It is intended to succeed three reconnaissance and/or fire support vehicles in French service—the AMX-10 RC, ERC 90 Sagaie and VAB HOT—and entered service in 2022 after twelve years of development.

[9] In the 2019-2025 LPM adopted in July 2018, the SCORPION programme's targets were revised upwards, with the planned acquisition of 1,872 VBMR Griffon, 978 VMBR-L Serval, 300 EBRC Jaguar, as well as the upgrade of 200 Leclerc tanks and 18 DCL armoured recovery vehicles to the XLR standard, all to be delivered by 2030.

Deliveries of the first units were somewhat delayed; the Jaguar being an "extremely complex technological object" was, in particular, highlighted among the reasons by Colonel Damien Sandeau, a SCORPION programme officer at the French Army General Staff.

The consortium opted for the VBMR Griffon to share 70% of its components with the Jaguar to save on development, production and maintenance costs as well as to facilitate logistics.

Featuring a seven-speed automatic gearbox, independent running gears, rear steering and six-wheel drive, the Jaguar can reach a maximum speed of 90 km/h on roads and tracks, 70 km/h off-road, as well as up to 15 km/h, forwards or backwards, on very steep slopes.

[11][4] Equipped with a variable ground clearance, as well as a tire pressure variation system and a run-flat device, it benefits from great crossing capacity on all types of terrain, whether road, rock or mud.

The engine is housed in a soundproof compartment and is able to run on different types of fuel, facilitating replenishment wherever in the world French forces would be deployed.

[11][19] To approach the "prey" discreetly, manufacturers have worked on the vehicle's signature, and its adjustable suspension allows the pilot to shelter behind a trench, lowering it to let only the surveillance systems protrude, or raising it to engage the enemy.

[4][21] The vehicle integrates an overpressure protection system in order to keep the crew compartments safe from chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) threats.

The SICS interconnects all the players in a combined arms battle group, while the CONTACT provides communication capabilities between the vehicles, with simultaneous and real time voice and data transmission.

[4] Meanwhile, the Thales-developed TopAxyz inertial measurement unit provides accurate localization and pointing information and autonomous navigation capabilities to the vehicle, including in GNSS-denied environments.

[25] In addition, vetronics play a decisive role in vehicle protection, thanks in particular to algorithms that offer the crew several options for dealing with a threat, allowing them to opt for the one they deem the most adequate for the situation.

[25] Observation and tracking are provided by Safran's PASEO all-digital optically stabilized panoramic sighting and fire-control system, which has, otherwise, only been selected to equip much heavier vehicles than the Jaguar such as the M10 Booker and especially the Leclerc XLR and AbramsX main battle tanks.

On the Jaguar, it is duplicated for the gunner (PASEO-T, located on the left side of the turret and aligned with the 40 mm autocannon) and vehicle commander (PASEO-C, fitted on the remote controlled weapon station).

It incorporates 6 sensors, including a daylight full HD camera and the SATIS GS multi-purpose cooled thermal imager operating in the 3-5 and 8-12 μm spectra for 360° directional (azimuth) observation and from -30 to +62° in elevation.

Another important capability of this system is the ability to image by sector, providing a high-quality panoramic view and high-contrast background when searching for hidden targets.

[28] The Jaguar is also equipped with the ANTARES optronics system, developed by Thales, for close situational awareness and which also doubles as a laser warning receiver.

[18] Furthermore, the vehicle is equipped with backup optics for the vehicle commander and gunner if they ever were to face issues on the battlefield with their optoelectronic sensors: the gunner has a direct optical channel located on the front arc of the turret (to the left of the tube) and the commander, an all-optic panoramic sight installed at the top of the turret (front centre) which not only act as a backup sight but also enhances his topography perception.

[29][18][22] Additionally, the vehicle features the PILAR V, a roof-mounted device capable of detecting, identifying and locating shots from small arms, medium-calibre weapons, mortar shells, shaped charge rockets or RPGs in real time.

Finally, the ocular lens linked to his backup sight and a control unit (halfway between an airplane stick and a video game console's joystick) are located in front of his seat (at eye level and near his legs respectively).

[23] The driver, located at the front centre of the hull, is alone in his compartment ahead of the other two crew members but remains in constant contact with them via the radio integrated into his helmet.

Now also granted the ability to observe, his field of view is provided from a closed hatch via panoramic vision blocks (essentially, an armoured motorized hinged flap sheltering him and fitted with three episcopes, which generate visibility through an interplay of mirrors).

This system, which consists of a thermal sensor and a light intensification one, is integrated on the left of the flap that covers his compartment (and located just below the gunner's optical channel), and notably enables night driving.

[29][27][18] Precision and detection distance have thus been vastly improved over the AMX-10 RC, with the proximal cameras, high-quality optics and the addition of the thermal channel, plus the set of episcopes, five of which are augmented reality.

Some of the data collected by the sensors and processed by the combat information system are projected directly onto the episcopes, enabling the crew to stay one step ahead in their understanding of the tactical situation and accelerate the sequencing of an action.

[34] Beyond countermeasures such as the aforementioned laser alert detectior, missile launch detector and gunfire locator, the Jaguar also integrates, for example, an infrared jammer as well as an anti-IED jamming sensor despite coming with STANAG 4569 Level 4 armour as standard.

Furthermore, the system is designed not only for self-defense (passive action), but is also capable of neutralizing of hostile personnel (as it can fire a variety of lethal and non-lethal charges).

[4][39] The principle is to deploy Health and Usage Monitoring Systems (HUMS) on these key functions to generate continuous data on vehicle activity.

[39] The adoption of predictive maintenance, agreed in a rider to the SCORPION contract, meant developing the software layer needed to coordinate sensors and analyze data.

[25] To avoid them being potentially disoriented by the swiftness of the turret's movements, the gunner and his leader benefit from a rosette at the top of their multi-function screens, indicating the orientation of each weapon/sight in relation to the chassis; a detail that seems simple but, once again, represents an improvement over the AMX-10 RC, which lacked one.