Reject US Tech. Embrace Digital Sovereignty.

For years, governments in Europe and beyond have been trying to grapple with the power of US tech companies without going so far as to overly anger them and the US government. But now that Silicon Valley has allied with Donald Trump’s MAGA movement and explicitly sought to target tech regulation in Europe, the time has come to get far more aggressive with stricter rules and an ambitious agenda to build a real alternative to US tech.

Europe must embrace digital sovereignty and work with other likeminded countries around the world to develop digital services and physical infrastructure to wean themselves off their dependence on US tech monopolies. Such an undertaking is not just a challenge, but an opportunity to rethink the very model that has guided tech development for the past several decades to ensure public benefits are prioritized over shareholder value and maximizing control. We can’t allow the status quo to continue.

This programme session is supported by Stiftung Mercator. / Dieser Programmpunkt wird durch die Stiftung Mercator unterstützt.