EU Tech Loop wrap-up: June 2024

Is Brussels' regulation of tech on the ballot at the EU elections?

Yaël Ossowski was right to be skeptical about the European Parliament's candidates' modesty in tech-related pre-election debates. We hope this will change soon. Read the full article here.

4 reasons why we can't have #ChatControl in the EU

Privacy activists across the EU were happy to see the Belgian Presidency remove the #CSAM #ChatControl vote from COREPER in June. Still, the Hungarians who overtook the Presidency of the Council of the European Union on July 1 claim they will continue working on this matter. Egle Markeviciute explains here why #ChatControl and the elimination of end-to-end encryption are dangerous and incompatible with European values.

EU's degrowth policies fence Europeans off from benefits of open-source AI

Last month, META announced they will postpone the launch of META AI product to European users. While we appreciate European legislators taking matters of privacy, market power, and competition seriously, we will likely see the 'unintended Brussels effect' continue where European consumers are blocked from being able to access the most innovative products in the future as well. Yaël Ossowski's article here.

Letta's report: everything tech-related you need to know

Former Italian Prime Minister Enrico Letta's report on the future of the Single Market is considered to be one of the most influential in shaping the next European Commission's agenda. Egle Markeviciute reflected on Letta's ideas relevant to European digital and electronic communications transformation, including "the fifth freedom," public procurement, scaling of European champions, the future of the European telco market, and 6GHz, as well as IBAN discrimination. Ideas are great, execution is everything – we believe the next European Commission and the European Parliament needs to focus on better implementation of already existing plans, strategies and regulations.

Hungarian Presidency of the CoE: the most important tech & telco agenda points

"Make Europe Great Again" said Hungarians, who took over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union from Belgium on July 1, 2024. Egle Markeviciute reviewed the Hungarian Presidency's agenda points relevant to the tech and telecommunications sector. Among many other things, Hungarians promise to continue working on CSAM/Chat Control,  review the European Commission's white paper on the future of digital infrastructure in Europe (particularly interesting given their relationship with high-risk vendors), and push for the right to telework.

Moving from on-premise to gov-cloud: lessons from Europe

As countries rapidly advance digital transformations, state-owned data needs secure and efficient management. This must avoid burdening future generations with costly commitments. European governments are still seeking solutions, each with specific challenges. Egle Markeviciute (who's also had hands-on experience on this matter in her previous role) explores the lessons of moving from on-premise to gov-cloud in the public sector here.

Meet the 'E-GOV Owl': CEE governments' digital transformation report

Last but not least, the EU Tech Loop launched a new project - an overview of the Central Eastern European (CEE) government's digital transformation projects and regulatory initiatives over the past year. The CEE is known for its fast-paced digital transformation, yet the region still lags behind the EU average in many e-government parameters and can learn from each other. We also believe that the CEE's digital transformation experience is easily applicable in other regions of the world, therefore both good (and bad) practices in digital transformation should be shared freely. Read the full report here.

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