In a global tech landscape dominated by the US and China, the EU faces significant challenges in staying competitive. Chloe Teevan and Raphael Pouyé argue that, with the threat of US tariffs looming and growing demands for labour, resources and markets, the EU must strengthen alliances with diverse global partners and develop a more coherent narrative for its external digital technology offer.
Summary
In a global tech sector dominated by the United States and China, the EU faces critical challenges in maintaining its competitiveness, which will likely be aggravated by Donald Trump’s return to the White House. The recent bankruptcy of NorthVolt and struggles of Germany’s AI champion Aleph Alpha highlight the need for a more robust technology ecosystem. Following the Draghi report on EU competitiveness, advocates are calling for meaningful reforms and investments with the aim of driving industrialisation and innovation, and developing sovereign digital infrastructures rooted in democratic values.
With potential US tariffs in the offing and a need for labour, resources and markets, the EU must build alliances with a wide range of global partners – from likeminded tech leaders like Japan and Korea, to major emerging economies like Brazil, India, Indonesia and Nigeria. The EU has taken some steps to develop its digital diplomacy and launched the Global Gateway strategy focused on infrastructure investments in the Global South.
We argue that the EU needs a more coherent narrative and a stronger external digital technology offer. This should integrate responsive technology diplomacy with an attractive packaging of key tech solutions and approaches that it is developing at home. This requires scaling up the EU’s policy dialogue with global partners and engaging actors across the EU’s economic, technology and foreign policy sectors.
About the Authors
Chloe Teevan is the head of ECDPM’s digital economy and governance team.
Raphael Pouyé is a political analyst and policy expert in democratic innovations and digital governance. He teaches “Open Government and Citizen Participation in the Age of AI” at Sciences Po Paris. He previously led strategic democracy support assignments at the French Development Agency and served as Country Director France for Democratic Society, focusing on public innovation and participatory climate governance. His previous role as Democracy and Innovation Expert with the European Commission included advising 35 EU Delegations and launching the first EU global civic tech contest.