<p>This study proposes a numerical analysis to study the energy absorption mechanisms and performance of a novel rubber/Kevlar/carbon fiber hybrid ballistic helmet, with the aim of developing a multi-objective optimization to maximize the impact energy absorption while reducing the helmet areal density. A numerical model of a bullet impacting a Kevlar panel was developed, and the accuracy of the model was verified through ballistic tests. To shorten the design cycle, the helmet was simplified to a panel with the same curvature as the top of the helmet. With Kevlar as the base, carbon fiber and rubber were introduced to construct a hybrid laminated structure, and the energy absorption mechanism of the helmet has been comprehensively investigated. The energy absorption performance of different configurations has been assessed and compared in ballistic simulation analysis. The optimal structure with the top layer as rubber, the middle layer as Kevlar, and the back layer as carbon fiber was determined. Coupled with the elliptical basis function neural network (EBFNN), multi-objective optimization was conducted for the aforementioned configuration. The results indicate that the optimized solution is a hybrid panel with 1 layer of rubber, 15 layers of Kevlar, and 4 layers of carbon fiber, with a ply pitch angle of 58°. Compared to sole Kevlar panel, the hybrid panel achieves a 10.16% reduction in total thickness, a 9.07% decrease in areal density, and a 17.98% reduction in back face deformation (BFD) under equivalent protective performance. The instantaneous energy absorption level is higher, and the degree of damage to the panel after bullet impact is significantly reduced, resulting in higher structural integrity.</p>