More than just a buzzword: What does digital sovereignty really mean?
Digital sovereignty is not self-sufficiency, nor is it about being “anti” or “against” something. Nor is it about building everything yourself and cutting yourself off from the rest of the world. It’s about control, freedom of choice, and the ability to act across three levels: over one’s own data, over the applications used, and over the underlying infrastructure.
A sovereign individual is someone who knows at all times where their data is stored, who can access it, and under which legal framework that access takes place. A sovereign individual is also someone who can switch providers without crippling their own operations. In short: sovereignty is not measured by what works under normal circumstances, but by what remains when the framework conditions change.
Why is this topic gaining momentum right now?
The catalyst is not academic, but political and economic. Just recently, in early June, the European Commission presented its package on technological sovereignty – including the Chips Act 2.0 and the Cloud and AI Development Act (CADA). The goal of CADA is to at least triple data center capacity in Europe over the next five to seven years and to specifically give preference to European providers in public tenders.
The background is clear. Non-European hyperscalers currently dominate over 70% of the European cloud market – with all the consequences that entails for prices, data access, and bargaining power. This dependence is measurably costly and increasingly risky: Estimates put the cost to the EU at around 264 billion euros per year. The EU is taking action in response. And it is not acting alone: companies are also shifting their priorities. In a EuroCloud survey, 45% of members cited digital sovereignty as the top trend for 2026 – ahead of even artificial intelligence.
It has not escaped anyone’s notice just how much the past few years have brought the issue of independence to the forefront. The pandemic, conflicts, political uncertainty – the list of wake-up calls is long. They all point to the same conclusion: sovereignty has long been a tangible business priority. The key here is to distinguish this from isolation. Partnerships remain indispensable, including international ones. But we urgently need to question just how much of our own influence we are relinquishing in the process. That is the central lesson.
What does this mean in concrete terms for companies?
For companies, sovereignty is not some abstract concern in Berlin or Brussels, but rather a matter of procurement, operations, data, and compliance. Regulations such as NIS-2 and the EU Data Act require companies to provide precise answers regarding where data is stored and who has access to it. Those who cannot provide this evidence will face not only a security issue in the future, but also legal and reputational risks.
Added to this is resilience. An IT system that relies on a single provider is only as stable as that provider’s availability, pricing policy, and legal status. A request for access from a foreign jurisdiction, a change in license terms, or an outage – and suddenly, it’s not just a tool that grinds to a halt, but an entire business process. In this context, sovereignty means identifying, assessing, and managing dependencies before they become a problem.
Obligation or opportunity? The scope for action and the true added value
The crucial shift in perspective: sovereignty is not just a matter of fulfilling obligations, but a competitive advantage. Those who can demonstrate data sovereignty win the trust of customers, partners, and regulators – an increasingly compelling selling point, especially in B2B business and the public sector.
What’s more, control fosters innovation. Those who know where their data is stored and are free to combine it can drive AI, analytics, and new business models forward without legal headaches. Data sovereignty is thus not a roadblock to digitalization, but rather a prerequisite for it. It transforms compliance from a cost factor into a foundation for growth.
For many companies, the question of sovereignty opens the door to something new – new technologies, potentially better providers, more cost-efficient solutions and operating models, less of a “black box,” and more service. IT “Made in Germany/EU” and open source are being dismissed with a smirk less and less often. On the contrary: they are increasingly proving to be tailor-made strategies for domestic markets, structures, and requirements – not IT “by features,” but “by design.”
What matters: Sovereignty is a spectrum, not an all-or-nothing proposition
The most common fallacy is the black-and-white view: either fully sovereign or completely dependent. In practice, sovereignty is a spectrum. The key is to distinguish critical workloads from non-critical ones and to secure sovereignty where it truly matters.
What you should look for: the location of the data and the operators, transparent access and operating models, control, and genuine freedom to switch rather than lock-in. Within this framework, you can get the best of all worlds, especially by focusing on transparency and control.
Conclusion: Sovereignty pays off
Digital sovereignty has evolved from a political vision into an operational necessity. It does not mean isolation, but rather control: over data, applications, and infrastructure. Those who approach it strategically not only comply with regulations but also gain trust, resilience, and freedom of action – three assets that are becoming increasingly valuable in the digital marketplace.
In Part 2 of this series, we’ll delve a level deeper – to the foundation of sovereignty: What role do data centers, the cloud, and IT infrastructure play? Where is the data physically located, who operates it, and under which legal jurisdiction? Finally, Part 3 will examine: What contribution do specific platforms and solutions – particularly those in IT security – make, and what matters most in terms of deployment, usage, and service models to ensure that this aspiration becomes a reality?
Digital sovereignty with DTS
DTS approaches digital sovereignty not as a marketing promise, but as an operational business model. The strategic core: DTS combines all relevant roles under one roof – manufacturer, reseller, operator, and consultant. This comprehensive “sovereignty stack” covers all levels, including data, technologies, operations, and strategies. DTS’s proprietary security software and platforms are developed “Made in Germany” in accordance with EU standards and are hosted exclusively in two of the company’s own certified high-performance data centers in Germany. The U.S. Cloud Act or the commonly encountered “IT black box” solutions play no role here.
Where technologically feasible, DTS deliberately curates European and open-source alternatives and supplements them with its own solutions where the market leaves gaps. The result is a pragmatic, transparent pro-EU stance rather than a purely anti-U.S. position. Customers retain data sovereignty, transparency, and control – while simultaneously meeting stricter requirements such as NIS-2. It is precisely this combination of a complete stack, infrastructure, and traceable services that makes DTS unique in the German market.