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Bangkok Post
15-07-2025
- Business
- Bangkok Post
Ending European tech stagnation
As the tech revolution intensifies, Europe is finding itself on the sidelines, particularly in AI. This is a problem not only for Europe but for the broader Western alliance. As other regions surge ahead with tech-centric ambitions, the prospect of Europe fading into digital irrelevance is becoming stronger. While US tech giants dominate the current AI landscape, Europe's own champions are few and far between. The continent that led the industrial revolution now struggles to foster globally competitive tech behemoths -- not for a lack of talent or innovative spirit, but rather because a complex mix of fragmented markets, cautious investment climates, and a regulatory environment that inadvertently stifles innovation. The result is growing dependence on external technologies and a diminished capacity to shape the digital future according to Europe's values and interests. This digital lag is as much a strategic vulnerability as it is an economic problem. Europe's tech deficit should concern the US almost as much as European governments. After all, a technologically weakened Europe is a less capable partner in addressing global challenges, from economic competitiveness to security. The US also knows that it cannot hold back the tide of Chinese technology alone. And Europeans know that there is no alternative to US power. Each still needs the other. As Europe and the US seek a new tech relationship, East Asian countries like Malaysia, powered by government investment and dynamic private sectors, are making enormous strides. The Middle East, too, is leveraging its resources to become a new hub for AI development and tech innovation. This rise of new tech power centres is, in itself, a positive development, fostering global competition and innovation, but it underscores the need for Europe to reclaim its position. The greatest challenge, however, comes from China, which makes no secret of its ambitions to achieve global AI dominance by 2030. China's "Digital Silk Road" initiative is already spreading the country's tech infrastructure and influence across Europe, Africa, and beyond. And this isn't just about market share; it's also about embedding technical standards, surveillance capabilities, and, ultimately, China's authoritarian model into countries' digital DNA. If the US and Europe fail to offer a compelling, democratic alternative, much of the world's digital infrastructure will be controlled by a strategic rival. The solution is a clear-eyed strategy -- a transatlantic technology pact for the 21st century, with a 2030 horizon. This strategy must revolve around a positive AI agenda, one that goes beyond simply trying to regulate or contain risks. We need to articulate a vision for how AI can be a force for good -- advancing science, improving health care, addressing climate change, and creating new economic opportunities. Europe recognises this: the Draghi report of EU competitiveness, the Paris AI Action Summit, and the recent Nato summit in The Hague all show an awareness of the need for radical change. This new pact should focus on fostering joint research and development in foundational AI models and critical enabling technologies. Existing mechanisms like the Joint European Disruptive Initiative, the Nato Innovation Fund, and the Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic can serve as platforms for joint research and development in strategic dual-use technologies. We must also emphasise interoperability, especially in defence-related technologies. The turn by countries on both sides of the Atlantic towards reindustrialisation provides a strategic opportunity to align efforts around interoperable digital and hardware systems, strengthen defence supply chains, and avoid duplication. Shared standards and joint development of critical capabilities such as cloud, AI models, cyber, and quantum will ensure transatlantic resilience in the face of future conflicts. The turn by countries on both sides of the Atlantic towards reindustrialisation provides a strategic opportunity to align efforts around interoperable digital and hardware systems, strengthen defence supply chains, and avoid duplication. Shared standards and joint development of critical capabilities such as cloud, AI models, cyber, and quantum will ensure transatlantic resilience in the face of future conflicts. This will require investing in the joint digital infrastructure of the future, from next-generation networks to secure data centres. AI and emerging AGI systems will place immense demands on energy, computing power, and storage. The US and Europe must ensure we have the physical and digital backbone to support our AI ambitions, coordinating around semiconductor and advanced compute supply chains. This is where public-private partnerships can play a crucial role, bringing together governments, industry, and academia. The security of critical infrastructure, including in strategic locations like Taiwan, must be a shared priority, as digital and geopolitical stability are inextricably linked. An important goal of transatlantic cooperation must be to offer an alternative to China's digital expansionism, particularly in developing countries. This means providing competitive financing, open-source technologies, and training that aligns with democratic principles and promotes open, interoperable systems. Only by acting together can the US and Europe provide countries with a compelling alternative to China's surveillance-driven model. Lastly, we must rejuvenate our democracies to make them fit for the technological age. The decisions we make -- or fail to make -- in the coming years will determine whether the US and Europe can lead the next wave of tech advancement, or whether we will be reacting to a world shaped by others. A Europe that is merely a consumer, rather than a creator, of critical technologies will be a Europe with a diminished voice and influence. ©2025 Project Syndicate Ylli Bajraktari, a former chief of staff to the US National Security Adviser and a former executive director of the US National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence, is CEO of the Special Competitive Studies Project. André Loesekrug-Pietri is Chairman and Scientific Director of the Joint European Disruptive Initiative, the European advanced research projects agency.
