EU ‘tech sovereignty’: Uncoupling from the US and China?

AI Summary

The European Union aims to achieve technological sovereignty to reduce dependence on the US and China. The EU Commission’s 'Tech Sovereignty Package' seeks to bolster domestic digital production and strategic independence amid geopolitical challenges.

The EU is trying to assert its strategic independence in an unstable world – a world of bullies, as some members of the EU Parliament describe it. That means independence in matters of defence and energy supplies, but also in the whole field of tech. The European Commission says non-EU companies provide more than 80 percent of the EU’s digital products and services. One of the key proposals aimed at changing that is the “Tech Sovereignty Package”, which was presented in early June. With our guests, we dive into the initiative, explain the geopolitical context and ask what it would take for the bloc to achieve real technological sovereignty.