A study by Accenture (NYSE: ACN) has revealed that European organizations are placing more emphasis on maintaining control over their data and existing infrastructure which is on track to accelerate the overall demand for sovereign AI. Sovereign AI refers to the ability of a nation to create and launch AI solutions using local infrastructure, data, models and talent to “protect data from foreign access, bolster competitiveness, and decrease reliance on overseas technology providers.”
In Europe, 62% of organizations are seeking sovereign solutions in response to current “geopolitical uncertainty, a concern that’s heightened among Danish (80%), Irish (72%), and German (72%) organizations.”
Sectors with regulatory requirements and sensitive data are most likely to lead sovereign AI adoption “including banking (76%), public service (69%), and utilities (70%).”
This trend is now expected to grow in the coming years, as the majority or around 60% of European organizations intend to “increase investments in sovereign AI technology especially those in Germany (73%), Italy (71%) and Switzerland (64%).”
The survey indicates that, on average, just one-third (36%) of AI initiatives and data within European organizations require “a sovereign approach due to regulatory requirements or data sensitivity.”
Capital markets and public services are sectors “where such measures apply to a higher share of data.”
European organizations are now said to be looking for a balance between data control and access to tech advancements, with the majority or 65% noting that they cannot stay competitive without non-European tech providers.
Most or 57% are considering the possibility and feasibility of using sovereign solutions from European and non-European providers.
For its role, Accenture is helping Telia Cygate gain an early lead assisting Swedish organizations adopt various AI services.
Accenture is now said to be working across the ecosystem in Europe, including with AI infrastructure providers such as Amsterdam-based Nebius, to provide clients with a foundation “for their own sovereign AI factories that enable them to meet data residency requirements.”
Nebius is an AI cloud platform intended to support the lifecycle of AI workloads, integrating hardware, software and data centers located across Europe and the Middle East.
Mauro Capo, Digital Sovereignty lead for Accenture in EMEA said that sovereign AI approach is “not about holding everything in one place.”
Capo added that the goal is to make technology choices “according to the degree of control organizations want to exercise over data, AI infrastructure and models, while benefiting from the scale, service breadth and pace of innovation that some non-European providers offer.”
These choices are decided by the use case and national priorities. Some cases need only “local data residency, while others, in defense for instance, call for full sovereignty over the different AI components – local data, infrastructure and model, advanced encryption, or even air-gapped systems when necessary.”
Only around 19% or 1 in 5 of organizations tend to view sovereign AI as a competitive advantage, while “48% cite compliance requirements as their primary motivation for adopting sovereign solutions.”
Sovereign AI is perceived as a technical issue within businesses, as “only 16% of European companies have made AI sovereignty a CEO or board-level concern.”
But there’s a recognition of its strategic importance, with “73% of organizations calling for governments and institutions, such as the EU, to play a key role in enhancing Europe‘s digital sovereignty, via regulations, subsidies, public investments.”
Small and medium enterprises are also seen as “critical in this pursuit, with 70% of organizations considering it as important to helping them access sovereign solutions.”
Accenture shares suggested actions to potentially maximize opportunities from sovereign AI:
- CEO Ownership: Sovereign AI must be a CEO-led priority, aligning AI strategy with enterprise risk, growth, and geopolitical realities for maximum impact.
- Reframe Sovereignty: Organizations should shift from viewing sovereignty as mere risk mitigation to leveraging it as a source of value creation and competitive advantage.
- Expand Your Ecosystem: Companies should build hybrid ecosystems that combine local trust with global innovation, tailoring sovereignty measures to where they matter most.Redefine Architecture: Firms need to architect AI across a multi-cloud continuum, embedding sovereignty into every layer – data, infrastructure, models, and applications – for resilience and adaptability.
This latest research study bring together quantitative, qualitative, policy research to examine how governments and enterprises are enabling sovereign AI and sovereign cloud.
It is said to be based on a survey of 1,928 organizations across 28 different countries and 18 industries conducted during the time period of Jul–Aug this year. Respondents were senior tech and policy professionals including- CIOs, CTOs, chief data, AI and risk officers – from public as well as private sectors.