Yahoo
10-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
JP Morgan chief's message to Europe: ‘You're losing'
Europe is 'losing' the fight for economic supremacy against its main rivals China and the US, and faces a drought of globally competitive companies, the head of JP Morgan has warned. Jamie Dimon, chief executive of the world's biggest bank, warned EU leaders that the trading bloc had lost its edge compared to America. 'You're losing,' he told an event organised by Ireland's foreign ministry. 'Europe has gone from 90pc US GDP to 65pc over 10 or 15 years. That's not good. 'We've got this huge strong market and our companies are big and successful, have huge kinds of scale that are global. You have that, but less and less.' Mr Dimon is one of the world's most influential bankers, having led JP Morgan for almost two decades since taking over as chief executive in 2006. The JP Morgan boss has repeatedly voiced concerns about the state of Europe's economy, while calling on the EU to boost its economic growth. In April, Mr Dimon told the Financial Times that Europe needed 'to do more' to stay competitive. 'The GDP per person has dropped from something like 70pc of America to 50pc. That's not sustainable,' he said. 'I think Europe has already recognised it needs to change its own rules, regulations, and guidelines if they want to grow faster.' His comments come as EU leaders seek to kickstart the bloc's economy following more than a decade of underwhelming growth since the 2008 financial crash. In a 400-page report last year, Mario Draghi, the former president of the European Central Bank, warned of a widening gap between the size and strength of Europe and America's economies. In response, Mr Draghi's report called for an extra €750bn (£646bn) to €800bn worth of investment in the EU's economy each year to help secure the bloc's future competitiveness. The report warns that the EU faces an 'existential challenge' due to its weak economy, which it blames on slow development of its technology industry. The Draghi report adds that the abrupt loss of cheap gas supplies from Russia due to the war in Ukraine is now making the situation faced by the EU even worse. The JP Morgan chief has also been a vocal critic of Brexit, including warning that the UK's exit from the EU could see jobs in the City moved to European financial centres including Paris, Frankfurt and Amsterdam. In his annual letter to investors in 2021, Mr Dimon said: 'In the short run (i.e. the next few years), [Brexit] cannot possibly be a positive for the UK's GDP.' A JP Morgan spokesman declined to comment further on Mr Dimon's remark. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Euractiv
10-07-2025
- Business
- Euractiv
Europe's sweet spot: Dual-use tech for security and sovereignty
Where wars are no longer won by who has the most boots on the ground, but by who deploys the fastest drone swarm, who can protect their critical energy grid from cyberattacks, and who processes intelligence at machine speed – not ministerial pace. In this world, every power outage, water failure or disrupted satellite signal is not just an inconvenience, it could be an act of war. In this world, Europe is falling behind. And yet, his is also a world where Europe holds a secret weapon: our industrial strength, our tech talent and a unique position at the intersection of civil innovation and strategic security. Europe's strategic sweet Spot Dual-use technologies – those serving both civilian and military purposes – are Europe's strategic sweet spot. They sit at the crossroads of innovation and security, but without the market scale needed to win the tech race. A digitally modernised and secure energy grid is efficient and good for the environment, but it is also resilient to cyberattacks. High-speed 5G and satellite communication is as vital for battlefield communication as it is for data driven businesses. Drones and anti-drone equipment can prevent cyber-attacks on water or energy facilities, but they can also defend soldiers at the frontline in war. Over 80% of targets in Ukraine are hit by cheap drones connected to the AI and earth ground control planform Delta. Drone Tech, green tech, cyber defence tools, satellites, applied AI – these are areas where Europe excels and but lacks demand and therefore companies are looking for other markets to scale and innovate. The EU is facing a major opportunity to build the future defence, but not through loans to traditional defence-equipment and spending county by country. This time around we do this right, let spend 50% of the EU defence fund building EU dual-use capabilities utilising the European market scale, not national nitty-gritty budget. Speed over tradition The war in Ukraine has shown that