The European Union’s international digital strategy must support RDI, know-how and data use
CSC welcomes the EU’s objective to strengthen its global technological sovereignty, competitiveness, security and prosperity through a strategy on international digital policy. Digital technologies shape the world at an unprecedented pace, and reinforcing EU action globally enhances Europe’s ability to benefit from global developments in key digital areas, such as AI, high-performance and quantum computing, data management, and connectivity, while also shaping these technologies in a human-centric, responsible and sustainable direction.
Given the rapid global evolution of digital technologies, research, development and innovation (RDI) must be a priority in Europe’s international digital strategy. Digital technologies are also becoming indispensable to scientific research and innovation, which are increasingly driven by global cooperation and competition. By leveraging RDI-focused digital cooperation with partner countries, the EU can access resources, technologies and know-how beyond its borders. This helps the Unions digital competitiveness by enhancing research and innovation, ultimately leading to better products, services and more effective responses to global challenges like diseases, global warming or loss of biodiversity.
The international digital strategy must be aligned with Horizon Europe, its successor framework programme, and the Digital Europe Programme. Focusing on common European priorities and building on existing successes creates a basis for impactful and coherent international digital policy. At the same time, the strategy must steer and coordinate European RDI programmes towards growing, strategic international collaboration. In addition to leveraging Horizon and Digital Europe associations, deepening collaboration in selected fields with various countries can bring new opportunities for digital diplomacy and RDI.
Data is a central factor of digital transformation. Tapping into global data flows enriches and diversifies resources available to researchers and innovators in European academia and business. Simultaneously, Europe must better utilize its own data assets, ensuring their ownership and security, as a key part of technological sovereignty and reducing dependencies. The value from data must benefit Europe, while contributing to broader global progress in research, innovation, and digital development. This requires investments in European data infrastructures, their federations and technologies such as high-performance computing, AI, quantum, and network connectivity, to process the data needed for AI models, simulations and other analyses benefiting society. Next-generation digital innovations are based on big volumes of well-managed, high-quality data, including sensitive categories like health data. Improving our own capability and ownership of such data gives muscle for international digital cooperation, too.
Data and technology alone will not deliver the potential of digital transformation, but human skills, competence and knowledge are equally essential. Advancing research cooperation, knowledge exchange, and talent mobility programmes in digital technologies must be integral components of the international strategy. Leveraging and advancing state-of-the-art infrastructures like EuroHPC supercomputers and the AI Factories can attract and keep talent and boost the continents upskilling. The strategy must support these efforts with a long-term strategic view and align with the Union of Skills and other digital skills programmes.
For a sustainable and human-centric digital future, the EU must seek stronger influence over global digital governance processes. Increased European engagement in multilateral fora and bilateral relations but also in more technology-specific work of standardisation bodies or international consortia, e.g. in AI, promotes European values, regulatory approaches and compatibility, and tech solutions while helping to identify operational opportunities.
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Irina Kupiainen
Irina Kupiainen is responsible for CSC’s Public Affairs.