technologyreseller.co.uk of major cloud providers creates serious vulnerabilities across the internet and puts whole economies at risk in the process. “Just like the AWS outage, Azure’s latest failure showed how easily the ripples from an outage can spread globally and highlighted the danger of our global dependence on US technology. When the whole world relies on tech from a tiny number of companies from one country, then the whole world is vulnerable. The only answer for the UK, Europe and elsewhere is to prioritise digital sovereignty, in other words to develop their own native services. We need to stand on our own two feet if we’re going to have any chance in the future.” Questions for Government Mark Boost, CEO of UK cloud provider Civo, advocates greater commitment to sovereign cloud, especially by Government and critical infrastructure providers. He said: “We should be asking the obvious question: why are so many critical UK institutions, from HMRC to major banks, dependent on a data centre on the east coast of the US? Sovereignty means having control when incidents like this happen, but too much of ours is currently outsourced to foreign cloud providers. The AWS outage is yet another reminder that when you put all your eggs in one basket, you’re gambling with critical infrastructure. When a single point of failure can take down HMRC, it becomes clear that our reliance on a handful of US tech giants has left core public services dangerously exposed. “The more concentrated our infrastructure becomes, the more fragile and externally governed it is. Europe can’t afford to keep walking a digital tightrope without a safety net. If Europe is serious about digital sovereignty, it needs to accelerate its shift towards domestically governed and diversified infrastructure. Governments and regulators have a responsibility to create the conditions for real competition. That means rethinking procurement, funding sovereign alternatives and making resilience a baseline requirement.” 09 ASK THE EXPERTS The dominance of the hyperscalers and US technology giants took some of the gloss off the $40 billion investment in the UK announced by Microsoft, Google, OpenAI, Nvidia, Salesforce and others during Trump's State Visit. But was Nick Clegg, as reported in the Guardian, right to dismiss their investment packages as ‘sloppy seconds from Silicon Valley’ and ‘mutton dressed as lamb’? Was he right to say that that investment would have happened anyway and that it could damage the UK tech sector by increasing reliance on US tech giants? Stewart Laing, CEO, Asanti Data Centres: “We shouldn’t dismiss a $40 billion investment in the UK as second-rate, but what we do need to clarify is how much of that is genuinely new investment and how much is existing or previously announced projects being re-packaged as something fresh. “What we do know is that Microsoft has pledged approximately $30bn over the next few years for AI and cloud infrastructure in the UK. There are also new commitments from Nvidia, Google (£5bn) and AI infrastructure plans in growth zones. “However, our recent research shows that UK IT leaders are increasingly cautious: 52% say they plan to reduce reliance on US cloud providers, with 95% citing data sovereignty, 93% data residency and concerns about jurisdiction under laws such as the US CLOUD Act as reasons. Repatriation of workloads is underway in many cases. “So, while the headline numbers are encouraging, the key test will be transparency: which portions of the $40bn are new, which are already in motion, how much will be invested (versus planned) and how do those investments align with UK sovereignty, control and infrastructure capabilities.” Mark Boost, CEO of Civo: "Any investment into our tech sector is worth celebrating and will help accelerate the AI ambitions of countless British businesses. That said, even though the ‘Tech Prosperity Deal’ is an impressive deal with a catchy name, I have to question which side is prospering more. “If the UK isn’t careful, sooner or later the majority of our critical AI infrastructure will be owned by Big Tech. The US CLOUD Act means none of the ‘Big Three’ providers can offer true digital sovereignty, leaving British businesses and public bodies completely at the mercy of American data laws. “Clearly, international investment is vital for our AI industries, and a package of this size will do a huge amount of good for quantum, AI and nuclear projects. However, we should also be building up our homegrown tech ecosystem and setting harder limits on the extent to which we’re willing to allow overseas control of our digital infrastructure. If not, we risk sacrificing our future digital sovereignty on the altar of short‑term gains.” James Walsh, Founder of Sytronix: “Any investment in the UK’s technology and AI market is good in some respects. However, recently there have been several high-profile clashes between the UK and US over free speech, information dissemination, the role of VPNs and anonymisation, as well as the powers our governments have in requesting data or operational changes to those in the other jurisdiction. “I’m not sure how this investment will impact the regulatory environment or how available the UK public’s data is to US entities, but investment in UK data centre infrastructure is desperately needed. We’re leagues behind in the AI race and we need to close that distance. Just look at Taiwan, China, South Korea and the US, where there are so many innovative AI startups and hardware manufacturers. We’re forced to use their software and hardware because there simply isn’t an option from the UK. Even if there was, factors like the cost of electricity in the UK would price them out of the country. “Incentives for domestic R&D and nurturing homegrown startups are essential to combat this and just as important as investment in fibre and silicon. That means creating the conditions for UK-based companies to scale globally, rather than simply being acquired by overseas giants, and ensuring that researchers, engineers and startup founders see the UK as a place where their ideas have the conditions to thrive, not just survive. Without that the UK risks becoming a well‑connected consumer of AI, rather than a genuine creator and exporter of it. “When the investment was announced, David Hogan, Nvidia’s head of enterprise sales for the Europe regions, was quoted as saying “This will truly make the UK an AI maker, not an AI taker”. If that is the case, I’m glad the government is taking steps to help the UK catch up with our competitors. But I’m tentative nonetheless, because I’m wondering what the US is getting in return for such a significant investment.” TALKING POINT Mark Boost James Walsh
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