military advantage is no longer determined by the biggest spenders but by the most agile innovators. Billion-euro tanks and warships are being neutralised by €5,000 drones. Innovation cycles have shrunk from years to weeks. Yet Europe still defaults to traditional models. Germany's €100 billion defence package went largely to tanks and planes, whilst Quantum Systems – a Bavarian drone, satellite an AI platform firm and winner of the DIGITALEUROPE Future Unicorn – delivered over 1,000 drones to Ukraine. Germany's own army ordered just 14. Companies like Quantum need scale and faster procurement, not more paperwork, and unless they get it in EU, they need to go to US. Success today depends on speed, scale and client references, we do not need R&D funding, unless connected to procurement and real business deals – we do innovation for a living. Escaping the regulation trap Europe is world-class at regulation – but regulation doesn't build tech champions. The Draghi report estimates €200 billion in annual compliance costs from EU rules. For tech firms, the true burden is likely far greater. Excessive complexity stifles speed and scalability – essential ingredients in today's global markets. Positive steps are underway. The Commission is working on a 'digital package' to simplify compliance with the EU's digital rules, including importantly on cyber. But we must go further – we must look at both the Data Act and the AI Act to avoid a compliance cliff for companies. A delay in the application of these laws is necessary so that we can seriously streamline these rules to make sure they don't hurt our most promising European digital champions, from medical devices to energy and industrial manufacturing. From spending to building Europe's public sector spends nearly €9 trillion annually – half our GDP. But spending alone is not enough. How we spend is what matters. Fragmentation across 27 countries weakens our impact. As Enrico Letta and Sauli Niinistö rightly observed in their reports, we need cross-border, mission-driven programmes that consolidate efforts and protect critical infrastructure – our energy, water, data centres, transport and hospitals. This is where dual-use tech can shine: protecting European Citisens whilst building up scalable markets for European dual use and defence capabilities. In short, let us address the second battlefield and the thousands of hybrid attacks on critical infrastructure whilst building the capabilities that will define winning or losing at the physical battlefield at war. Strategic Openness Some call for 'Buy European' policies. But shutting others out won't make us stronger. The US 'Buy American' model, in place since 1933, doesn't exclude foreign ownership – it incentivises building and scaling innovations in America. Europe should adopt a similar approach: 'Built in Europe.' Let's attract European and allies' investment, encourage European and foreign companies to manufacture and share know-how here, and ensure that public contracts go to firms that contribute to European resilience – regardless of nationality. This is not about protectionism. It's about strategic industry capacity. Five steps to reclaim tech leadership 1. Streamline regulation – Eliminate duplication, simplify implementation, and harmonise across Member States. 2. Turn research into revenue – demand commercialisation strategy and industry involvement in R&D funding – only a third of European inventions are commercialised here. That must change. 3. Make dual-use tech our launchpad – Focus EU funds on 10 cross-tech procurement and innovation projects that protect critical infrastructure. 4. Fix procurement – Reward security, innovation and speed over price and solidity. 5. Adopt 'Buy Built in Europe' – Build strategic scale whilst remaining open and globally competitive. Europe's defining opportunity Europe has the talent, innovation and values to lead. What we need now is direction and urgency. We won't build tech champions through isolation. Nor will regulation alone protect us. Our best chance lies in embracing dual-use and defence technologies – where Europe already has capabilities, and where market demand is growing fast. By investing in technologies that protect our societies and drive our economies, we can simultaneously enhance security, create jobs, attract investment and build globally competitive firms and get ready and build capacity for the war frontline. This is Europe's sweet spot where they do not need to fight old doctrines of national sovereignty on defence – large-scale pan-European procurements and investments on dual use tech for protection of civil critical infrastructures. Let's act decisively – and lead with it. Cecilia Bonefeld-Dahl is the Director-General of DIGITALEUROPE.
