On November 25, I-Com hosted a Foresight Talk in Brussels, focusing on Europe’s digital sovereignty and its pivotal role in shaping the EU’s future. The event featured a keynote speech by Roberto Viola, Director General of DG CONNECT, who shared his insights on fostering innovation, securing critical technologies, and enhancing Europe’s digital competitiveness.
Viola emphasized the idea that sovereignty and competitiveness are not mutually exclusive concepts and that there are no black-and-white solutions to the EU’s digitalization challenges. In this context, striking a balance between dependence and autonomy in technological solutions is essential for fostering a flourishing digital transformation.
The discussion began with a presentation emphasizing the EU’s uneven progress in key technological areas, where it generally lags behind global leaders like China and the USA. These areas include broadband networks, data infrastructure, semiconductors, computing, and artificial intelligence.
Specific focus was given to the state of our data infrastructures, identified by DG Viola as a key transversal sector for the development of the digital industry, AI software, and the European economy overall. Indeed, advanced cloud systems will be a crucial asset for generating value from data. Regrettably, the EU trails behind the US, where the top five cloud providers account for almost half of the global market. This creates two main challenges for EU industries. Firstly, the cost of these services is expected to rise. More importantly, if European companies fall behind in the development and integration of AI into their internal processes due to a lack of data infrastructure or disinterest, many sectors of our economy will soon find themselves deprived of significant added value, as happened in industries like newspapers, hotels, which have been overtaken by platform-based business models.
What emerged from the discussion on the topic of the EU’s normative landscape, is that the imperative for the next European mandate is to focus on simplifying the regulatory framework so to avoid overlapping norms and compliance burdens that stifle innovation.
The discussion also highlighted the importance of forward-thinking digital policies and strategies to strengthen the EU’s position in a rapidly evolving global digital landscape. Three key takeaways for the future of EU digitalization were highlighted. First, it is crucial to increase investments and strengthen infrastructure. For example, in line with the Draghi Report, the Commission has identified EU trusted vendors as a viable solution to bolster European autonomy in technology sourcing. Second, empowering private companies in the use of AI and data management is essential. Finally, the idea of sovereignty should not lead to an overproduction of norms or the discouragement of innovation.
We thank all participants for their valuable contributions and look forward to future discussions!
