At the OVHcloud Partner Network Summit 2026 in Cologne, around 200 IT decision-makers discussed the technological independence of Europe. The conference focused on sovereign cloud architectures.
The debate over the strategic direction of European IT infrastructure is gaining momentum amid global market shifts. This year’s Partner Network Summit, held aboard the passenger ship MS RheinDiamond in Cologne, brought together IT experts, cloud users, AI developers, and startup representatives. The central theme of the conference was how European companies can maintain their innovative strength without losing control of sensitive data to non-European entities.
Management consultancy PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) outlined current geopolitical developments in a keynote address. It became clear that regulatory and economic pressures on European companies are rising, creating a need to implement risk-mitigated infrastructure strategies. In this context, digital sovereignty is no longer viewed merely as a political buzzword, but as a business necessity to secure supply chains and mission-critical processes.
During technical presentations and live demonstrations, practical solutions for building multi-cloud architectures were showcased. A key focus was placed on handling and analyzing large data volumes via standardized data platforms, allowing for flexible and timely cloud migration projects.
The conference paid special attention to data-sensitive industries. AI company Lector, together with IT service provider ITSC, presented a user report demonstrating how sovereign cloud structures can support the implementation of Artificial Intelligence in healthcare. The case study illustrated that compliance with European data protection standards (such as GDPR) and the protection of patient data via local cloud infrastructures form the basis for the adoption of AI-driven diagnostic tools.
The relevance of this topic is reflected in the findings of the latest study, “B2Best Barometer 2026: Focus on Digital Resilience,” conducted by the ECC Köln (Institute for Trade Research) in collaboration with synaigy and OVHcloud. According to the study, discussions surrounding IT independence are leading to a measurable shift in mindset among German B2B enterprises.
The surveyed IT executives cited transparency and technological self-reliance as their primary motivations for pursuing digital sovereignty. For 58 percent of respondents, maintaining full control over their own data is the main priority, while 44 percent view technological independence as their primary goal. Nevertheless, a pragmatic approach prevails in practice: 61 percent of IT decision-makers use a combination of European and non-European cloud solutions. One-third of the companies explicitly rely on German data centers to store business-critical information.
Risk perception regarding non-European providers is highly differentiated: 47 percent of participants see potential dangers in the unstable geopolitical climate, while 40 percent classify legal and regulatory uncertainties as major risk factors.
A core element of the conference was the presentation of industry awards, honoring companies for their innovation and collaboration within the European tech ecosystem. The recognized German representatives for 2026 include:
- Codesphere (Independent Software Vendor of the Year)
- FlyPix AI GmbH (Scale Up of the Year)
- Qvest Group GmbH (New Partner of the Year)
- PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) (Business Excellence Partner of the Year)
- Auctores GmbH (Partner of the Year)
Conference organizers emphasized that building a sustainable cloud infrastructure in Europe must rest on the pillars of sovereignty, security, and technological openness. The objective remains to provide businesses with the necessary tools to shape their digital transformation sustainably and independently.
Dr. Jakob Jung is Editor-in-Chief of Security Storage and Channel Germany. He has been working in IT journalism for more than 20 years. His career includes Computer Reseller News, Heise Resale, Informationweek, Techtarget (storage and data center) and ChannelBiz. He also freelances for numerous IT publications, including Computerwoche, Channelpartner, IT-Business, Storage-Insider and ZDnet. His main topics are channel, storage, security, data center, ERP and CRM.
Contact via Mail: jakob.jung@security-storage-und-channel-germany.de