Business Wire
26-06-2025
- Business
- Business Wire
Accenture Report: European Firms Must Accelerate AI Adoption to Close Productivity Gap
MILAN--(BUSINESS WIRE)--European companies must strengthen the capabilities needed to scale AI faster if they are to address the growing productivity gap and enhance the region's overall competitiveness, according to a new report released by Accenture (NYSE:ACN). The study highlights that the average European worker now produces only 76% as much as their US counterparts, a significant decline from being on par 30 years ago, with persistent underinvestment in technology identified as a major cause. Despite the recent Draghi report into European competitiveness pointing to AI as a potential solution to Europe's productivity problems, Accenture's research found that European companies are yet to take full advantage of the AI opportunity. Currently more than half (56%) of the 800 large European companies surveyed have yet to scale a major AI investment. Yet if all large (€1 billion+) European companies enhanced their AI capabilities to match those of leading industries, Accenture found that almost €200 billion could be added to annual business revenues. Mauro Macchi, CEO of Accenture in EMEA, said: 'At a time when geopolitical uncertainties are on the rise, finding a solution to Europe's productivity gap has never been more crucial. AI provides a unique opportunity for Europe to reinvent its economy and significantly boost its competitiveness. European firms are making progress but need to further leverage cloud, modernize data architecture and focus on skilling in order to scale AI faster and unleash its full potential. A coordinated industrial strategy, including shared AI infrastructure and investments will also avoid dispersion of initiatives and help businesses across all European countries access powerful computing, R&D, and training. Europe has all it needs to take advantage of the AI revolution. Now is the time to execute on it.' The study found that large European companies are adopting AI more quickly than smaller companies, which could further impact Europe's productivity and competitiveness. Whilst nearly half (48%) of Europe's largest companies have scaled at least one transformational generative AI initiative, less than a third (31%) of smaller companies have. Europe has a higher concentration of smaller companies compared to the US, making this size of company a significant opportunity. AI adoption also varies across industries. Some sectors such as automotive, aerospace and defense are leading the way, while others, including telecommunications and utilities, lag behind. The report emphasizes that since these sectors provide critical regional infrastructure such as energy systems and digital networks, their relatively low AI maturity poses a competitiveness and sovereignty concern for the region. The industrial sector, which accounts for more than a quarter of Europe's GDP is also yet to tap into the full potential of AI. These disparities underscore the need for a more uniform approach to AI adoption across all industries. The report also identifies key capabilities, from data to talent, that companies need to drive value from AI investments. These AI capabilities are well spread across countries, with Switzerland, Germany, the UK and France, on average, home to slightly more AI-ready companies, than Italy and Spain. To fully realize the benefits of AI, the report calls for the development of a robust, competitive AI ecosystem in Europe. This includes helping smaller companies level up on AI, nurturing a sovereign European AI ecosystem, and developing a coordinated industrial strategy. Additionally, AI literacy and workforce development are critical, as many European workers (60%) are concerned about job displacement, and a third (36%) do not feel suitably trained to use AI efficiently. The report identifies several key barriers to scaling AI, including setting up a robust data foundation, building and maintaining multi-disciplinary teams, managing security and privacy risks, and demonstrating business value. To overcome these challenges, the report recommends: Data Foundation: Invest in breaking down data silos and building an end-to-end data foundation with quality data. Multi-Disciplinary Teams: Focus on talent development, including training and continuous learning opportunities, to build and maintain the necessary expertise. Security Risks: Adopt a secure digital core to reduce vulnerabilities, redundancy, and technical debt. Business Value: Identify and implement concrete use cases with proven ROI. AI Literacy: Provide more training and support to employees and ensure that AI tools are accessible and user-friendly. About Accenture Accenture is a leading global professional services company that helps the world's leading