Dozens of European cloud CEOs call for real tech sovereignty ahead of Cloud and AI Development Act

Date:
Thu, 19 Mar 2026 12:00:00 +0000

Description:
24 leaders, backed by CISPE, was asking the European Union to carefully consider how it goes about driving tech sovereignty.

FULL STORY ======================================================================Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Threads Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Tech Radar Get the TechRadar Newsletter Sign up for
breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more. Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over. You are
now subscribed Your newsletter sign-up was successful An account already exists for this email address, please log in. Subscribe to our newsletter The European Commission is preparing for the upcoming Cloud and AI Development
Act (CADA) CISPE leaders are asking Europe's Tech Sovereignty EVP to
carefully consider five requests Reducing reliance on US hyperscalers could still take years Twenty-four European cloud CEOs are urging the European
Union to ensure that the upcoming Cloud and AI Development Act (CADA)
actually protects European sovereignty, rather than just implementing token gestures.

In the letter addressed to EU EVP for Tech Sovereignty Henna Virkkunen, the leaders warn of "sovereignty washing," which could actually allow American hyperscalers to continue driving their dominance. "This first comprehensive European cloud policy should strengthen Europes digital capacity by prioritising procurement and investment in sovereign European solutions that foster a competitive cloud ecosystem," they write. Article continues below
You may like Who really controls your data? The test of sovereign cloud Data sovereignty: not just an issue for governments Europe is going all-in on sovereign cloud investment to triple by 2027 CISPE-backed European cloud
CEOs push for tech sovereignty The letter sets out five core demands to Virkkunen: sovereignty by control, where the bloc focuses on ownership, governance and legal protection; resilience where sovereignty may not be possible; reserved procurement shares for European cloud providers where sensitive data is concerned; a push for competition and interoperability; and strategic investment in European companies.

The upcoming CADA aims to address concerns around US hyperscalers, with AWS, Azure and Google Cloud collectively accounting for around 70% of the EU's cloud market.

Adding to that, Microsoft has even stated that it cannot fully guarantee EU data sovereignty on the basis that it must comply with US legal orders.

However, even a considered balance of the upcoming CADA and CISPE-backed leaders' demands, it could take years or even decades for Europe to reach a position where it's no longer reliant on US tech. Are you a pro? Subscribe to our newsletter Sign up to the TechRadar Pro newsletter to get all the top news, opinion, features and guidance your business needs to succeed! Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

"CADA is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to put Europe back on the front
foot in the digital economy, and we must not squander it by legitimising sovereignty-washing," CISPE Secretary General Francisco Mingorance added .

The European Commission has not yet publicly responded to CISPE's letter. Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds. Make sure to click the
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