective reflection. More than an endpoint, it signalled STARLIGHT’s transition from a funded research initiative to a lasting contribution to the European security research landscape.
The STARLIGHT project leaves behind a substantial body of technical and methodological results, a strong foundation for continued cooperation, and a community committed to advancing trustworthy, human-centred AI in support of European security. Thank you to all project partners, law enforcement agencies, external advisors, and colleagues whose commitment and expertise contributed to the successful delivery of STARLIGHT.