businesses, governments and other organizations build their digital core, optimize their operations, accelerate revenue growth and enhance citizen services—creating tangible value at speed and scale. We are a talent- and innovation-led company with approximately 791,000 people serving clients in more than 120 countries. Technology is at the core of change today, and we are one of the world's leaders in helping drive that change, with strong ecosystem relationships. We combine our strength in technology and leadership in cloud, data and AI with unmatched industry experience, functional expertise and global delivery capability. Our broad range of services, solutions and assets across Strategy & Consulting, Technology, Operations, Industry X and Song, together with our culture of shared success and commitment to creating 360° value, enable us to help our clients reinvent and build trusted, lasting relationships. We measure our success by the 360° value we create for our clients, each other, our shareholders, partners and communities. Visit us at
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
We're criticising GDPR for all the wrong reasons
'Simplify', 'Streamline', 'Scale back'. While EU communiqués often find creative ways to avoid uttering the word 'deregulation', this new European Commission is all about boosting the bloc's competitiveness by 'cutting red tape'. The intention to stimulate the continent's economy might be laudable, but there is a real risk of throwing the baby out with the bathwater. The Draghi Report, presented in September 2024, laid the foundation for a shake-up of one of the EU's crown jewels in digital regulation – the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). According to the report, certain regulations present 'overlaps and inconsistencies', leading to fragmentation. Draghi pinpointed GDPR as a particular source of headaches, thanks largely to its complexity, burdensome national implementation, inconsistent local enforcement, and disproportionately high compliance costs for small and medium enterprises compared to larger corporations. Now the whispers are over: GDPR now seems headed for the chop, much like sustainability reporting rules before it. Yet the world has changed dramatically in recent months, meaning many of Draghi's proposals are tailor-made for a context that no longer exists. Additionally, the US' disastrous DOGE experiment offers a stark cautionary tale of deregulation leading to chaos rather than efficiency. Legal institutions, after all, are complex systems designed for the critical purpose of protecting people's rights. Leer más: Robust rules are essential to guaranteeing clarity and transparency. Especially in the digital sector, setting clear guardrails is vital to containing both the excesses of tech oligarchs and the erraticism of their satellites-in-chief. Far from slashing red tape, the EU would be wise to take this opportunity to refocus its energies on delivering and enforcing better regulations. EU regulations are often cast as stifling the continent's innovation, but EU trade law professor Anu Bradford argues that this narrative is, at best, oversimplified. Europe's sluggish dynamism can instead be attributed to a wide range of structural issues, including a fragmented digital single market, underdeveloped capital markets, and harsh bankruptcy laws that punish failure rather than encourage experimentation. Looking beyond the fiscal level, European cultural attitudes tend to be more risk-averse, and the bloc lacks the proactive immigration policies needed to attract international tech talent. Experts have also clarified that if fragmentation truly impedes innovation, trimming regulation without serious harmonisation of domestic frameworks will achieve little. While regulation like the GDPR is often unfairly scapegoated for the continent's woes, it is not exempt from criticism. Consider the algorithmic management (AM) and AI systems that have steadily infiltrated workplaces in recent years. Recent OECD figures reveal that in France, Germany, Italy, and Spain, around 79% of managers across diverse sectors report that their firms already use AM software to hire, organise and monitor their workforces. Algorithms and AI are not just assisting managers either – in some cases they are replacing them altogether. This ushers in new risks, and entrenches or amplifies old, unresolved problems such as unfairness, opacity, incontestability, dysfunctionality and distrust. The boom in decision-making digital tools perfectly illustrates the GDPR's ambivalent role. On paper, it remains a gold-standard shield for personal data, including the data used to fuel Generative AI applications. Yet in practice, the GDPR struggles to fully address the challenges posed by machines making decisions, either independently or on behalf of human