Now is the time: Nextcloud supports EuroStack’s open letter calling for technological sovereignty

Today, the need for a sovereign European technology stack is more urgent than ever. It is the only way for Europe to make itself more independent from political and economic blackmail – a scenario that seems more and more threatening.

In an open letter to the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, and the Vice-Commissioner in charge of technological sovereignty, security and democracy, Henna Virkkunen, around 100 companies call for radical action to reduce dependence on foreign digital infrastructure. Nextcloud is one of the signatories of the letter and fully supports the idea of a pragmatic industrial policy strategy.

Goal: Buy European and a sovereign tech fund

The letter calls for Europe to regain the initiative in all layers of critical digital infrastructure, from logical infrastructure – applications, platforms, media, AI frameworks and models – to physical infrastructure – chips, computing, storage and connectivity.

This can be done through an industrial policy strategy with several aspects. The main ones are

• Public tenders should include a formal requirement to “Buy European” where possible. In addition, it is important to develop a stronger EU open source technology ecosystem by requiring critical infrastructure to be 50-80% open source within a year or two; this would not cost taxpayers money but would generate demand, stimulate innovation and create a stronger European digital ecosystem.
• A “pooling and federating” approach will encourage smaller suppliers to pool resources into common offerings, giving the public sector and large enterprises greater assurance of continuity. Policy and industry need to work together to rapidly inventory resources and support open source solutions and interoperability.
• Harmonised requirements for cloud users to choose a sovereign cloud solution. With multiple offerings on the market claiming to be “sovereign” but lacking proof, users should be able to ensure that their most sensitive data is protected from access or operational disruption by non-EU extraterritorial laws. This should be done by including a High+ criteria requirement in the EUCS.
• A “Sovereign Infrastructure Fund” should support public investment in Europe’s digital infrastructure.

All of these goals are realistically achievable today. We just need the political will to do so. This is the only way to escape the political and economic stranglehold of the US providers.

Media coverage

The letter has been perceived broadly by media in Europe such as:

• Politico: https://www.politico.eu/article/airbus-dassault-others-press-von-der-leyen-for-made-in-europe-tech/
• Techcrunch: https://techcrunch.com/2025/03/16/european-tech-industry-coalition-calls-for-radical-action-on-digital-sovereignty-starting-with-buying-local/
• EurActiv: https://www.euractiv.com/section/tech/news/european-tech-companies-urge-the-commission-to-support-them-in-building-european-sovereignty/