managers. In one recent study commissioned by the EU Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, data protection frameworks are put under the microscope to see whether they can tame AM systems. The verdict was mixed, leaning towards pessimistic. While it is undeniable that the GDPR can be mobilised to limit data processing and avoid repurposing, most of its headline provisions have wide gaps when it comes to the workplace. The study flags the indeterminacy, ambiguity, and open-textured nature of the rules on automated decision-making, among other things. For instance, semi-automated decisions – hybrid systems with human intervention at the last stage of the executive chain – often slip beneath the radar, reducing the chances for workers to be informed about their existence and reasoning, or to have a real shot at contesting and changing their outcomes. In a similar vein, uncertainty about the interpretation of grounds for lawful processing and the application of the proportionality principle is leading to a patchwork of discordant decisions made by Data Protection Authorities. As the case law on data controllers' 'legitimate interest' shows, compliance risks becoming a postcode lottery. None of this should come as a surprise, as the GDPR was designed to be general, not workplace-specific. Nevertheless, its exceptions and loopholes disadvantage workers, and create uncertainties that affect companies. In a different season, institutions were contemplating the introduction of a work-specific instrument to govern algorithms, a proposition that was also included in the mission letter of Roxana Mînzatu, Executive Vice-President for Social Rights and Skills, Quality Jobs and Preparedness. The current deregulatory drumbeat, stimulated by the US fury against EU powers, has cooled that talk, but the idea is not dead. Workplace technologies are still largely governed by consumer-oriented data protection principles, even though employment contexts differ profoundly. Employers routinely collect sensitive data that extends managerial control into workers' emotional domains, and AM systems intensify these dynamics by automating decisions and generating detailed profiles. The persistent and asymmetrical nature of workplace surveillance undermines autonomy and erodes mutual trust. Unlike consumers, workers cannot meaningfully refuse these intrusive practices, making power imbalances more acute. Moreover, data harms are often collective, threatening solidarity and enabling anti-union practices. The Platform Work Directive (PWD) offers a ready-made compass to reorient action on workers' digital rights. Indeed, a whole chapter is devoted to fine-tuning the GDPR to better govern AM at work. As argued in a policy brief, several PWD provisions appear to be deliberately drafted to fill the gaps left by the omnibus framework. The PWD covers 'decisions supported by' algorithms (not just fully automated ones), extends workers' information and access rights, re-establishes a right to explanation, and bans robo-firing outright. It is, however, crucially limited, as its sectoral scope stops at the gig-economy's edge, leaving everyone else in the open. If the GDPR is not good enough for delivery couriers and click-workers, why is it still being applied to all other workers? Blaming the GDPR for Europe's growth woes makes for great clickbait, LinkedIn memes and after-dinner quips, but it ignores the real issues. Looser privacy rules will not fix our problems. On the contrary, a smarter framework for workers' digital rights could serve as a robust counterbalance, ensuring that AM operates as a tool for efficiency rather than unchecked command-and-control. By all means, critique the GDPR, but aim at the right target. Its abstract, transactional, individualistic DNA is ill-suited to the collective, lopsided reality of modern workplaces where employees' data feed into black-box AI systems. In those environments the answer is not to prune protections, but to reinforce them by clarifying legal bases, establishing red lines, hard-wiring collective rights, and closing the enforcement loopholes. Reform, yes. Regression, no. Este artículo fue publicado originalmente en The Conversation, un sitio de noticias sin fines de lucro dedicado a compartir ideas de expertos académicos. Lee mas: Outdated legal frameworks are a barrier to the EU's just transition – here's how we can fix them The EU's 'twin' green and digital transitions: a policy revolution, or just Euro-jargon? How the UK could monetise 'citizen data' and turn it into a national asset Antonio Aloisi no recibe salario, ni ejerce labores de consultoría, ni posee acciones, ni recibe financiación de ninguna compañía u organización que pueda obtener beneficio de este artículo, y ha declarado carecer de vínculos relevantes más allá del cargo académico citado.
